Heart disease kills an estimated 630,000 Americans each year. It’s the leading cause of death for both men and women.

In the United States, the most common type of heart disease is coronary artery disease (CAD), which can lead to a heart attack. You can greatly reduce your risk for CAD through lifestyle changes and, in some cases, medication.

But the good news is…in most cases, heart disease is optional!  You can absolutely lower your risk and even prevent the development of heart disease.  Whether you already have heart disease or not…you can control your disease, or even prevent disease from being part of your life by making some changes in your life. Here are a few tips:

• Watch your weight.
• Quit smoking and stay away from secondhand smoke.
• Control your cholesterol and blood pressure.
• If you drink alcohol, drink only in moderation.
• Get active and eat healthy.
• Talk to your doctor about taking aspirin every day if you are a man over the age of 45, or a woman past menopause.
• Manage stress.
• Eat vegetables, fruit, whole grains and lean proteins.
• Watch your portions

A healthy life can be yours, but you have to make the choice, and take the actions to make it so.

Fish Oil Supplements and Your Heart

A recent study in Japan  resulted in EPA (a fatty acid found in fish oil) being approved for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and peripheral artery disease, and in Europe, for reduction of mortality after a heart attacks.

The study mentioned above, included over 18 though individuals with the mean age of 61 and whose average total cholesterol was 251. Individuals received 600mg of EPA three times per day or a popular lipid lower medications (a statin such as lipitor or crestor). Most of these individuals had no hix of cardiovascular disease.

After nearly 5 years of observation, the group taking the EPA had significantly fewer cardiovascular events.

Note:  this study did not look at prevention of primary cardiovascular disease. It did not study individuals in the US where fish and fish oil products are consumed less and where lifestyle differs significantly. In other words, it is difficult to say this is significant fro those of us in the US.

That said…I do eat fish, and will continue to take EPA.
 

Chances are if you or a love one take Avandia, you have heard this news. It seems that many of my patients heard this news before I did and called in a panic wanting to stop their medication. It reminded me  of when the Women’s Health Initiative came out saying that Estrogens were dangerous. Women around the country immediately stopped their HRT (and had all sorts of side effects from the abrupt cessation of estrogen).

While no medication is free from potential side effects, let’s stop for a moment and breathe. Let’s look at what we have.

1. Researchers did a meta-analysis of several other studies looking at Avandia. For those of you who don’t know, a meta-analysis just means they looked at other studies and brought the data together into one document (more or less a simplified description).
2. In all cases, those studies (I believe) were looking at the effects of Avandia on blood sugar…not cardiovascular complications.
3. People with diabetes already have a high risk of having a heart attack or other cardiovascular events. To determine if a medication is at the route of increased heart attacks, one must design the study to be able to filter out the heart disease due to diabetes vs medication.
4. None of the studies that were looked at, included Avandia’s close relative, Actos.
5. Depending on how the numbers are “crunched”, apparently different people were coming up with different data. (One of the things I find fascinating about studies…the way you ask the question, can determine it’s outcome).

The American Diabetic Association and the American Heart Association, issued statements stating that these are questions that certainly need to be asked (effects of Avandia and Actos on cardiovascular risk), but at the present time, urge individuals taking these medications to discuss this with their providers and not just stop the medication.

Currently, already in the works, is a study (RECORD) that is looking at cardiovascular risk in those taking Avandia. That study is expected to be complete with results available by 2009.

In the meantime, if you are looking for the “magic bullet” for diabetes care, I highly recommend taking a good long look at your diet and how you can increase your activity. In most cases, taking action on diet and exercise provide maximum benefits with almost no side effects. And often, it reduces the needs for the various medications that most people with diabetes have to be in, including medication for blood pressure and cholesterol.

(c)2007 Barbara C Phillips, NP

A new study was released which showed that women were up to 10% less likely to achieve adequate control of their cholesterol readings than men.

Researchers at the National Committee for Quality Assurance looked at several measures for cardiovascular disease and diabetes prevention, treatment and risk factors among patients in 46 different commercial managed care plans and 148 Medicare plans.

Most of the time, women had equal or better outcomes than men. Except for having our cholesterol levels under control. This is important, as elevated cholesterol levels (hyperlipidemia) is a major contributing factor to cardiovascular disease (heart attacks, strokes, hypertension). And heart attacks are the number one killer of both men and women.

So…make sure you see your provider and find out what your numbers are and what you can do to reduce your risk. You can search HealthAgingForWomen for more information on cholesterol. In addition, you’ll find more information here and here.

Stay healthy!

