Heart Health Archive

Mung beans are popular in many Asian cuisines, where they're used in soups, curries, savory pancakes, and even desserts. These small, olive-green beans have a white speck at the center. Some say the mild flavor of mung beans is reminiscent of potatoes.

Natural food stores and some conventional grocery stores may carry dried mung beans, either packaged or in bulk bins. But Americans are probably more familiar with mung bean sprouts, which are used in Chinese and Thai stir-fries. You can often find these slender, crunchy white sprouts in the produce section of your supermarket. Studies show that mung bean sprouts contain slightly higher levels of beneficial antioxidants than the unsprouted beans.

Research we're watching

Eating healthy, plant-based proteins such as beans and nuts instead of red meat may lower your odds of heart disease, new research finds.

Researchers analyzed data from 36 trials that involved more than 1,800 people to see how different diets affect cholesterol, blood pressure, and other heart disease risk factors. When they compared diets with red meat to all other types of diets combined, there weren't any notable differences in cholesterol or blood pressure (although red-meat diets did lead to high levels of triglycerides, a type of fat in the blood).

Research we're watching

Hundreds of thousands of people in the United States take prescription niacin (also known as vitamin B3) as part of a regimen to prevent heart disease. But a new analysis that was published April 12 in JAMA Network Open suggests this old drug offers no benefit for most people.

The analysis included 35,760 patients from 17 clinical trials documenting the effect of niacin on at least one cardiovascular disease outcome. About half of the people were taking niacin, and the remainder received placebo, usual care, or other lipid-lowering agents. Over all, niacin was not helpful in preventing any serious heart-related events, strokes, or deaths from heart disease.

Research we're watching

Contrary to observations that moderate drinking (one or two drinks per day) protects against stroke, a new study finds that stroke risk may rise with increasing alcohol intake.

The findings, which were published online April 4 by The Lancet, come from a study involving 160,000 Chinese adults who reported their drinking habits. They also were tested for gene variants common in Asian populations that cause an unpleasant flushing reaction after drinking. Only 2% of women reported drinking alcohol, compared with 33% of men, so the findings focus mainly on men.

Lap swimming is a very effective workout: aerobics, strengthening, and stretching in one activity. Make sure you’re reasonably healthy before diving in, but even if you’re not, or if you don’t know how to swim, aquatic exercises are beneficial, too.

Most Americans don't eat enough fiber, and many people say it's because they are worried about eating too many carbs, but eating the right kind of carbs is the key, and it's not that difficult to meet the recommended daily amount.

Q. After my heart attack, my doctor told me that damaged heart muscle cannot be replaced. If this is true, why am I walking on a treadmill five days a week? Is this helping repair the heart muscle damage or strengthen what's left of my heart muscle?

A. Your skeletal muscles can repair themselves after an injury — pull your calf muscle and, after a few days or so, it heals. Until recently, it was believed that the human heart didn't have this capacity. But the heart does have some ability to make new muscle and possibly repair itself. The rate of regeneration is so slow, though, that it can't fix the kind of damage caused by a heart attack. That's why the rapid healing that follows a heart attack creates scar tissue in place of working muscle tissue.

Q. Some friends invited me to accompany them to Rocky Mountain National Park. I would love to go, but I have high blood pressure and worry that high altitudes are dangerous for people with  high blood pressure. Is that the case?

A. If you have high blood pressure but are otherwise healthy, your blood pressure is under control, and you take some precautions, a trip to the Rocky Mountains should be fine.

Arteries are the vital channels that carry oxygen-rich blood from the heart to all the body's tissues. When blockages develop, blood flow slows and tissues suffer. Blockages in the coronary arteries cause angina and heart attacks; blockages in the arteries that supply blood to the brain cause strokes. But the peripheral arteries that carry blood to the legs and other parts of the body are also vulnerable. Heart attacks and strokes get all the publicity, but peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a major problem that deserves more attention and respect — especially since new methods make diagnosis easier and treatment better than ever before.

What is PAD?

Like most strokes and nearly all heart attacks, PAD (formerly called peripheral vascular disease) is a form of atherosclerosis. Peripheral artery disease begins when LDL ("bad") cholesterol passes from the blood into the wall of an artery. Arteries damaged by high blood pressure, smoking, or diabetes are at particular risk. As the cholesterol builds up, it triggers inflammation, which adds to the damage. Unless treatment halts the process, the cholesterol deposit builds up into a plaque, or blockage, that narrows the artery. Mild narrowing may not produce any symptoms, but moderate narrowing may prevent tissues from getting the blood they need to fuel the extra work of exercise. When blockages are severe, the tissues suffer even during rest. Blood clots can add insult to injury by increasing blockages.