Monthly Archives: November 2022

What Does Heart-Healthy Food Labeling Mean?

The past several decades have seen an incredible shift in the food landscape in the United States. The rise of cheap and highly processed food has partly fueled obesity and metabolic disease, a crisis that we, as cardiologists, constantly contend with. Food companies have gone to great pains to label products as heart-healthy with guidance from the FDA that set specific rules about what can and can’t be labeled as healthy (first in 1994, and to be updated soon). Since 1995, the American Heart Association has offered similar guidance through its Heart-Check Certification program. But, are these labels informative, should they be followed, and is it enough?

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Supplements as Part of a Heart-Healthy Regimen

Supplementation has become an ever-greater part of the collective psyche in the US. As dietary and lifestyle habits have changed, and more of us suffer from metabolic diseases due to excess weight, our understanding of bodily functions and vitamin and mineral interactions has improved. Are we on the right track, or have we taken it too far? Today, you can’t go to a big box store without seeing rows of supplements, from those we know well to obscure roots and herbs that we have difficulty pronouncing. With all the claims swirling around each of these supplements, do they have a place in maintaining cardiovascular health, or do they represent a Band-Aid for those looking for an easy way out? Continue reading →