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'Grief is not on anyone else's timeline': The varied experiences of coping with loss
Kyme Holman-Williamson was always close to her older brother, Eddie. So when she learned he needed a heart transplant, she immediately prepared a room for him in her Maryland home, where she could care for him after his surgery. What she didn't prepare for was his death. Eddie Holman, a...
New report details how to fine-tune Asian diets for better heart health
Just as the term "Asian American" encompasses a vast number of people and cultures, the idea of an "Asian diet" oversimplifies differences in what they eat, a new report on heart health says. Understanding those differences is important for the United States' fastest-growing ethnic group and the professionals who tend...
She wanted to thank the surgeon who saved her life as a baby. She did – as his colleague.
Hours after Sarah Hernandez was born in La Verne, California, doctors diagnosed problems with her heart – problems they couldn't fix. So they arranged for her to be flown to nearby Children's Hospital Los Angeles. The trouble involved two valves in the newborn's heart. One valve was deformed and...
How a self-care expert takes care of herself
Self-care means many things to many people. To Dr. Beth Frates, director of lifestyle medicine and wellness in the department of surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, it boils down to "caring for your body, mind and soul." And to do that, she might pick up a hula hoop....
Blood pressure: What do the numbers mean and why do they matter?
It's a standard part of any medical visit. Someone, typically a nurse, wraps a cuff around your arm and asks you to sit quietly while the cuff squeezes to the point of discomfort, then slowly eases its grip. Some numbers get jotted down in your chart. "136 over 79." What...
Screening may detect cognitive impairment, dementia early in stroke survivors
More than half of U.S. adults who survive strokes develop cognitive impairments in the year that follows, a new science report says. As many as 1 in 3 survivors will develop dementia within five years. A new scientific statement from the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association summarizes the...
A stroke at 30 sapped an elementary school teacher's joy. Then she reclaimed it.
Elementary school teacher Rachel Henry had been having monster headaches for a few weeks. She complained about them to colleagues, family, even the school nurse. No one seemed concerned about the 30-year-old. Henry, who lives in Worcester, Massachusetts, assumed they would pass. At a routine checkup for a thyroid condition,...
Hispanic people – especially men – are less likely to see a doctor, and the reasons can be complex
Language barriers, cultural differences and systemic health inequities are among the reasons many Latino people, particularly men, avoid doctor visits – and that could lead to dire outcomes, experts warn. Studies have suggested that of all racial and ethnic groups in the United States, Hispanic people are least likely...
Here's how 10 popular diets scored for heart health
Thinking about trying a new diet but not sure which way to go? An evidence-based analysis of 10 popular eating patterns shows some promote heart health much better than others. A scientific statement from the American Heart Association published Thursday in its journal Circulation found the Mediterranean, DASH-style, pescetarian and...
Workplace discrimination linked to high blood pressure risk
People who feel discriminated against at work may face a substantially higher risk of developing high blood pressure, new research shows. The study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, defined workplace discrimination as working in unfair conditions or facing unpleasant treatment at work because of personal characteristics, such as race, sex or age.
Doctors said weight and stress caused her symptoms. They came from a blocked heart artery.
After a week of remote work in Farmington Hills, Michigan, Denise Castille was packing up her desk and preparing to leave for the airport to catch a flight back to her home in McKinney, Texas. Most of her co-workers had already left for the Independence Day long weekend when Denise,...
Long COVID in children still poses plenty of questions
In the constantly unfolding tale of the pandemic, long COVID – the persistent effects that can follow a SARS-CoV-2 infection – is among the more challenging twists, one that researchers are just beginning to grasp in adults. And in children, it might be a whole other story. "It's...
Since her heart transplant, she treats every day like a birthday
Jen Lentini was a 13-year-old competitive baton twirler and lacrosse player in the Long Island town of Hicksville, New York, when the problems began. The pain started in her stomach. It was so severe that she'd often sit through a couple of classes then call her parents from the nurse's office, asking to go home. Her grades started to slip. She didn't hang out as much with friends.
Concerns remain as COVID-19 pandemic weighs on Hispanic people in US
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Hispanic population faced disproportionately high case numbers. As the coronavirus crisis enters its fourth year, and with some federal resources set to expire soon, concerns remain about the continuing impact of COVID-19 on Latino people. Between Jan. 22, 2020, two days after the...
Exercise kept her family history of heart disease at bay for decades – until she hit 65
Jana Turner had always enjoyed a sense of control over her life. She never married or had children. Her career in commercial real estate remained her top priority, culminating in a rise to becoming a partner in her company. She also took control of her health. Because her parents and...
Her parents needed a Spanish-speaking doctor. She's becoming one to break down health care barriers.
Growing up in Chicago, Melissa Rodríguez Mendoza initially had designs on working in the fashion industry. Trips to the doctor's office with her parents changed her mind. Immigrants from Mexico, her parents mainly spoke Spanish and had trouble finding Spanish-speaking doctors. Melissa would accompany her mother and father to medical visits to be their interpreter.
Pregnant women with depression may face higher heart disease, stroke risk after delivery
Women who experience depression during pregnancy are more likely than those who don't to be diagnosed with cardiovascular disease within two years of giving birth, new research suggests. The study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, adds to a body of research linking depression in men...
What is commotio cordis, which NFL player Damar Hamlin says stopped his heart?
Damar Hamlin has confirmed the cause of his near-fatal collapse on "Monday Night Football" as commotio cordis, a rare event caused by a blow to the chest. "This event was life-changing, but it's not the end of my story," Hamlin said Tuesday. Hamlin, 25, a safety for the Buffalo Bills,...
On a snowy day, the warmth of a stranger kept one man alive
In the early months of 2021, heavy snow blanketed the city of Philadelphia. Justin Stroh and his wife, Bess, both in their 60s, had been taking turns shoveling the snow in front of their suburban home. On a Monday in February, the snow was falling fast and hard, dumping 1 to 2 inches an hour before mixing with rain. The combination made it too heavy to clear. The Strohs considered taking a long walk with Michael, their Labrador mix, but decided it was too slick to walk safely.
This food expert aspires to a diet full of goodness – but he didn't always
Christopher Gardner was once a junk-food-devouring teen. Today, he eats a whole-food, plant-based diet, works to improve the food system and encourages people to "be intentional about food choices. Think about them, ask others about them, discuss them, be aspirational in terms of trying to hit as many of the high notes as you can at one time."
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Heart and Stroke News: Stories about people, science and health, from American Heart Association News.
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