1. Grill a steak. You may think it's bad for your heart, but you'd be
wrong. Beef contains immunity-boosting selenium as well as
homocysteine-lowering B vitamins. And up to 50 percent of the fat is
the heart-healthy monounsaturated variety.
2. Watch a scary movie. Anything that causes your heart to
race--slasher flicks, a good book, even being in love--also makes your
heart stronger, according to researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess
Medical Center. Upsetting the rhythm once in a while is like hitting
your heart's reset button, which helps it keep on ticking.
3. Run indoors on hazy days. Researchers in Finland found that
exercising outside on hot, hazy days when air pollution is at its
worst can cut the supply of oxygen in the blood, making it more likely
to clot.
4. Tell your wife to butt out. Or you may leave her -- in a hearse.
Researchers in Greece found that individuals who were exposed to
cigarette smoke for just 30 minutes three times a week had a 26
percent greater risk of developing heart disease than people who
rarely encountered secondhand smoke.
5. Dive in the pool. U.K. researchers found that men who burn just 50
calories a day in strenuous activities like swimming and hiking are 62
percent less likely to die of heart disease than men who burn nearly
seven times as many calories -- 340 per day -- during less active
pursuits like walking and golfing.
6. Fight cholesterol with fat. A group of 17 Australian men with high
cholesterol swapped macadamia nuts for 15 percent of the calories in
their diets, and their total cholesterol dropped by between 3 and 5
percent, while their HDL (good) cholesterol rose by nearly 8 percent.
The reason: Macadamias are the best natural source of monounsaturated
fat.
7. Bike away the blues. Men who are suffering from depression are more
than twice as likely to develop heart disease as guys who aren't
depressed. So c'mon, get happy. In a trial of 150 men and women, Duke
researchers found that after just 3 months of treatment,
antidepressants and exercise were equally effective at relieving
almost all symptoms of depression.
8. Meditate 20 minutes a day. According to Thomas Jefferson University
researchers, this daily downtime may reduce your anxiety and
depression by more than 25 percent. And that's important, since a
University of Florida study found that patients with coronary artery
disease who had the most mental stress were three times more likely to
die during the period of the study than those with the least stress.
9. Buy a punching bag. A Harvard study found that men who express
their anger have half the risk of heart disease compared with men who
internalize it.
10. Take aspirin. Researchers at the University of North Carolina
found that regular aspirin consumption cut the risk of coronary heart
disease by 28 percent in people who had never had a heart attack or
stroke, but were at heightened risk. For maximum impact on your blood
pressure, take a low dose just before bed.
11. Drink cranberry juice. University of Scranton scientists found
that volunteers who drank three 8-ounce glasses a day for a month
increased their HDL-cholesterol levels by 10 percent, enough to cut
heart-disease risk by almost 40 percent. Buy 100 percent juice that's
at least 27 percent cranberry.
12. Rise and dine. In a study of 3,900 people, Harvard researchers
found that men who ate breakfast every day were 44 percent less likely
to be overweight and 41 percent less likely to develop insulin
resistance, both risk factors for heart disease.
13. Fortify with folic acid. A study published in the British Medical
Journal found that people who consume the recommended amount each day
have a 16 percent lower risk of heart disease than those whose diets
are lacking in this B vitamin. Good sources of folic acid: asparagus,
broccoli, and fortified cereal.
14. Take the stairs. People who walked an extra 4,000 to 5,000 steps
each day lowered their blood pressure by an average of 11 points,
according to a small study at the University of Tennessee.
15. Order a chef's salad. Leafy greens and egg yolks are both good
sources of lutein, a phytochemical that carries heart-disease-fighting
antioxidants to your cells and tissues.
16. Refill the bowl. A study in the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition reports that two servings of whole-grain cereal (Cheerios
count) a day can reduce a man's risk of dying of heart disease by
nearly 20 percent.
17. Drink more tea. An American Heart Association study found that men
who drank 2 cups of tea a day were 25 percent less likely to die of
heart disease than guys who rarely touched the stuff. The reason:
flavonoids in the tea, which not only improve blood vessels' ability
to relax, but also thin the blood, reducing clotting.
