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Read More about Alternatives to warfarin may be safer, more effective for afib
Alternatives to warfarin may be safer, more effective for afib

Alternatives to warfarin may be safer, more effective for afib
For people with certain types of valvular atrial fibrillation, drugs known as direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) may be safer and more effective than warfarin (Coumadin). DOACs include apixaban (Eliquis), dabigatran (Pradaxa), and rivaroxaban (Xarelto).
Read More about Have a safe trip!
Have a safe trip!

Have a safe trip!
People with heart-related conditions or risks should take simple precautions when travelling by airplane. These include taking steps to ease stress, such as listening to music or reading a good book; bringing medications in their original containers in carry-on luggage; and not worrying too much about blood clots, which are uncommon during air travel even in people with a history of clots.
Read More about Treating sleep apnea: Good for your heart and mind?
Treating sleep apnea: Good for your heart and mind?

Treating sleep apnea: Good for your heart and mind?
Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when soft tissue at the back of the throat temporarily blocks the airway during sleep. People with sleep apnea face a heightened risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart attack, atrial fibrillation, and stroke. The condition can also affect mood, and some people diagnosed with depression may actually have sleep apnea. Treating apnea with positive airway pressure improves both high blood pressure and depression.
Read More about Are you wasting money on supplements?
Are you wasting money on supplements?

Are you wasting money on supplements?
Taking multivitamins doesn’t prevent heart attacks or strokes, and most dietary supplements (such as fish oil, red yeast rice, and coenzyme Q10) offer no or limited benefits for avoiding heart-related problems. For people who don’t have heart disease, eating two servings of fatty fish weekly or following a healthy vegetarian diet rich in nuts, legumes, and healthy oils makes more sense than spending money on over-the-counter fish oil supplements. People with heart disease would be better off asking their doctor about the prescription drug icosapent ethyl (Vascepa), a high-dose, purified EPA that lowers cardiovascular risk when taken with a statin.
Read More about Anxiety: Cause or effect of a racing heart?
Anxiety: Cause or effect of a racing heart?

Anxiety: Cause or effect of a racing heart?

Some panic attack symptoms—a racing heart, breathlessness and dizziness—overlap with supraventricular tachycardia. This heart rhythm disorder occurs when faulty electrical signals trigger a series of very fast heartbeats.

Read More about Diastolic blood pressure: Worth a second look?
Diastolic blood pressure: Worth a second look?

Diastolic blood pressure: Worth a second look?
A diastolic blood pressure reading lower than 60 mm Hg may be linked to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke in people at high cardiovascular risk. Diastolic pressure tends to fall with age. Some people with a low reading have a leaky aortic valve, which interferes with normal blood circulation throughout the heart and causes diastolic pressure to fall. But in people with healthy aortic valves who can be physically active without any symptoms (such as chest pressure, shortness of breath, or lightheadedness), a low diastolic blood pressure should not pose a problem.
Read More about Is a "normal" blood pressure reading too high for women?
Is a

Is a "normal" blood pressure reading too high for women?
A study published Feb. 16, 2021, in Circulation found that women with blood pressure readings in a normal range may still be at higher risk for cardiovascular events. For example, heart attack risk in women rose at a systolic (the upper number) reading of 110 to 119 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and was the same at this level as men with a systolic pressure of 160 mm Hg. But experts say it’s too soon to change blood pressure recommendations for women until more research confirms the results.
Read More about Pregnancy problems may predict heart health decades later
Pregnancy problems may predict heart health decades later

Pregnancy problems may predict heart health decades later
Growing evidence suggests women who experience certain health complications during pregnancy face a higher risk for cardiovascular disease later in life, such as heart attack and narrowing arteries. Lifestyle changes can help.
Read More about American Heart Association issues statement on cardiovascular side effects from hormonal therapy for prostate cancer
American Heart Association issues statement on cardiovascular side effects from hormonal therapy for prostate cancer

American Heart Association issues statement on cardiovascular side effects from hormonal therapy for prostate cancer
The American Heart Association issued a statement addressing cardiovascular risks from hormonal therapy for prostate cancer, emphasizing the need to identify men with pre-existing cardiac risk factors or a family history of cardiovascular diseases who should be monitored closely during treatment.
Read More about Excess weight linked with worse heart health even if you exercise
Excess weight linked with worse heart health even if you exercise

Excess weight linked with worse heart health even if you exercise

In the journals

Can you be "fat and fit" — that is, overweight but still healthy because of regular exercise? There is no simple answer. But one study says that activity does not entirely reverse the effects weight has on heart health. The findings were published online Jan. 26, 2021, by the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

The study involved more than 527,000 adults, almost 70% of whom were men. People were placed into three groups based on their body mass index (BMI): normal, overweight, and obese. They also were grouped by activity level: regularly active (the minimum requirement from the World Health Organization, or WHO); insufficiently active (less than the WHO minimum, but some moderate to vigorous physical activity every week), and no exercise.

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