Heart Beat

Chrome dome doesn't mean sicker ticker

Some men "" think Yul Brynner, Sean Connery, or Michael Jordan "" make balding look good. For most of us, though, it's a pain. A double pain, if balding is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, as some studies have suggested. Take heart, all ye with receding (or receded) hairlines. At least half of the studies on this topic, including the latest one, show no link between balding and heart trouble.

In the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, researchers found no substantial links between patterns of baldness, or its severity, and heart attack risk. Taking this research a step further, they found no link between baldness and the buildup of cholesterol-laden plaque in the carotid arteries, a marker of the health of the circulatory system.