Men with the highest one-third hair mercury content—2 mcg of mercury per gram of hair or higher—were 56% more likely to develop coronary heart disease, 68% more likely to develop cardiovascular disease (heart attack or stroke), and 60% more likely to have an acute coronary event during an average follow-up of 13.9 years compared with men in the lower two-thirds according to a study from Finland which followed 1871 Finnish men aged 42 to 60 years free of previous coronary heart disease or stroke at baseline.

The one-fifth of men with the highest toenail mercury levels were 2.2 times more likely to have a heart attack compared to the one-fifth of men with the lowest levels according to a study which looked at 684 men from eight (8) European countries and Israel who had a heart attack and compared them to 724 men selected to be representative of the same populations.

“Our data support a protective role for [higher LDL levels] against all-cause mortality following incident [heart attack] and [heart failure],” concludes a new study from researchers at the Mayo Clinic.

LDL levels above 130 mg/dL were most protective.

People consuming 3000 to 5000 mg of sodium per day plus a high potassium intake (greater than 4600 mg per day) had the lowest risk of death during an average follow-up of 8.2 years according to data from 103,5700 people from 18 countries.

Women who had both mumps and measles as a child were 16% less likely to die from a heart attack during a 19-21 year follow-up than women who did not have either of these diseases according to a study of 43,689 men and 60,147 women aged 40-79 years at baseline.

Aspirin use lowers the risk of a cardiovascular event—heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death—by 11% and increases the risk of a major bleed by 43% according to a new meta analysis in JAMA that analyzed 13 aspirin trials randomizing 164, 225 participants.

The one-third of people consuming the most extra virgin olive oil (2 ounces per day or 57 grams per day) were 35% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke) during a 4.8 year follow-up compared to the one-third consuming the least (0.75 ounces or 21 grams per day) according to a study of 7,216 men and women at high cardiovascular risk, aged 55 to 80 years, from the PREDIMED study.

For every 2 teaspoon (10 gram) increase in extra virgin olive oil consumption per day was associated with a 7% lower risk of dying during a 4.8 year follow-up according to a study of 7,216 men and women at high cardiovascular risk, aged 55 to 80 years, from the PREDIMED study.

For every 2 teaspoon (10 gram) increase in extra virgin olive oil consumption per day was associated with a 10% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke) during a 4.8 year follow-up according to a study of 7,216 men and women at high cardiovascular risk, aged 55 to 80 years, from the PREDIMED study.

Men who donated blood were 88% less likely to have a heart attack during a 9-year followup compared to men who did not donate blood according to a 1998 study from Finland.

This was after adjusting for age and coronary disease risk factors.

Only one (1) man out of 153 (0.7%) who had donated blood in the previous 24 months before baseline had a heart attack during 1984 to 1995, whereas 316 men of 2529 (12.5%) who had not donated blood had a heart attack.

“These findings suggest that frequent blood loss through voluntary blood donations may be associated with a reduced risk of acute myocardial infarction in middle-aged men,” the authors of the study concluded.

L-carnitine reduces ventricular arrhythmias after a heart attack by 65% according to a meta-analysis of 13 studies.

L-carnitine reduces development of angina after a heart attack by 40% according to a meta-analysis of 13 studies.

L-carnitine reduces heart failure after a heart attack by 15% according to a meta-analysis of 13 studies.

However, there was a 21% chance that this difference seen between groups was due to random chance (P=0.21), in other words, it was not statistically significant, but this also means that there was a 79% chance the difference was due to the L-carnitine.

This means that it is likely that the L-carnitine following a heart attack also reduces the risk of developing heart failure.

L-carnitine given after a heart attack

• reduces all-cause mortality by 27%
• reduces ventricular arrhythmias by 65%
• reduces development of angina (chest pain) by 40%
• reduces heart failure by 15%
• reduces infarct size

according to a meta-analysis of 13 studies.

The minimum effective dose seems to be 2 grams per day (2,000 mg).

L-carnitine given after a heart attack

• reduces all-cause mortality by 27%
• reduces ventricular arrhythmias by 65%
• reduces development of angina (chest pain) by 40%
• reduces heart failure by 15%
• reduces infarct size

according to a meta-analysis of 13 studies.

The optimum dose seems to be 6-9 grams per day (6,000 to 9,000 mg per day).

