For decades, the advice on dietary fat was clear – steer clear of saturated fat, the type commonly found in meats, whole-fat dairy products and coconuts. But over the last few years, that advice regarding no-dairy diets has been turned on its head. Coconut oil is now considered healthy. Many doctors now think you should replace margarine with butter for dairy-related health benefits.

Put down your fork and listen: Eating a heart-healthy diet isn’t hard. It might seem confusing with all the “eat-this, not-that” magazine articles, fad diets and best-selling nutrition books, but here’s all you really need to know: The Mediterranean, Ornish and DASH diets are the best diets for heart health. Following one of these three well-researched and proven heart-healthy eating plans (detailed below) can help you lower your heart disease risk. Don’t invest another bite into a fad diet. Instead, chew on this:

When it comes to heart health, eating like an American probably isn’t your best bet. That’s because our diets are high in unhealthy fats, processed foods and lots of carbs. But one diet in particular always gets highlighted by researchers and health experts: the Mediterranean diet.

If you’re like most Americans, you probably have a good idea on what types of exercise is good for your heart: running, swimming, bicycling. In short, cardiovascular exercise – and lots of it.

But you may be surprised to learn that strength training may actually be better for your heart. Here are the truths behind five common heart disease and exercise misconceptions that can help provide better protection for your heart.

Every year in the U.S., there are well over 700,000 new heart attacks and 335,000 repeat heart attacks. It doesn’t have to be that way. 

Everyone can take simple steps to reduce the modifiable risk factors of heart disease. And when we say everyone, we mean everyone. While some heart disease risk factors are out of your control – including being a man, having a family history of heart disease and simply getting older – you can still do a lot to help prevent a heart attack. 

It’s not exactly news: Heart disease and depression, two of the most common chronic conditions in America, are also linked to each other. Researchers, who have been looking at the connection for decades, know that at least one-fourth of all heart disease patients have depression – many are clinically depressed following a stroke, heart attack or bypass surgery.

They also know that having depression increases men’s risk for heart attack by 60 percent and women’s risk of stroke by 44 percent.

Many of my patients are concerned about heart disease -- and with good reason. It’s the leading cause of death in the United States, despite having effective tools to help detect and prevent it. 

How many push-ups can you do? It may sound like an arbitrary question, but it turns out the number of push-ups you can do may be tied to your future risk of a heart attack, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. 

The study, which followed young firefighters for 10 years, found that those able to perform more than 40 push-ups at the outset of the study had a much lower risk for a heart-related problem than firefighters who did fewer than 10 push-ups. 

When it comes to your heart health, you probably know some of the most important numbers to watch for: blood pressure, weight, cholesterol – especially low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the “bad” cholesterol. Did you know you should also keep tabs on your triglycerides to help prevent your risk of heart disease?

Triglycerides are a type of lipid, or fat, in your blood. In healthy amounts, they give you energy. However, high triglyceride levels may increase your risk of heart disease. Here’s what you need to know about them. 

Over the last decade, experts have told us getting seven to eight hours of sleep every night can help protect us against heart disease. Ever wondered why? Researchers think they might have the answer. Healthy, sound sleep triggers a mechanism designed to protect your arteries, according to a study published in Nature.