Stroke survivors may be watching their "bad" cholesterol, but a new study suggests another type of blood fat could put them at risk of a repeat stroke within the next year.

Researchers found that stroke survivors with high triglycerides suffered repeat strokes at about twice the rate of survivor...

Once they're pregnant, women have a lot of checkups to make sure they stay healthy. But a mom's health preconception is vitally important, too, and a growing cause for concern.

Increasingly, moms in the United States are starting their pregnancies already having heart risks like high blood pressure (hypertension), diabetes and obesity.

A new study finds that 60% -- even higher in so...

Giving dark chocolate to your sweetheart on Valentine's Day may be a win-win emotionally and physically, an expert suggests.

But it's important to keep any potential health benefits in perspective, noted Lizzy Davis, an assistant professor of nutrition sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

"What is healthy for one person may not be healthy for another," she said in a ...

Mobile health apps can help older Americans but only about four in 10 use them, and those most likely to benefit are least likely to take advantage of them, a new survey reveals.

Health apps monitor everything from calories and exercise to blood pressure and blood sugar to help users manage chronic conditions or achieve health goals.

"Now that most older adults have at least one mob...

February is American Heart Month - the perfect time to remind women of three things they need to know about heart disease.

It's the leading cause of death among U.S. women, accounting for one in three deaths, according to the American Heart Association (AHA). While progress to reduce that rat...

Margarine has gotten a bad rap for years, but a U.S. ban on partially hydrogenated oils may have made it a healthier choice than butter, a new study suggests.

Before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned such oils in 2018, margarine...

They take care of others, but many U.S. home health care workers say they're not in good shape themselves, a new study finds.

Researchers analyzed self-reported data collected from nearly 3,000 home health care workers in 38 states between 2014 and 2018 and found that more than a quarter rated their general health as fair or poor, 1 in 5 reported poor mental health, and 14% reported poor ...

A rare gene variant discovered among Amish people may help lower "bad" cholesterol and protect against heart disease, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that among nearly 7,000 Amish people, the gene variant was tied to reductions in both LDL cholesterol and fibrinogen -- a protein that is a marker of inflammation and linked to heart disease risk.

There was also evidence of pro...

An apple and a pear a day may help keep blood pressure under control -- a benefit partly explained by gut bacteria, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that adults who regularly ate certain foods -- apples, pears, berries and red wine -- tended to have lower blood pressure than their peers.

One thing those foods have in common is a high content of antioxidant plant compounds cal...

A diet rich in fresh veggies, fruit and fiber has meaningful benefits for people with diabetes, a new research review confirms.

Doctors have long recommended this kind of "low-glycemic" eating regimen to help patients manage their diabetes and keep blood sugar levels steady. The new review of findings from 29 different trials lends support for that advice.

"Although it was smal...

Certain cholesterol-lowering drugs might speed dementia in some older adults whose memories are starting to fail, a small, preliminary study suggests.

The researchers found that of 300 older adults with mildly impaired thinking and memory, those using "lipophilic" statins were more likely to develop dementia over the next eight years.

Lipophilic statins include such widely used medi...

Live well, live longer.

New research offers more evidence that the mantra rings true: People who got regular exercise and ate a healthy diet in middle age had a reduced risk of serious health problems as seniors.

"Health care professionals could use these findings to further promote and emphasize to their patients the benefits of a healthy diet and a regular exercise schedule t...

A single pill loaded with cholesterol and blood pressure medications can reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke by as much as 40%, a new international study reports.

The "polypill" containing three generic blood pressure medications and a statin dramatically reduced the risk of heart-related illness in people with no prior history of heart problems, according to clinical trial result...

Many married couples or domestic partners share a lot: the same house, bills, pets and maybe children. A new study found they often also share the same behaviors and risk factors that can lead to heart disease.

Researchers assessed heart disease risks and lifestyle behaviors of nearly 5,400 U.S. couples enrolled in an employee wellness program.

They used the risk factors spelled...

Prescriptions of cholesterol-lowering statins for heart disease patients rose significantly when doctors were prompted to choose whether or not to order them, according to a new study.

It included 82 cardiologists and more than 11,000 patients. Doctors randomly received one of two "nudges," or notifications, in their patients' electronic health records.

One was a "passive ch...

Cholesterol can be confusing. But understanding it could help you live a longer, healthier life.

So in honor of Cholesterol Education Month, we asked a pair of experts to clear up five common questions.

Do my blood cholesterol numbers matter?

"The answer is yes," said Dr. Neil Stone, Bonow Professor in Medicine-Cardiology at Northwestern Universi...

Kids as young as age 8 can show signs of being at increased risk for diabetes in adulthood, a British study finds.

Researchers analyzed blood samples collected from more than 4,000 participants at ages 8, 16, 18 and 25, looking for patterns specific to early stages of type 2 diabetes development.

"We knew that diabetes doesn't develop overnight. What we didn't know is how e...

Foreign nationals in the United States are less likely to receive treatment for heart disease risk factors than native-born Americans or naturalized citizens, a new study reports.

Heart disease -- including heart attack and stroke -- is the leading cause of death among adults in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers...

If you want to reduce bloating when eating a high-fiber diet, try making it carbohydrate-rich rather than protein-rich, new study findings suggest.

Bloating is a common side effect that discourages many people from adopting a high-fiber diet.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from a clinical trial involving 164 participants who followed heart-healthy, high-fiber diets...

A fiber-rich diet appears to help people with high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes in multiple ways, lowering their blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels, a new study suggests.

High blood pressure (hypertension) and diabetes raise the risk for heart disease, and diet may help keep it at bay, researchers say.

"This study helps us determine three important thi...

The word on eggs changes faster than you can say "sunny-side up." One day their cholesterol isn't a concern and the next day it is.

After a 2018 study found an egg a day was fine for healthy people, a 2019 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that this amount could raise the risk for cardiovascular disease and early death.

So what...

Your lunch leftovers are doing no favors for urban birds' hearts, new research shows.

Fatty food scraps may be boosting the cholesterol levels of crows in U.S. cities, but whether it's a threat to their health isn't clear.

A team from Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., analyzed blood cholesterol levels of 140 crow nestlings in urban and rural areas of California. Those in ur...

Heart attacks, strokes and other heart problems are more likely in high-risk patients denied access to cutting-edge cholesterol-busting drugs called PCSK9 inhibitors, a new study reports.

Patients are 16% more likely to have a heart-related health crisis if their PCSK9 prescription is rejected than if it is covered and filled for a year, according to researchers.

Patients wh...

Green tea is a popular health trend, with many people sipping it in hopes of deriving benefits from the brew.

There's nothing wrong with that, dietitians say -- green tea is a healthy drink loaded with antioxidants. But the jury's still out on many of its purported health benefits.

"Clinical trials related to green tea are still in their early stages," said Nancy Farrell All...

Americans are eating as much processed meat as they did two decades ago, and have not increased the amount of fish they consume.

That's the bad news from new research on dietary data, which also found one-quarter of U.S. adults eat more than the recommended amount of unprocessed red meat, and less than 15% eat recommended amounts of fish/shellfish.

The good news comes from...

Flying in the face of popular belief, new research suggests both red meat and white meat can drive up your cholesterol levels.

The study was conducted by researchers from the Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI), part of the University of California, San Francisco. The analysis is reportedly the first to comprehensively compare the impact that red and white me...