Many of my patients who have a family history of heart issues seem to resign themselves to the fact that they will experience the same fate as their relatives. There’s nothing further from the truth. Genetics is not destiny. It is merely a predisposition. And that means you have a big say in your outcome…

To keep all of the organs in your body working, your heart muscle must work tirelessly. Unfortunately, as you age, your chance of heart failure goes up significantly. Aside from genetic factors, what you eat makes a big impact. And out of these 5 popular styles of eating, one could slash your risk by 41 percent…

Left unchecked, chronic stress can skyrocket your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. But few of us take the steps necessary to manage stress since it can seem difficult to overcome or too time-consuming to put in the effort. But a new study says you can do it in just 20 minutes a day…

Blood pressure, especially systolic (the top number) naturally creeps up as arteries stiffen with age, raising the risk for heart attack, kidney damage, and even cognitive problems. But what if there was something easy that only took 5 minutes a day to bring it way down, without breaking a sweat?

Your body runs on hormones. They are the “chemical messengers” that make things happen, like controlling your body temperature, your moods, your sex drive, your sleep patterns, and your immunity against disease. Most people think of insulin as the hormone associated with diabetes. But that’s cutting it short…

New cholesterol guidelines allow for a more “personalized” approach to drug therapy, which could allow some patients to reduce the number of drugs they are taking (a good thing), though some will end up on more (not so great). But what these experts left out underscores how badly they’re failing at helping people achieve optimal levels…

Cheeseburgers, sugary sodas, candy and deep-fried foods are bad for us. So, like most people you may have made heart-healthy diet changes you thought were for the better… like less red meat and more chicken… swapping butter for margarine… and generally cutting back on fat and sugar. But are those changes as healthy as you think?

The best thing about dieting is cheat day, right? Besides a little indulgence, cheat days were believed to keep the body from “adapting” to the diet and preventing weight loss plateaus. But that theory has been called into question. It turns out this six days on, seventh day off philosophy could actually be harming your health.

How many times do you go to the bathroom at night? I’ll admit, there are nights when I go to the bathroom a few times. And sure, it’s annoying. But I never thought it was anything to worry about. Unfortunately, if you get up to go several times at night (like I do sometimes), your nightly bathroom habits could be a harbinger of bad news.

It wasn’t long ago that The Center for Disease Control (CDC) released its health statistic brief… And, yet again, heart disease was at the top — as the leading cause of death in the United States. It’s been like this for years, and years and years. Not surprising, right… but, you know what was?

Being in debt to the Sandman can do much more than just leave you tired. It’s long been known that poor sleep increases your risk of cardiovascular disease. In fact, here are three ways researchers have found a lack of sleep can elevate risks that are detrimental to your heart…

PAD happens when a buildup of fatty plaque in your arteries narrows the vessels so that your blood has a hard time going where your body needs it. The disease can be serious, but many people are able to stop or even reverse their symptoms with a few changes, and this one is too easy not to try…