Women who consumed 2 or more diet drinks per day were 50% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease over the next 8.7 years compared to women who consumed few to none, 0-3 diet drinks per month, according to a recent study.

This was after controlling for other cardiovascular risk factors.

People consuming the most chocolate were 10% less likely to have coronary heart disease, and 14% less likely to have a heart attack, according to data from six prospective studies.

Compared with people who never or rarely ate eggs, people eating roughly one egg per day were 14% less likely to have a major coronary event according to a study looking at more than 500,000 people in China.

Compared with people who never or rarely ate eggs, people eating roughly one egg per day were 26% less likely to have a hemorrhagic stroke according to a study looking at more than 500,000 people in China.

As sugar intake increases, the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (heart attack or stroke) increases according to a recent analysis by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

During an average follow-up of 14.6 years, compared to the one-fifth of people consuming the least amount of added sugar:

• the one-fifth consuming the next most amount of sugar were 7% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the third highest amount of sugar were 18% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the second highest amount of sugar were 38% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the most amount of sugar were 103% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (2X as likely to die from CVD)

This was after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity as well as sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical characteristics.

A daily dose of 3,000 mg of L-carnitine per day given to people who had suffered a heart attack resulted in a 52% lower risk of all-cause mortality over some number of months according to a meta-analysis of five (5) studies that included 3108 people.

People who had a prior heart attack who were given 40 infusions of EDTA chelation therapy compared to those given a placebo were 18% less likely to die from any cause, have a heart attack, have a stroke, have coronary revascularization, or hospitalization for angina over the next 5 years.

A subset of people who were Type 2 diabetics had a 41% lower risk of these events happening.

EDTA chelation helps to remove heavy metals such as lead and cadmium.

“[A] body of epidemiological data showing that accumulation of biologically active metals, such as lead and cadmium, is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease,” the authors of the paper note.

Type 2 diabetics with a prior heart attack who were given 40 infusions of EDTA chelation therapy compared to those given a placebo had a

• 43 percent reduction in death from any cause over 1-5 years
• 41 percent overall reduction in the risk of any cardiovascular event over 1-5 years
• 40 percent reduction in the risk of death from heart disease, nonfatal stroke, or nonfatal heart attack during a 1-5 year follow-up
• 52 percent reduction in recurrent heart attacks over 1-5 years

according to a study called the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) that was sponsored by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at the U.S. National Institutes of Health which was the first large-scale, multicenter clinical trial on chelation therapy in people who have had heart attacks.

EDTA chelation only benefited diabetics

EDTA chelation only benefited diabetics; it did not benefit non-diabetics.

The one-third of elderly men, 65- to 84-years-old, who consumed the most cocoa were 50% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease (CVD, heart attack or stroke) over the next 15 years compared to the one-third of men who consumed the least cocoa according to The Zutphen Elderly Study.

The one-third of men who consumed the most cocoa consumed an average of 4.2 grams per day which is the amount found in 10 grams of dark chocolate (0.35 ounces of dark chocolate).

People who had a heart attack who ate chocolate twice or more per week were 66% less likely to have died from heart-related problems over the 8 years following their heart attack compared to people who never ate chocolate according to the Stockholm Heart Epidemiology Program.

People who ate chocolate up to once a week were 44% less likely to have died from heart-related problems over the 8 years following their heart attack compared to people who never ate chocolate.

People who ate chocolate less than once a month were 27% less likely to have died from heart-related problems over the 8 years following their heart attack compared to people who never ate chocolate.

“Chocolate consumption had a strong inverse association with cardiac mortality,” the authors of the study concluded.

Men with Type 2 diabetes who were prescribed Viagra-type drugs for improving erections were 38% less likely to have a heart attack compared to men who were not prescribed these drugs during an average follow-up of 7.5 years according to a recent study.

The study looked at the use of phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors which include sildenafil (Viagra), tadalafil (Cialis), vardenafil (Levitra) and avanafil (Stendra).

The one-fourth of people consuming the most olive oil (6 teaspoons per day or more, 29 grams or more) were 44% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease (CVD, heart attack or stroke) during an average follow-up of 13.4 years compared to non-consumers according to the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Spain) study which followed 40,622 people aged 29–69 years who were recruited from 5 Spanish regions in 1992–1996.

