Heart Health
Heart health is integral to wellness, and knowing heart health risks and how to reduce them can
greatly affect your quality of life. A recent study of middle-aged and older men by the Harvard
School of Public Health, for example, found that a healthy lifestyle is associated with a lower
risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), even among men taking antihypertensive or lipid-lowering
medications. The study also revealed that 62 percent of coronary events may have been prevented if
all men in the study population adhered to five healthy lifestyle factors defined as not smoking,
daily exercise, moderate alcohol consumption, a healthy body weight and a healthy diet. For those
men taking medications, 57 percent of coronary events could have been prevented.
As study research team co-leader Stephanie Chiuve says, "It's never too late to make changes
to become healthier." Read on for heart health information that can assist you with those changes.