Aspirin, which has been recommended by many studies over the years to reduce the risk of heart disease, is now recommended for women who are older and prone to cardiovascular disease.

This latest recommendations comes from researchers at the Nurses Health Study. Started in 1976, the NHS has been one of the longest and most significant studies to date on several aspects of women’s health.

Recent data shows that middle aged and older women who took aspirin had a 25% lower risk of death compared to those who never took it. This included a 38% decrease risk of death from cardiovascular disease and a 12% lower risk of death from cancer.

Of course, aspirin (like everything else) is not without side effects, so make sure you speak with your health care provider to see if this is something for you.

 

It’s the first of the year and many people are working on quitting smoking. Here is a surprise resource that my patients alerted me to…Philip Morris!

They have developed a program called Quit Assist. I would imagine is may have to do with damage control…but if it helps you quit…who cares?

You’ll find other resources listed at OlderWiserWomen Quit Smoking Resources

We’ve known for a long time that folic acid is good for pregnant women. And actually, we’ve known for a while that folic acid can lower homocystine levels (which is thought to damage the linings of your arteries) in those whose levels are high. In a recent British study, they looked again at folic acid and found that it can cut an individuals risk of heart attacks by 10-20%. About one in ten are thought to have a genetic mutation which can increase homocystine levels.

So which veggies are high in folate/folic acid? The green leafy ones….bok choy, spinach, kale, mustard and collard greens, Swiss Chard, etc.

Bon Appétit!

Women who say no to carbs, but yes to protein as recommended in the South Beach and Zone diets, do not increase their risk of coronary heart disease, according to researchers here.

And women who consume low-carbohydrate diets that emphasize vegetables rather than animals as the source of protein and fat may be rewarded with a moderate reduction in risk of heart disease.

Read More:No Heart Risk for Women Who Favor Protein Over Carbs

The results of a European study recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine showed that virgin olive oil contained more antioxidants that a more refined olive oil. What does this mean to you? More antixoidants may offer more protection against heart disease.

In this study those taking the virgin olive oil had higher levels of polyphenols (a certain class of antioxidants), higher levels of HDL (the good cholesterol that protects your heart) and higher levels of substances that help prevent the oxidantion of the LDL (bad cholesterol). All of this means you may be able to lower your risk of heart disease and strokes by using virgin olive oils over other types of oils in your diet.

How much olive oil? The participants, all men, ate about 1 tablespoon of virgin olive oil per day for three weeks. (Other particpants ate refined olive oil or a mixture of virgin and refined).

Remember when adding fats to your diet to look at your overall fat intake.

This news release points out once again that smoking of any sort is not good for you. Just yesterday I met a young woman who had a four month old baby. She had just quit smoking one week ago. She deserves lots of congratulations as she is going extremely well given many of her challenges. She was rightly worried that her mother continues to smoke, even when caring for the infant. That is rude beyond belief to me.

Second case in point. I saw a woman yesterday who has smoked for many years. Her blood pressure has been creeping up over. When I saw her just weeks before I told her to take her blood pressure and pulse at home BEFORE she had a cigarette, and then again right after. The results were even more dramatic that I suspected they would be. Her blood pressure rose by nearly 40%!!! If you smoke, try this yourself…it will give you that final push to stop smoking for good.
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Any Tobacco Use Raises Heart Attack Risk
08.17.06, 12:00 AM ET

THURSDAY, Aug. 17 (HealthDay News) — All types of tobacco use or exposure — smoking, chewing, or secondhand smoke — boost a person’s risk for heart attack, Canadian researchers say.

Researchers at McMaster University in Ontario analyzed data from more than 27,000 people in 52 countries and factored in other lifestyle traits — such as diet and age — that could affect heart attack risk. They found that any form of tobacco use or exposure was harmful.

Publishing in the Aug. 19 issue of The Lancet, they found that moderate and heavy smokers had a three-fold increased risk of a heart attack and light smokers (8-10 cigarettes a day) had a two-fold risk.

The risk decreased with time after a person stopped smoking, the study said. Among light smokers, there was no excess risk 3 to 5 years after they quit smoking. Moderate and heavy smokers still had an excess risk of about 22 percent even 20 years after they kicked the habit.

The researchers also concluded that exposure to secondhand smoke increased the risk of heart attack in both former smokers and nonsmokers. People with the highest levels of secondhand smoke exposure (22 hours or more per week) have about a 45 percent increased risk of heart attack, the study said.

Chewing tobacco doubled the risk of heart attack, the researchers found.

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You’ll find more information about smoking and quiting at the OlderWiserWomen Smoking Cessation page.