Those who continue to drink alcohol after suffering a heart attack fare better than those who quit drinking according to a study published this April in the American Journal Of Cardiology.

Researchers looked at the health of a group of 325 moderate drinkers who had recently suffered a heart attack. 84% continued to drink moderately following their heart attack while the remaining 16% abstained from drinking. It was found that one year after the heart attack event those who continued to drink were 35% less likely to suffer angina, experienced 21% fewer rehospitalizations and scored higher on quality of life and mental health questionnaires.

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While it is well known that high blood pressure increases the risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes, scientific evidence also suggests that excessively low blood pressure can be almost as harmful as high blood pressure.

A new study, presented at the American Society of Hypertension meeting in San Francisco this month, looked at how the risk of suffering a stroke or heart attack varied with blood pressure in a group of 10,001 coronary heart disease patients.

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A combination of cholesterol lowering foods can achieve similar cholesterol lowering results to statins according to a recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2005.

The research, conducted by Canadian scientists, involved the comparison of a diet rich in foods known to reduce cholesterol with a popular statin known as lovastatin.

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Many people believe that diets high in fat will lead to a greater risk of heart disease in later life however this is not necessarily the case. Countries such as Spain, Greece, Italy, and France all have remarkably low rates of heart disease while consume a Mediterranean style diet that is relatively high in fat.

Recent scientific studies point instead to two specific types of fat, trans fats and saturated fats, which are thought to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

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Diets high in soy may reduce the incidence of heart disease according to recent studies. One such study, published in The Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2002, looked at 64,915 women from Shanghai, China, in order to determine the effects of soy food consumption on the risk of coronary heart disease.

Over an average follow up period of 2.5 years, 62 new cases of coronary heart disease were documented. The researchers found that women in the highest quartile for soy protein intake were 75% less likely to develop coronary heart disease over the study period compared to women in the highest quartile for soy protein intake.

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Foods rich in cocoa, such as chocolate, may lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease according to a study published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine in 2006.

The study, conducted by Dutch researchers, used data from the Zutphen study to assess whether cocoa could reduce blood pressure and improve cardiovascular health. In total, 470 elderly men aged between 65 and 84 were used in the 15 year study which began in 1985.

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A study published this month in the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine has found that high doses of vitamin C can reduce an individuals LDL cholesterol levels and subsequently lower their risk of heart disease.

The research, conducted by Marc McRae of the National University of Health Sciences in Illinois, involved the analysis of results from 13 trials on the effects of vitamin C on cholesterol levels. The minimum dosage of vitamin C taken across the studies was 500mg/day for a period of between 3 and 24 weeks.

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Hypertension is one of the most significant risk factors for cardiovascular diseases such as heart disease and stroke. It is estimated that a blood pressure greater than 140/90 mmHg doubles an individuals risk of heart disease at a given age compared to a person with a normal blood pressure (115/75 mmHg).

More than 35% of adult Americans are known to suffer from hypertension and this figure rises to more than 60% in people older than 55.

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Several studies indicate that brisk walking may be just as good for your heart as more vigorous exercise such as jogging, running, or swimming.

One of the largest studies on the effects of exercise on heart disease prevention was published in The New England Journal of Medicine in August of 1999. The study consisted of 72,488 females from the Nurses Health Study (NHS). The participants were 40 to 65 at the beginning of the study in 1986. The study continued for eight years during which 645 coronary deaths (475 deaths from heart attacks and 170 from other coronary heart disease) were observed.

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Scientific studies suggest that taller people are at a lower risk of coronary heart disease, even after adjusting for other heart disease risk factors. Studies have found that on average a 1cm (0.4 inch) increase in height is associated with around a 2% decrease in the risk of coronary heart disease.

One of the largest studies on the relationship between heart disease and height was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 1995.

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Nitric oxide (NO) plays an important role in cardiovascular health. The chemical is produced in the inner lining of the blood vessels (the endothelium). Numerous enzymes in the endothelium play a role in converting the amino acid arginine and oxygen into nitric oxide through a series of intermediate steps.

Nitric oxide signals the smooth muscle in the blood vessels to relax which improves blood flow Nitric oxide has beneficial effects on many heart disease risk factors. Several studies have demonstrated a link between hypertension and low levels of nitric oxide in the blood.

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Individuals who consume high fiber diets are as much as 30% less likely to develop heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases such as strokes according to recent evidence.

One study, published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine in February 2004, looked at data from 10 previous studies in order to determine the effects of dietary fiber intake on the risk of heart disease.

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High levels of LDL cholesterol and a high ratio of LDL to HDL cholesterol are both considered to be strong risk factors for heart disease. Several studies have found that pectin, a complex carbohydrate found in many fruits, can lower LDL cholesterol levels and therefore improve heart health.

In 1987, a group of scientists at the University of Florida studied the effects of pectin on serum cholesterol levels in a group of 27 individuals who were at a moderate to high risk of heart disease.

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Recent scientific evidence has shown that a person’s emotional state can have a significant effect on their likelihood of developing coronary heart disease.

Emotions such as anger, hostility, stress, and happiness all play a role in either reducing or increasing heart disease risk. Researchers believe that in individuals that have none of the traditional risk factors associated with heart disease, emotions may be responsible for as many as 50% of heart attacks.

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Homocysteine is an amino acid that is becoming an increasingly important risk factor for coronary heart disease and strokes. Homocysteine is believed to degrade and inhibit the formation of the major components of arteries - collagen, elastin & proteoglycans which increases the rate of arterial decline leading to conditions such as atherosclerosis.

Several studies have demonstrated the link between elevated homocysteine levels and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The Hordaland homocysteine study is a Norwegian study involving over 18,000 individuals. The study found that individuals with higher than average homocysteine levels in the blood tended to have higher blood pressure and cholesterol levels

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