cardiovascular risk tagged posts

Sugar Substitute Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke, study finds

Food label listing xylitol

Xylitol is a common zero-calorie sweetener found in sugar-free candy and toothpaste. Cleveland Clinic researchers found higher amounts of the sugar alcohol xylitol are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke.

The team, led by Stanley Hazen, M.D., Ph.D., confirmed the association in a large-scale patient analysis, preclinical research models and a clinical intervention study. Findings were published today in the European Heart Journal.

Xylitol is a common sugar substitute used in sugar-free candy, gums, baked goods and oral products like toothpaste...

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Forever Chemicals linked to Hypertension in Middle-Aged Women

Infographic: PFAS associated with higher risk of hypertension
Infographic: PFAS associated with higher risk of hypertension
This infographic shows common synthetic chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are associated with a higher risk of hypertension. They are found in fast food packaging, PFAs contaminated drinking water and PFAs contaminated food and states PFAS are detectable in almost everyone. The corresponding line graph shows the survival probability from age 45 to 70 with the following numbers. The hazard ratio of 95% confidence intervals by PFAs. Tertiles 3 versus 1 is 1.71 (1.15, 2.54). Tertile 2 versus Tertile 1 is 1.31 (1.07, 1.59).  
copyright Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal and Ning Ding, Ph.D., M.P.H. 

In a large, prospective study, the levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), w...

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First Long-Term Estimates suggest Link between Cholesterol Levels and Risk of Heart Disease and Stroke

Figure thumbnail gr4
Model of long-term cardiovascular disease risk prediction and the benefit of lipid reduction
Individual risk of fatal or non-fatal cardiovascular disease in women (A) and men (B) according to age, non-HDL cholesterol concentration, and the number of additional cardiovascular risk factors (daily smoking, arterial hypertension, diabetes, and obesity; white circle). The red circle represents the probability (%) of cardiovascular disease by the age of 75 years. The hypothetically achievable probability (%) for cardiovascular disease by the age of 75 years after 50% reduction of non-HDL cholesterol is given in the green circle. 

The most comprehensive analysis of its kind suggests that there is a strong link between non-HDL cholesterol levels and long-term risk for cardiovascular disease in...

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Why Getting Enough Sleep Reduces Cardiovascular Disease Risk

Images of plaque from the artery of a mouse model of atherosclerosis that experienced a normal sleeping pattern (left) and an image of arterial plaque from a mouse model that underwent sleep fragmentation (right). The amount of arterial plaque in the sleep-fragmented mouse is significantly larger.
Credit: Filip Swirski, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School

Sleep-modulating hormone hypocretin found to also control production of inflammatory cells. Getting enough sleep is key to good health, and studies have shown that insufficient sleep increases the risk of serious problems, including cardiovascular disease. Now Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have discovered one way that sleep protects against the buildup of arterial plaques called atherosclerosis...

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