Heart and Disease: Risk Rises Before Your Blood Pressure is "High"
Doctors consider prescribing drugs when your blood pressure is high—that is, it’s at least 140 over 90. But it’s a threat to your blood vessels before it crosses that line. [HT] “People don’t realize...
View ArticleWhat’s with the Controversy about Salt in Food?
Excess salt is harmful, concluded a recent study, while a second study—which had serious shortcomings—suggested that too little salt can also be dangerous. An estimated 1.65 million deaths from...
View ArticleDiet and Weight Loss: Is there something different about abdominal fat?
People with more visceral (deep belly) fat have a higher risk of both cardiovascular disease and cancer. [DW] Scientists monitored 3,086 men and women (the average age was 50) in the Framingham Heart...
View ArticleHow to Diet: Does Potassium Protect Against Strokes?
For years, researchers have known that getting enough potassium may lower your blood pressure. A new study suggests that potassium may prevent a stroke in people who don’t have high blood pressure....
View ArticleVitamin Supplements: Multivitamins for Your Heart
Will a multivitamin cut your risk of disease? For heart disease and stroke, the answer appears to be no. [HT] “In the Physicians’ Health Study II, we found no evidence overall that taking a multi for...
View ArticleHow to Diet: Can Chocolate Protect your Heart and Brain?
“To improve a memory, consider chocolate,” ran the New York Times headline in October. “A few squares of dark chocolate a day can reduce the risk of death from heart attack by almost 50 percent in some...
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A Healthy Mediterranean Diet
The new PREDIMED (Prevención con Dieta Mediterránea) study was big news. Spanish researchers reported that high-risk people on either of two “Mediterranean” diets had a remarkable 30 percent lower...
View ArticleMagnesium-Rich Foods to Prevent a Stroke
More magnesium may mean a lower risk of stroke. Researchers looked at seven studies that followed a total of roughly 240,000 people for eight to 15 years. The risk of an ischemic stroke was 9 percent...
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Is Canola Oil Healthy?
“Poisonous.” “Toxic.” “Avoid like the plague.” Is canola oil healthy? For some reason, people love to hate it. Really hate it. That’s partly because the canola plant is derived from rapeseed, which...
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Coconut Oil Myths Persist in Face of the Facts
“Miraculous.” “Amazing.” “Life Saving.” Some people love coconut oil, the “virgin” oil kind made by puréeing coconut meat and gently heating it. And they love the myths about its health benefits. Too...
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