Harvard Health Content API

Brain damage can cause the language disorder aphasia. It affects a person’s ability to understand or produce speech. Coping with aphasia requires treatment for the underlying cause and speech therapy to learn how to communicate despite language deficits. If the cause of the aphasia improves, so may the aphasia. But many people will continue to live with some level of aphasia, especially if the cause of brain damage is a progressive disease, such as Alzheimer’s.

Emotionally stressful events that affect large numbers of people have been linked to an increase in heart attack rates. A 2022 study found the same correlation with a contentious political election.

A 2022 study suggests that using a smartwatch capable of estimating blood oxygen levels and recording an electrocardiogram could be an effective way to remotely monitor people at home following a minimally invasive heart valve replacement.

A 2022 study found that egg consumption equal to about one per day and greater dietary cholesterol intake were linked to a slightly higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease.

Healthier alternatives to standard white pasta include spiralized vegetable “zoodles” (made from zucchini or yellow squash) as well as pasta made from whole-wheat flour, buckwheat flour, edamame (soybeans), chickpeas, or red lentils.

Regular walking—for at least 30 minutes a day, three days per week—is the best treatment for peripheral artery disease. This condition is characterized by fatty deposits that accumulate in arteries outside the heart and brain (usually the legs). Walking encourages blood flow in the leg’s smaller arteries and also creates new channels that move blood around the blocked areas, which eventually helps ease the pain.

COVID survivors—even those with mild infections—appear to face a higher risk of cardiovascular problems such as heart failure, heart attack, and stroke for up to one year after their initial infection. People who were hospitalized (especially those who ended up in the intensive care unit) may have the highest risk. The virus that causes COVID can injure blood vessels and triggers an immune response that promotes the formation of blood clots in arteries and veins throughout the body and brain.

Doing 30 to 60 minutes per week of strength training exercises is linked to a lower risk of premature death in general, and from heart disease in particular. Regular strength training may improve heart health by lowering the risk of blood pressure and metabolic syndrome. Body-weight exercises such as standing lunges and bench push-ups are a convenient way to build muscle because they can be done anywhere, without the need for special exercise equipment.

Low-value care (tests or procedures that offer no clear benefit) is a particular problem for people with cardiovascular disease. Low-value care may happen because certain tests are widely available and may provide financial benefit to the health care center. But for patients, these tests may be a waste of time and money and lead to anxiety and risky complications. Up to half of all exercise stress tests and 15% of stent placements done in the United States may be inappropriate.

Unsweetened cocoa powder has variable amounts of health-promoting flavanols, depending on how it is processed. Fruits and vegetables are better sources of these compounds, which may improve blood pressure and blood sugar.