Cardiovascular Health
Not Everyone Benefits From High HDL
A National Institutes of Health-supported study found that high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, known as “good cholesterol,” may not be as effective as scientists once believed in predicting cardiovascular disease risk among adults of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. The research, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology,Read
Iron Fuels Chronic Heart Failure
A multi-institution study published in Nature Communications reveals that iron drives fatty tissue formation in the heart and leads to chronic heart failure in roughly 50 percent of heart attack survivors. While survival after a heart attack is possible for most, too many survivors have long-term complications such as heartRead
High Blood Pressure and Dementia – There Is a Strong Link
Controlling high blood pressure later in life slashes the risk of dementia, according to a study in the European Heart Journal. While other trials have investigated the health benefits of lowering high blood pressure, not many have looked at its role in dementia. This global study involved more than 28,000Read
Heart Inflammation 7 Times More Likely With Covid Than Vaccines
Covid vaccines have been a controversial topic, to say the least. Now, a new study from Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine helps answer one of the questions about vaccine safety. According to scientists at Penn State College of Medicine, the risk of developing myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) is sevenRead
Lipid Energy Model
A large body of evidence supports the use of very low-carbohydrate ketogenic diets for weight loss, reversing metabolic syndrome, putting type 2 diabetes into remission, and improving a long list of other issues. And while most individuals who adopt this way of eating experience a decrease in total cholesterol andRead
Cocoa Capsules Lower Blood Pressure
For people with existing hypertension, capsules containing cocoa flavanols helped reduce blood pressure and arterial stiffness, according to a small study in Frontiers in Nutrition. Previous trials back up these findings — in fact, some research suggests that cocoa flavanols lower blood pressure and arterial stiffness as much as certain bloodRead
For Heart Patients, Too Little Salt Isn’t Always a Good Thing
When it comes to diet advice for heart health, we’ve all heard the same thing — reduce your sodium intake. Turns out, that may not be the best approach for everyone. According to a study in Heart, a publication from the British Medical Journal, restricting salt intake may actually worsen aRead
Eggs Lower Heart Disease Risk
An egg a day may keep the heart doctor away. That’s the conclusion of researchers who recently published a study in eLife journal. These new findings follow in the footsteps of a 2018 trial in Heart that involved more than half a million Chinese adults. They found that eating approximatelyRead
There is no such thing as “good” and “bad” cholesterol.
In this column, I’d like to take a closer look at three widely shared assumptions that greatly influence how we think about cholesterol and heart disease. Here are the three assumptions. See how many you agree with. There are two kinds of cholesterol, one “good” (HDL) and one “bad” (LDL).Read
Espresso Coffee’s Impact on Serum Total Cholesterol
That morning shot of espresso may be doing more than simply waking you up — it also could be increasing your cholesterol. According to a population-based, cross-sectional study published online in Open Heart, espresso consumption is significantly associated with higher serum total cholesterol levels, especially in men. As part ofRead