8 Things to Know About Heart Disease

2. Heart disease can lead to dangerous — and deadly — complications

Heart disease can lead to several complications affecting not only the heart but other parts of the body. These include:

• Arrhythmia — a fast or abnormal heart rate
• Cardiac arrest — when the heart stops beating suddenly
• Cardiomyopathy — a disease of the heart that makes it harder for the muscle to pump blood
• Heart attack
• Heart failure
• Heart valve disease
• Pulmonary hypertension, high blood pressure in your arteries which starves your blood of oxygen
• Kidney damage
• Liver damage

3. Its symptoms can be sneaky

Often called the “silent killer,” heart disease can strike without warning: You might not know you have it until you have a heart attack, stroke or other sudden event.

Each year, there are approximately 605,000 heart attacks in the U.S., and 170,000 of them occur without any major symptoms. 

“We think of heart disease as this sudden, crushing chest pain with an elephant sitting on your chest. And that can be the case for some people, but for a lot of other people, it can be unusual,” says Samuel Kim, M.D., director of preventive cardiology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City. 

According to the Mayo Clinic, common symptoms of heart disease in the blood vessels can include shortness of breath, weakness or numbness in the arms and legs, and pain in the neck, jaw, upper back or upper belly. Symptoms of heart disease caused by irregular heartbeats can range from dizziness to shortness of breath to a racing heartbeat.

4. Women have unique risks

Khandelwal says heart disease is often assumed to be a man’s disease, but it’s also the leading cause of death among women. In fact, it affects more than 60 million women in the U.S., according to the CDC.

Several health issues unique to women play a role in heart disease risk, Khandelwal says, including gestational diabetes, preterm labor, preeclampsia and the years leading up to menopause (called perimenopause) when estrogen levels drop. Estrogen has a protective effect on the heart by increasing high-density lipoprotein (HDL), also called the “good” cholesterol.  When women go through menopause, the drop in estrogen puts them at risk for heart disease when HDL levels start to creep up.

5. Some diets are better than others for heart disease

Not all diets are created equal when it comes to keeping heart disease in check. The American Heart Association ranks a few at the top, including the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet — a low-sodium plan full of fresh fruits and vegetables and very limited processed foods — and the Mediterranean diet, also rich in plants, fresh fish, legumes, nuts and olive oil. These and a plant-based diet get high marks for lowering the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure, according to a 2023 article published in the Vascular Health and Risk Management journal.

The article cited several studies, including one that found that people who ate a diet full of fruits, veggies and legumes reduced their risk of early death by 19 percent.

On the flip side, doctors and researchers say there are several foods to avoid if you are trying to lower heart disease risk or manage the condition. These include:

• Fatty meats
• Processed foods
• Tropical oils and partially hydrogenated fats
• Foods high in sodium
• Foods high in added sugar

“In place of fatty meats, try leaner cuts of meat such as loin and round cuts, poultry without the skin, fish and seafood, and beans,” says Kelli Metzer, a registered dietitian at GW Medical Faculty Associates in Washington, D.C. “Grilling, baking or air frying are healthier cooking methods than frying in oil,” she adds. 

6. Sleep habits can affect your heart 

Getting fewer than seven hours of sleep a night can increase your risk of developing diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure — all of which influence heart disease risk, the CDC says.

Tabak says getting into a regular sleep routine is key to catching more ZZ’s. “People who don’t have a regular time to go to bed or wake up, they’re just setting themselves up for sleep deprivation,” he says.

Sleep apnea, a common sleep disorder, can also increase heart disease risk or worsen it if you already have it. If your partner complains of constant snoring, that could be one clue that it’s time to check with your doctor about sleep apnea. Other symptoms include waking up feeling short of breath and excess daytime sleepiness.

7. A little exercise can make a big difference in heart disease risk 

The CDC recommends you get moving — and a little can go a long way. Aim for 150 minutes a week of moderate exercise, like walking — that’s a 21-minute walk each day. You should also incorporate strength training two times per week.

The key, Tabak says, is to “find something that you enjoy doing and will do regularly.” Studies have found that even gardening can lower the risk of heart disease in older adults.

8. Medications can be lifesavers

There are several medications doctors prescribe to lower the risk of heart disease or help manage it. Some of them include:

• Ace inhibitors, which lower blood pressure
• Aspirin, to prevent blood clots
• Beta blockers, to lower blood pressure and force the heart to beat with less force
• Blood thinners
• Calcium channel blockers, to lower blood pressure and relax blood vessels
• Cholesterol-lowering medications
• Diuretics, to help get rid of sodium
• Vasodilators, to lower blood pressure by widening blood vessels for better blood flow

For several years now, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists — or GLP-1s, like Ozempic and Wegovy — have helped people with diabetes and obesity lose weight and lower blood glucose levels. More recently, some have been federally approved to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in individuals who are overweight or have obesity.

“I think they [GLP-1s] have a role in reducing heart disease,” Khandelwal, says, though she cautions they may have some drawbacks, especially for older adults. “There is some evidence that when we lose weight with some of these medications, we also risk losing skeletal muscle,” she explains.