Cardio Currents
News and tips for the heart-conscious

Fortifying against stroke
Foods fortified with folic acid, the B vitamin that helps prevent neural tube birth defects, seem to provide protection against strokes. Nearly 13,000 fewer stroke deaths have occurred each year since 1998, when it became mandatory for manufacturers to fortify enriched grain products with folic acid, according to a report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. Doctors think folic acid helps reduce levels of homocysteine, an amino acid in the blood that’s linked to stroke and ischemic heart disease. To ensure you’re getting enough folic acid, drink orange juice and eat plenty of leafy green vegetables (kale, broccoli, spinach), nuts, bananas and enriched grains.

Fiber: Your heart’s new friend
Most doctors agree that including plenty of fiber in your diet aids digestion and helps control weight. Now, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School say that fiber may also help your heart by lowering blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation in the body. Elevated CRP levels (above 3 milligrams per liter of blood) are considered a risk factor for heart disease. In a study of more than 500 healthy men and women, subjects who ate the most fiber—typically 22 grams a day—were 63 percent less likely to have elevated CRP levels than those who ate the least fiber. Experts advise getting 20 to 35 grams of fiber each day from eating fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains.

Exercising the years away
Although older adults use more energy and work harder than younger folk to perform the same activity, they can close that gap with regular exercise, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Researchers compared sedentary adults in their 60s and 70s with those in their 20s and 30s. The older group had to use 20 percent more oxygen to walk the same pace as the younger group. But after a six-month training program of walking or jogging, biking and stretching for 90 minutes, three days a week, the older group improved their exercise efficiency by 30 percent, compared to just 2 percent for the younger group.
 
Don’t blame it on work
Several factors contribute to high blood pressure, but job stress probably isn’t one of them, according to an analysis of studies involving more than 100,000 people. Although stress in the moment can raise blood pressure, the evidence for job stress causing chronic hypertension just isn’t there, say researchers from Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York City. Most hypertension cases are associated with genetics, poor diet, overweight, excess salt intake and lack of exercise. Job stress is tied to tension headaches, anxiety and depression, however, and could prompt unhealthy behaviors related to hypertension, such as overeating, gaining weight and abusing alcohol.