• Filter By:
• Specialty
• Source
• Condition
• Cancer
• Infectious Disease
• Drug
• Training
• Management
• Procedure
• Therapy
• Vaccine
• Nutrition
• Country

Folic acid, a B vitamin, lowers stroke risk in people with high blood pressure
If you’re among the one in three American adults with high blood pressure, be sure you’re getting plenty of the B vitamin known as folate. Doing so may lower your odds of having a stroke, an often disabling or deadly event linked to high blood pressure, a new study suggests. Folate occurs naturally in many foods, but especially green leafy vegetables, beans, and citrus fruits. Here in the United States, add to the list most grain products, including wheat flour, cornmeal, pasta, and rice. They are fortified with the synthetic version of folate, known as folic acid. That’s not the case in many countries ar...
Source: New Harvard Health Information - March 18, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Julie Corliss Tags: Drugs and Supplements Hypertension and Stroke high blood pressure Source Type: news

Making one change — getting more fiber — can help with weight loss
Getting to a healthy weight and staying there is an important way to prevent heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, and other serious conditions. Many of us know firsthand just how hard it can be to reach and maintain that healthy weight. And there’s no shortage of ways to try to get there: You can count calories, carbs, or points. You can cut back on fat or sugar. You can try any number of popular diets that forbid certain foods, or focus on just one (the grapefruit diet, anyone?). Any of these approaches might work for you. Or they might not — in large part because they are complicated. A study published in todayR...
Source: New Harvard Health Information - February 17, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Nancy Ferrari Tags: Diet and Weight Loss Healthy Eating fiber Source Type: news

How to tame stubbornly high blood pressure
High blood pressure is a leading cause of stroke and heart disease. Dozens of medications and other therapies are available to treat high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. Yet many people can't get their blood pressure under control even by taking multiple medications, reports the September 2014 Harvard Heart Letter. "When people have high blood pressure despite being on three different medications, including a thiazide diuretic, they have what's known as resistant hypertension," says Dr. Joshua Beckman, a cardiologist at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital. Some people with resistant hypertension may...
Source: New Harvard Health Information - August 23, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Are there "superfoods" for heart health?
Myth or reality: eating certain superfoods can strengthen the heart and protect against heart attack and stroke? It's mostly just myth and wishful thinking, reports the March 2014 Harvard Heart Letter. There's no question that some foods are rich in nutrients that may help keep arteries clear and the heartbeat stable. It's great to eat them. But what's really important is eating a variety of fresh, unprocessed foods that deliver all of the nutrients needed to keep the heart healthy, not just those in a few so-called superfoods. "It's really about the whole package—the combination of nutrients and micronutrients that ...
Source: New Harvard Health Information - February 27, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news