Heart Health Archive

Lowering high levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol, is important for preventing and treating heart disease. The other cholesterol-high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-is often called "good" cholesterol, but this may be misleading. While some HDL particles gather excess cholesterol from the bloodstream and artery walls and deliver it to the liver where it's excreted, other particles are not good at this job, and some can even increase levels. People should focus on their LDL and not focus as much on HDL unless it's very low or very high.

The surge in heat waves and extreme heat poses serious health risks for everyone but is a particular worry for older adults. What can you do to manage heat-related risks, especially if you have existing health conditions or take certain medications?

A 2025 study found that morning coffee drinkers faced lower odds of dying from cardiovascular disease-or any cause-over a 10-year period compared with people who drank coffee all day or people who didn't drink coffee at all.

Direct-to-consumer genetic tests can screen for rare heart conditions that arise from variants in a single gene (such as cardiomyopathies) as well as common conditions influenced by many thousands of gene variants (such as coronary artery disease). But because the results are not definitive, they can be challenging to interpret.

A healthy diet is a proven and powerful way to lower your risk of heart disease. Since dinner is often the main meal of the day, it's a good time to feature foods that support cardiovascular health. Four Harvard physicians share their favorite healthy dinners, which focus on lean protein (such as tofu, fish, and chicken) and a variety of vegetables.

A regular yoga practice may help people shed pounds while also improving their heart health. A form of low- to moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, yoga also stretches and strengthens muscles. A 2025 review article suggests that yoga can decrease body mass index, waist circumference, and body fat percentage while also improving blood pressure and cholesterol values.

Fatty plaque that accumulates in the arteries of the legs, known as peripheral artery disease (PAD), can cause a painful, crampy sensation in the legs during walking. Smoking, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and elevated cholesterol increase the risk of PAD, which affects nearly one in three people over age 75. Beyond quitting smoking, regular walking is the best treatment for PAD. A 2025 study found that semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) may help people with PAD walk farther with less pain.

A 2025 study suggests that squeezing a week's worth of exercise (150 minutes) into just one or two days - a "weekend warrior" pattern - is linked to the same heart benefits as daily exercise.