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Open-heart surgery was the turning point for this nurse-turned-actress
As an aspiring nurse working in an emergency room, Stacy Beckly decided to get some advice about pain she was having on the left side of her chest. Although tests showed no problems, something felt strange. Doctors said it could be anxiety. In college, the chest pain continued. Sometimes it...
Racism in employment, housing, police interactions may raise Black women's heart disease risk
Interpersonal racism experienced through employment, housing and interactions with police may increase the risk for heart disease in Black women, new research suggests. The findings, considered preliminary until full results are published in a peer-reviewed journal, were presented Wednesday at the American Heart Association's Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health conference in Boston.
Home-based cardiac rehab may lower death risk for U.S. veterans
U.S. veterans who participate in home-based cardiac rehabilitation following a heart attack or heart procedure may have a lower risk of dying than their peers who refuse the treatment, new research suggests. But more than half of those eligible don't participate, according to the study, published Wednesday in the Journal...
For Black churchgoers in New Orleans, religious beliefs may influence health behaviors
Members of Black churches in New Orleans who believe religion plays an important role in their health may be more likely to eat fruits and vegetables, be physically active and have confidence asking questions of health care providers than their peers who don't share that belief, new research finds. The...
Mediterranean lifestyle, not just diet, may greatly improve health
Much is known about the heart-health benefits of adopting a Mediterranean-style diet, with its heavy focus on whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fish and healthy oils. But what about the rest of the Mediterranean lifestyle?. Short of lounging on the beaches of southern Italy or an island in Greece, could adopting...
Take it from 2 runners whose hearts stopped during the same race: A heart-healthy lifestyle is best
Michael and Danuta Heilemann were approaching the 3-mile mark of the Monterey Bay Half Marathon when they heard the siren. The noise kept getting louder, so they knew it was headed their way. The Heilemanns were still running when they saw an ambulance pull over ahead of them. Then they...
Black women in childbearing years face higher blood pressure risks than white peers
Black women are more than twice as likely as their white peers to have uncontrolled high blood pressure during their childbearing years, raising their risk for pregnancy-related complications, new research finds. The analysis, which also showed 1 in 4 Black women and 1 in 3 Hispanic women lack access to...
His heart stopped on a treadmill at the gym. His wife gave him CPR.
Mark Wangrin and his wife, Barbara, put on their athletic gear and drove to their Austin, Texas, fitness center for an early morning Sunday workout. Mark hopped on treadmill No. 1. Barbara climbed onto a nearby rower. Then she switched to weights. While running, Mark glanced at the digital board...
Much has been learned about long COVID – and much remains to be learned
This much researchers agree upon: Long COVID is a serious and sometimes debilitating condition that can strike previously healthy people after even mild bouts of COVID-19. And rapid progress is being made in understanding it. But three years into the pandemic, much about long COVID – what causes it, how...
While home recovering from COVID-19, she saved her husband's life
One day last July, Mike Button settled into his home office, ready to start catching up on the backlog of things that had accumulated over his latest prolonged stretch away from work. In April, his mom had died following a prolonged illness. Around the same time, he was diagnosed with...
Give me a beet: Why this root vegetable should be on your plate
Meet the beet. Fans of "The Office" may know it as the mainstay of Schrute Farms. Others may have casually tossed them into conversation, remarking that someone has turned "beet red" from embarrassment. While the crimson-colored vegetable has deep roots in American culture and colloquialisms, it rarely seems to make...
Active, healthy, pregnant … and in need of a new aortic valve
Erin Kidwell had worked all day and needed a break. Exercise is her favorite release, so she did a few squats and jumping jacks, then headed out for a run. Instead of being home in Dallas, she was visiting her parents in Midland, Texas. About two-thirds of the way through her route, she started to feel dizzy. Her ears rang and her vision blurred. It was August, so she thought the heat and humidity may have left her dehydrated.
Understanding the stroke-depression link – and what survivors and families can do
News that one of America's best-known stroke survivors was being treated for depression highlights a common and serious connection between the two afflictions. Last May, Sen. John Fetterman made national headlines after his near-fatal stroke. On Thursday, his staff announced he had checked into a hospital for depression. He'd experienced depression off and on throughout his life, but it had worsened in recent weeks.
The connection between menopause and cardiovascular disease risks
Hot flashes and night sweats – they are the hallmark symptoms of menopause. But there's something else happening to women entering their late 40s and early 50s that they can't see or feel and may not even know about: Their cardiovascular disease risks are rising. "As women transition through...
Take it from Damar: Learning CPR is easy, quick and can save a life
As you followed the story of Damar Hamlin's heart stopping during an NFL game, the questions surely ran through your mind. What if I saw someone in cardiac arrest? Would I know what to do?. What if my heart stopped? Would anyone around me know what to do?. Hamlin himself...
Next feat for doc who gave CPR to 2 runners in 1 race? Preventing more hearts from stopping.
Running the Monterey Bay Half Marathon, Dr. Steven Lome kept his eyes locked on two runners ahead of him. They were his oldest kids, 16-year-old Jadyn and 14-year-old Ian. Both are on their high school's cross-country team and, Lome said, "both are way faster than me." His goal was to keep them in sight as long as possible.
To make history, a major study on Black heart health looked beyond the lab
A quarter-century ago, the foundations were laid for the Jackson Heart Study, one of the most significant research efforts in the history of heart health. As the largest single-site study of Black people's heart health ever undertaken, it would eventually spawn more than 800 scientific papers and provide critical insights on genetics, prevention and more, based on examinations of thousands of Black men and women living in and around Jackson, Mississippi.
Older adults with irregular sleep patterns may face higher risk of hardened arteries
Older adults with irregular sleep habits may face a higher risk for hardened arteries than their peers with regular bedtimes and hours of sleep, new research suggests. The study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, found adults 45 and older who fell asleep at different times each night and slept an inconsistent number of hours were more likely to develop atherosclerosis, a buildup of plaque in artery walls that can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
Heart problem could've ended his college basketball career before it began. It didn't.
When shooting guard King McClure showed up at Baylor University in 2015, he was one of the top recruits in the country. An NBA career seemed likely. But before he even made it to his first college game, a doctor told him that his basketball career was over – forever.
Mom's exposure to air pollution, even before pregnancy, may raise baby's heart defect risk
Maternal exposure to air pollution may raise the risk for heart defects in an unborn child, according to new research from China that suggests the risks are just as high in the three months prior to pregnancy as they are during the mother's first trimester. "It means reducing air pollution...
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Heart and Stroke News: Stories about people, science and health, from American Heart Association News.
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