Each additional two teaspoons (10 grams) of olive oil intake per day was associated with a 13% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD, heart attack or stroke) during an average follow-up of 13.4 years according to the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Spain) study which followed 40,622 people aged 29–69 years who were recruited from 5 Spanish regions in 1992–1996.

Men who drank 3-4 glasses of water per day were 35% less likely to have a fatal heart attack during a 6-year follow-up compared to men who drank less than 2 glasses per day according to The Adventist Health Study.

The reason for this may be that drinking more water reduces blood viscosity according to the paper.

Men who drank 5 or more glasses of fluids other than water per day were roughly 1.5 times more likely to have a fatal heart attack during the 6-year follow-up.

Men who drank 5 or more glasses of water per day were 54% less likely to have a fatal heart attack during a 6-year follow-up compared to men who drank less than 2 glasses per day according to the The Adventist Health Study.

The reason for this may be that drinking more water reduces blood viscosity according to the paper.

Men who drank 5 or more glasses of fluids other than water per day were roughly 1.5 times more likely to have a fatal heart attack during the 6-year follow-up.

Women who drank 3-4 glasses of water per day were 46% less likely to have a fatal heart attack during a 6-year follow-up compared to women who drank less than 2 glasses per day according to the The Adventist Health Study.

The reason for this may be that drinking more water reduces blood viscosity according to the paper.

Women who drank 5 or more glasses of fluids other than water per day were roughly 2.5 times more likely to have a fatal heart attack during the 6-year follow-up.

Women who drank 5 or more glasses of water per day were 41% less likely to have a fatal heart attack during a 6-year follow-up compared to women who drank less than 2 glasses per day according to the The Adventist Health Study.

The reason for this may be that drinking more water reduces blood viscosity according to the paper.

Women who drank 5 or more glasses of fluids other than water per day were roughly 2.5 times more likely to have a fatal heart attack during the 6-year follow-up.

The one-fifth of men with the highest docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels were 41% less likely to have a heart attack compared to the one-fifth of men with the lowest levels according to a study which looked at 684 men from eight (8) European countries and Israel who had a heart attack and compared them to 724 men selected to be representative of the same populations.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid found in fish.

People consuming 25% or more of calories from added sugar were 2.8 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (heart attack or stroke) compared to people getting less than 10% of their calories from added sugar according to a recent analysis by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This was after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity as well as sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical characteristics.

People consuming 10% to 24.9% of calories from added sugar were 1.3 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (heart attack or stroke) compared to people getting less than 10% of their calories from added sugar according to a recent analysis by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This was after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity as well as sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical characteristics.

Among people who had a heart attack, the risk of dying in the hospital was INVERSELY related to the number of traditional cardiovascular risk factors they had which included hypertension, smoking, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and family history of coronary heart disease.

After adjusting for age and other factors, those with NO risk factors were 54% MORE likely to die in the hospital compared to those with all five (5) major traditional coronary heart disease risk factors (hypertension, smoking, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and family history of coronary heart disease).

In other words, the MORE cardiovascular risk factors they had, the MORE likely they were to survive which is the exact OPPOSITE of what we would assume would happen.

A 2010 meta-analysis which looked at data from 21 studies with 5-23 years of follow-up on 347,747 people found that dietary saturated fat was not associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (which includes heart attack and stroke).

“A meta-analysis of prospective epidemiologic studies showed that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD [coronary heart disease] or CVD [cardiovascular disease],” the authors concluded.

Niacin use was associated with a 25% reduction in nonfatal heart attack or cardiac death according to a review of 11 trials including 9,956 subjects done by researchers at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

“The consensus perspective derived from available clinical data supports that niacin reduces [cardiovascular disease] events,” the paper concluded.

Unfortunately, only one study gave niacin alone. The other 10 of the 11 studies gave niacin plus a statin or other cholesterol-lowering drug.

Niacin use was associated with a 34% reduction in cardiovascular events which was defined as cardiac death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome, stroke, or revascularization procedure according to a review of 11 trials including 9,956 subjects done by researchers at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

“The consensus perspective derived from available clinical data supports that niacin reduces [cardiovascular disease] events,” the paper concluded.

Unfortunately, only one study gave niacin alone. The other 10 of the 11 studies gave niacin plus a statin or other cholesterol-lowering drug.