Cardiovascular

Research appearing in The Lancet (DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61239-8, published online Aug 31, 2008 ahead of print) shows that fish oil is beneficial to patients with congestive heart failure. The double-blind, placebo-controlled study took place in over 300 cardiology centers in Italy, and involved over 7,000 patients diagnosed with heart failure. Half of the subjects took a daily […]

If you combine all of the foods known to improve heart health, you could add years to your life, according to research appearing in the December 18, 2004 issue of the British Medical Journal. Earlier research has shown red wine, dark chocolate, fish, and fresh produce all improve heart health. The researchers estimate that eating

According to a study appearing in the journal Neurology (2003;61:1273-1275), consuming foods containing vitamin C reduces the risk of stroke. Smokers seemed to benefit from this effect more than non-smokers. The study involved 5,197 subjects, aged 55 years or older. The subjects lived in Rotterdam. None had any history of stroke or any cognitive problems.

Earlier research has shown that depression is common in people with heart disease. An article appearing in the February 2006 issue of the Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource says that the two conditions are often linked. The occurrence of depression in the general population is about one person in 20. In those with heart disease, the

In research appearing in the January, 2007 issue of the journal Stroke, over 4,000 subjects who were part of the Framingham Heart Study were monitored over an eight-year period. The subjects had scores on a standard depression scale (called CES-D) averaging six. Eleven percent of the subjects scored 16 or higher—these patients were considered depressed.

According to research published in the August, 2003 issue of Brain, Behavior and Immunity, obesity and depression can increase inflammation that can lead to heart disease. C-reactive protein (CRP) is a chemical that indicates the presence of inflammation, specifically inflammation that can irritate the lining of the arteries and lead to heart disease. A high

Perhaps the best known form of maual therapy is chiropractic. There are many techniques and professions that address the musculoskeletal system, using it to have a profound effect on health. Posture and Muscle Balance To simply say that poor posture stresses the spine doesn’t really convey how much of a burden poor posture is on

Many doctors who practice using natural health care feel that changing the type of fat and oil in an individual’s diet is perhaps the most important issue in health care. We now know just how terrible trans fats are for your health, but it wasn’t so long ago that cardiologists were advising patients to eat

Blood pressure should be checked periodically because it can be abnormal without causing any symptoms. Failing to find and adequately treat high blood pressure (hypertension) increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. Many things affect blood pressure, including neural, glandular, kidney and cardiovascular factors. High blood pressure can be caused by hardening of the

Certain Migraine Medications may not be Good for Heart Patients Researchers in the Netherlands found that some migraine medications cause the coronary arteries (the blood vessels feeding the heart) to contract. Narrowing of the coronary arteries caused by heart disease may result in chest pain or even heart attacks in an individual taking certain migraine