The American Heart Association hopes that its definition of ideal cardiovascular health will encourage people to strive to be healthier.

 

Aiming high is usually a good strategy for achieving a goal... except when it backfires. That's what happened with a large clinical trial dubbed AIM-HIGH. It was suddenly stopped more than a year ahead of schedule, casting a cloud over the use of niacin, a safe, effective medication with a proven track record for raising levels of protective high-density lipoprotein (HDL).

AIM-HIGH was designed to gauge whether adding a prescription form of niacin (Niaspan) to a cholesterol-lowering statin makes sense for people with low HDL. This combination had been tested in earlier trials, all of which showed a benefit. ...

People with heart disease should take aspirin; the decision is trickier for those without it.

For survivors of a heart attack or a clot-caused (ischemic) stroke, and for almost everyone else with coronary artery disease, there's an across-the-board recommendation to take an aspirin a day. But what about folks who haven't been diagnosed with heart disease? Can an aspirin a day help them, too?

Aspirin reduces the risk of having a first or repeat heart attack or ischemic stroke. It does this by making platelets less likely to form blood clots. How much it can help depends on your cardiovascular ...

 

Whether it is best to aim for "normal" or float a bit above remains to be determined.

Blood pressure isn't a bad thing. Quite the contrary — the heart needs a certain amount of pressure to deliver oxygen-rich blood to the farthest reaches of the body and the brain. Blood pressure becomes a problem only when it rises too high or falls too low.

High blood pressure wreaks havoc in the circulatory system. It does its dirty work silently and over the course of many decades. High blood pressure (also known as hypertension) is a key contributor to heart ...

 

The target for the safest amount of "bad" cholesterol continues to drift downward.

In 1986, a "desirable" blood level of low-density lipoprotein (LDL, the so-called bad cholesterol) was 130 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). Today, information from medical anthropologists and some high-powered clinical trials suggests the new "desirable" should be half that. This has guideline writers, doctors, and the rest of us wondering: how low should we go with LDL?

LDL and arteries Low-density lipoprotein particles are small, relatively buoyant spheres made up of lipids (fats) and proteins. In the right amount, LDL is good — necessary, actually. It ferries ...

Evidence of coffee's cardiovascular benefits continues to accrue.

Carotid ultrasound tests are not necessary or helpful for people who are in good health and not experiencing any warning signs of stroke risk.

The Food and Drug Administration has concluded that angiotensin-receptor blocker medications used to treat high blood pressure do not increase the risk of developing lung cancer.

Q. I spend part of every summer on the coast of Maine. One of the things I love to do there is swim in the ocean for 20 or 30 minutes. The water is cold (55� F) but I don’t mind. I’m almost 80. I had my mitral valve repaired five years ago, and my heart rate is sometimes irregular. Are my cold-water swims okay for my heart?

A. Swimming is an excellent exercise for the heart, arteries, lungs, and muscles. If you enjoy swimming in cold water and have been doing it for some time with no ill effects, ...

I had a heart attack three years ago at age 78. My doctor started me on lisinopril, carvedilol, and aspirin. My total cholesterol is 190, and my LDL is 128. Should I be taking a statin?

Q. On my last blood test, my triglycerides were 280. Should I be worried about that? My doctor wants me to start taking something called Lopid. Is there another solution?

A. Under the current national cholesterol guidelines, fasting triglycerides should be under 150 milligrams per deciliter of blood (mg/dL). Your level is almost twice that, and well into the high triglycerides category, which begins at 200 mg/dL.

The amount of triglycerides in the bloodstream rises after a meal and then falls as the triglycerides are processed and used for energy or stored as fat. Triglycerides are usually measured after an ...