18. Measure BP after exercise. Ask your doctor to measure your blood
pressure after a cardiac stress test. "The numbers will be higher, but
studies show they'll also be a better indicator of your overall
health," says Kerry Stewart, M.D., of Johns Hopkins University.
19. Decaffeinate. Drinks that contain caffeine increase blood pressure
by nearly 4 points, on top of speeding up your heart rate by an
average of 2 beats per minute. It's enough to push a borderline heart
problem into the danger zone.
20. Join a group. Any group. According to research from the University
of Chicago, lonely people have a harder time dealing with stress and
are at greater risk of heart disease than people with a wide circle of
friends.
21. Choose dark chocolate. Cocoa contains flavonoids that thin the
blood and keep it from clotting (like it does just before you clutch
your chest and expire). And at least a third of the fat in chocolate
is oleic acid, which is the same healthy, monounsaturated fat found in
olive oil. Dove dark chocolate bars retain as many flavonoids as
possible.
22. Trade the salt for Mrs. Dash. A 20-year study in the Journal of
the American Medical Association found that overweight men with the
highest sodium intakes were 61 percent more likely to die of heart
disease than those with lower intakes.
23. Have a drink every other day. A Boston study of 38,000 men found
that men who drink alcohol three or four times a week have a 32
percent lower risk of heart attack than men who drink less than once a
week. Moderate amounts of alcohol raise HDL cholesterol levels and
keep the blood thin, reducing the threat of artery-clogging clots.
Drinking more frequently is fine (up to the limit at which your
friends -- or the state police -- gather and confront you), but won't
provide additional heart protection, the study's authors report.
24. Touch her. Ten minutes of skin-to-skin contact (hand-holding,
hugs) with your mate can help keep your blood pressure and pulse from
spiking during stressful times, according to University of North
Carolina researchers.
25. Double the tomato sauce. The lycopene in tomatoes prevents the
harmful buildup of cholesterol on artery walls. So double up the sauce
on your pizza and pasta.
26. Get your daily B vitamins. A study at the Cleveland Clinic found
that men with diets low in B vitamins were more than twice as likely
to develop heart disease as men with higher levels in their systems.
27. Go fishing for tuna. Omega-3 fats in tuna help strengthen heart
muscle, lower blood pressure, and prevent clotting--as well as reduce
levels of potentially deadly inflammation in the body. Plus, tuna's
high in protein. Research shows that consuming more protein may lower
a man's risk of heart disease by nearly 26 percent.
28. Add ground flaxseed to your food. It's a natural source of
omega-3s, for men who don't like fish.
29. Fartlek! "Losing as little as 5 to 10 percent of your body weight
will reduce your visceral-fat stores by 25 to 40 percent," says
Jean-Pierre Despres, a professor of human nutrition at Laval
University in Quebec City. A study in Medicine and Science in Sports
and Exercise found that doing fartlek -- alternating speeds throughout
your run -- helps you lose weight faster than moving at a steady pace.
30. Take up rowing. A study in the European Journal of Applied
Physiology found that, compared with running, rowing uses more muscle
and causes your heart to pump more blood through the body, resulting
in greater overall gains in cardiovascular fitness.
31. Schedule a flu shot. A New England Journal of Medicine study found
that people who'd been vaccinated against the flu were also 19 percent
less likely to be hospitalized for heart disease than people who
hadn't gotten the shot.
32. Be a sponge. Loma Linda University researchers found that drinking
five or more 8-ounce glasses of water a day could help lower your risk
of heart disease by up to 60 percent--exactly the same drop you get
from stopping smoking, lowering your LDL (bad) cholesterol numbers,
exercising, or losing a little weight.
33. Eat grapefruit. One a day can reduce arterial narrowing by 46
percent, lower your bad-cholesterol level by more than 10 percent, and
help drop your blood pressure by more than 5 points.
34. Order garlic bread. In addition to lowering cholesterol and
helping to fight off infection, eating garlic may help limit damage to
your heart after a heart attack or heart surgery. Researchers in India
found that animals who were fed garlic regularly had more
heart-protecting antioxidants in their blood than animals who weren't.
