Living Well Blog

Here’s one more reason to give up smoking: brain calcifications. If you smoke or have diabetes, you have an increased risk of developing calcifications in the hippocampus, the portion of the brain responsible for memory, emotions and… See more

More than one-third of Americans take multivitamins, despite little evidence that they help (there’s little evidence they cause harm either). And now a new study says multivitamins don’t promote cardiovascular health.… See more

As a family physician in Alexandria, Virginia, I’m routinely asked by patients, “What should I eat to lower my cholesterol?”It’s an important question. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance in all your cells. When you have too much of it, it can stick to the lining of your blood vessels, limit… See more

The connection between cardiovascular disease risk and obesity is not new. But a recent study has better defined that risk based on body mass index (BMI). Being obese, measured as a BMI of 30 or greater, increases your risk for cardiovascular disease and a shorter lifespan, according to a new… See more

The MIND diet, created by researchers at Rush University Medical Center, seems to forestall Alzheimer’s disease, boost brain health and slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors, according to a previous study.The MIND… See more

Supplementing with fish oil is now linked with lowering your risk of cardiac death, according to a recent meta-analysis published in the Journal of Clinical Lipidology. It’s only a moderate eight percent reduction, but I’ll take it.I’m sure you’ve heard about the health benefits of omega-3… See more

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. This is nothing new – heart disease has been identified as a major public health problem for the past 80 years. What is new is how we’re trying to prevent it. Since about half heart attacks in the United States occur in… See more

I realize it’s already February, but I have a resolution for you. Focus less on your cholesterol numbers. Make 2018 the year you switched your attention to your insulin level, inflammation level and LDL (bad cholesterol) particle number.Yes, I know, for years you’ve been told that cholesterol… See more

Every so often I have a new patient and need to scour their medical record to prepare for their appointment. In all the years I’ve been practicing, I often notice that records are missing appropriate testing to assess risk of a heart attack. This also includes records from cardiology offices.Yes, I… See more

You may know that inflammation is an important aspect of health, but if you’re like most people, you don’t know exactly why. That’s understandable. Inflammation is a complex process. Sometimes inflammation is a good thing, like when you cut yourself shaving. Your body sends cells to the source… See more