The old saying that ‘laughter is the best medicine,’ seems to be true when it comes to protecting yourself from heart disease,” says Michael Miller, M.D., F.A.C.C., director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center. Oral Contraception Women who have no predisposing risk factors for cardiovascular disease (e.g., high blood pressure, smoking, or diabetes) are at a very low, if any, additional risk of acute myocardial infarction (heart attack) from the use of oral contraceptive pills, says a new study from the UNDP/UNFPA/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP). Student Obesity And Heart Health Currently 22 percent of children in the United States are considered obese. These children may face a host of health concerns, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease, often at a young age. And what's really alarming, Eagle says, is that as many as a third of new diabetics are children between the ages of 10 and 20, which increases their risk for cardiovascular disease later in life.

Each year, about 1.2 million Americans suffer a heart attack. Of these, about 500,000 have already had at least one heart attack. The research consistently shows that aggressively making changes to risk factors will reduce the likelihood of coronary artery disease.

Though a small college, Tennessee Wesleyan has significantly influenced the region it serves, as well as 1000's of alumni. Scholars have included future leaders in church, education, law, medicine, music, science,  government, and public affairs.

Fitness professionals must understand the features and risk factors represented by cardiovascular disease as it affects different ethnic groups, rather than to generalize based on what works with the predominant population.

"A heart attack was once considered to be an inevitable product of our lifestyle," he said, "but perhaps it's just an inflammatory process out of control."

They found that both patterns of brisk walking lead to a decrease in diastolic blood pressure. Significant reductions in feelings of tension and anxiety were found with brisk walking of both patterns. Maximal oxygen uptake increased more with short bouts than with long, however.

Urbana University offers the best of both worlds, the school is located on a One-Hundred and Twenty-acre campus in the small city of Urbana, Ohio, with the major metropolitan areas of Dayton and Columbus within an hour's drive.

"Most people think heart attacks are caused by continuous narrowing of the arteries (with plaque)," Victor said, "but it's not like that. Some people don't have much plaque but their plaque is tearing open and causing heart attacks."

The American Heart Association has dubbed February, American Heart Month -- intensifying efforts to educate women on the dangers of heart disease and stroke.

Woman And Smoking 114,000 people die each year in the United Kingdom from smoking related illness and disease, an increasing number of these are women. The risks that women take by smoking are many fold and are well documented. Of these 114,000 deaths, over 42,000 of them are women.

Over 12 states have ruled -- or are in the process of issuing rules -- that prohibit smoking in the presence of foster children, and 2 states and a number of cities have laws that ban smoking in cars when any children are present.

The metabolic syndrome is a prevalent condition in North America, with nearly 25 percent of U.S. men and women having the syndrome along with roughly 15 percent of Canadian adults. An individual with the metabolic syndrome has three or more of the following factors: high blood pressure, high blood glucose, high plasma triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, and high waist circumference.

A medical researcher at Virginia Commonwealth University has discovered a new and potentially important use for the male impotence drug, Viagra – heart protection.

Cardio-respiratory fitness in early adulthood significantly decreases the chance of developing high blood pressure and diabetes — both major risk factors for heart disease and stroke.