35. Top your toast. Black currant jelly is a good source of
quercetin--an antioxidant that Finnish researchers believe may improve
heart health by preventing the buildup of the free radicals that can
damage arterial walls and allow plaque to penetrate.
36. Scramble an egg. They're relatively low in saturated fat, and
they're packed with betaine, a compound that helps lower homocysteine
levels in the blood by as much as 75 percent. Eggs are one of the few
good food sources of betaine.
37. Take chromium. According to new research from Harvard, men with
low levels of chromium in their systems are significantly more likely
to develop heart problems. You need between 200 and 400 micrograms of
chromium per day--more than you're likely to get from your regular
diet. "Look for a supplement labeled chromium picolinate--it's the
most easily absorbed by the body," says Gary Evans, Ph.D., a chromium
expert.
38. Do more crunches. A study of 8,000 Canadians found that
individuals who could do the most situps in 1 minute were also the
least likely to die over a period of 13 years. The reason? Strong abs
equal more muscle and less belly fat, and the less abdominal fat you
have, the lower your risk of heart disease becomes.
39. Don't double dip. Heart patients who took ibuprofen along with
their aspirin had a nearly 75 percent higher risk of premature death
than those taking only aspirin, according to a study, conducted in
Scotland, of more than 7,000 participants.
40. Pair up. Married men are less likely to die of heart disease than
bachelors. Toronto-based researchers studied 100 men and women with
mild high blood pressure and found that after 3 years of marriage, the
happily married men had healthier hearts than their unmarried
brothers. Just choose your bride wisely, or your heart will be broken
and sick.
41. They really are good for your heart. Beans are a great source of
homocysteine-lowering folate and cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber.
Tulane University researchers found that people who ate four or more
servings a week had a 22 percent lower risk of developing heart
disease (and 75 percent fewer camping companions) than
less-than-once-a-week bean eaters.
42. Order take-out. Lots of Chinese and Indian foods contain ginger or
turmeric-- spices packed with natural anti-inflammatories. "Anything
that helps keep levels of inflammation low is good for your heart,"
says Andrew Weil, M.D., author of Eating Well for Optimum Health.
43. Wash your hands. German researchers followed 570 people for an
average of 3 years and found that those with the most antibodies (from
fighting off infections) in their systems also had the most
significant clogging in the arteries of their hearts, necks, and legs.
Use liquid soap. Germs can live on bars.
44. Read a good book. Swiss researchers found that men who recited
poetry for half an hour a day lowered their heart rates significantly,
reducing their stress levels and possibly their heart-disease risk.
You don't need to go all Emily Dickinson; just try reading aloud to
your wife or kids instead. Or to yourself. (But not on the subway.)
45. Swap honey for sugar. Researchers at the University of Illinois
found that honey has powerful antioxidant qualities that help combat
cardiovascular disease, while sugar consumption can lower your levels
of HDL cholesterol, potentially increasing your risk of heart-related
disorders.
46. Smile. Researchers at Harvard kept tabs on 1,300 healthy men for
10 years. At the end of the study, they found that individuals with
the most positive attitudes at the start of the trial were half as
likely to have experienced heart problems as men with more negative
attitudes.
47. Finish your degree. California researchers found that women with
4-year or advanced degrees have a lower risk of heart disease than
those who are less educated. The benefit comes from moving up the
earnings ladder.
48. Play hard. Any regular vigorous physical activity reduces your
risk of cardiovascular disease, even if performed for only 5 to 10
minutes at a time, says John Yarnell, Ph.D., of Queen's University of
Belfast, who authored a study on the subject.
49. Pee in the bushes. After studying 40 people with heart disease,
researchers at Taiwan University in China found that the stress of
having a full bladder increases heart rate by an average of 9 beats
per minute and constricts the flow of blood by 19 percent. Either
could be enough to trigger a heart attack, says study author Tsai
Chang-Her, M.D.
50. Use the rotisserie. Foods cooked at high temperatures produce
blood compounds called advanced glycation end products, which
researchers at Mount Sinai Hospital say reduce cell elasticity and
increase heartdisease risk. Three fixes: Steam your vegetables, add
marinade to your meat before grilling to keep it moist, and cook foods
longer at lower temperatures.