Harvard Heart Letter articles from March 2008

Harvard Heart Letter archives from March 2008

Troublesome medications.
March 1, 2008... Pay special attention to a quintet of drugs used by people with heart disease. All medications, from alpha blockers to vitamins, have the potential to cause unwanted side effects. Usually, though, they don't, and their benefits far...

Estrogen therapy a[euro]" benefits in the timing?
March 1, 2008... New findings suggest safety in short-term use of estrogen to ease the symptoms of menopause. Is estrogen good for a woman's heart, or bad for it? That's a simple question with a complex and as-yet incomplete answer. It almost certainly...

Testosterone therapy's benefits, risks need crystallizing.
March 1, 2008... In older men, low testosterone may contribute to heart disease, diabetes, and other chronic conditions. Testosterone, the most male of hormones, profoundly affects the heart. In young men, it nudges the heart (and other parts of the body)...

It's never too late for healthy eating and exercise.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... A reader wrote us asking if it's really worth it for older people to change their eating habits for the better. Indeed it is. People in their 60s, 70s, and beyond can benefit from improving the way they eat, as detailed in a review in the...

Lopsided decline in heart disease deaths.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Since the 1960s, death rates from heart disease have fallen steadily a more in men than women a thanks to better treatments and an emphasis on prevention. That trend looks to be ending and could even reverse itself. A report in the Nov. 27,...

Hole in the heart.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... All babies are born with a hole in the heart between the right atrium and the left. Although it usually closes within a year or so, in up to one-third of people a small opening remains into adulthood. This hole, called a patent foramen ovale,...

It was only a matter of time: Plant sterols in chips.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Chips that lower cholesterol a a couch potato's dream. A company called Corazonas Foods is catering to that flight of fancy with its Heart-Healthy line of potato and tortilla chips. A one-ounce serving contains 0.4 grams of cholesterol-lowering...

Good news keeps brewing on coffee and heart disease.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... If the daily grind is music to your ears and the steaming cup of joe that follows is your ambrosia, don't let a heart attack keep you from drinking coffee. Italian researchers looked at coffee quaffing among the more than 11,000 heart...

A Chia Pet for diabetes?(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... As each December rolls around, ads for the Chia Pet start turning up on late-night television. When watered, these silly ceramic figures sprout a green "fur" from seeds on their surface. A Canadian study suggests that a variant of these seeds...

Red light, green light on medications.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Warning on drugs for anemia. Anemia often accompanies heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases. A big question has been whether treating anemia improves these conditions. It may, but at the risk of increasing heart attacks. Three of the...

Checking blood pressure at home.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Once upon a time, about the only way you could check your blood pressure was to see your doctor and have it measured in his or her office. Today you can do it at home, thanks to the profusion of inexpensive home monitors. A randomized trial...

Is it okay to take aspirin, Plavix, and warfarin?
March 1, 2008... Q. I am 85 years old. A little over a year ago, I had an angioplasty with placement of a stent. Since then I have been on low-dose aspirin and Plavix without any problems. I just learned I have atrial fibrillation, and my doctor wants me to...

Can a pacemaker cause dizzy spells?(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Q. My father recently had a pacemaker installed. Now, almost every time he stands up or gets out of bed, he feels dizzy. Is this a common side effect of getting a pacemaker, something he needs to get used to? Is there anything he can do about...