heart-letter
Body mass index (BMI) is easy to measure and is a good rough instrument for determining whether a person is overweight or obese. But it does not account for individual differences in body shape and muscularity.
People who live in parts of a city with high air pollution are at higher risk of stroke than residents of the same city living in less polluted areas.
A few factors that boost the odds of having a stroke can’t be changed, like age and family history. But there are a surprising number of things that can be done to prevent stroke.
Although a long life span is great goal, a long “health span” is even better.
News reports that cutting back on salt (sodium) intake isn’t helpful and may be harmful are misleading. They misinterpreted the results of an Institute of Medicine study.
People taking the anticoagulant drug warfarin (Coumadin) for atrial fibrillation may sometimes need to take a second type of anti-clotting drug-an antiplatelet drug such as aspirin. This dual therapy adds to bleeding risk, but lowers stroke risk.
Sitting for long periods of time is bad for the heart, even among people who get recommended levels of daily physical activity.
If a medication causes troublesome side effects, it’s important to talk with a health-care provider before stopping it.
Shortness of breath may signal a serious heart emergency. Know when it’s time to call for help.
When ischemic stroke strikes, time is of the essence. The sooner a person is treated with the clot-busting drug tPA, the sooner blood flow is restored to the brain and the better the odd of recovery.