Endurance exercise prevents heart failure

Stiffening of the heart muscle is often associated with the onset of heart failure. The heart can be kept supple, however, by participating in endurance exercises such as running or cycling over a prolonged period of time. 

Researchers at Texas Medical Center in Dallas compared the function of the heart's main pumping chamber in healthy but sedentary adults in their late 20s, healthy but sedentary 70-year-olds, and athletes averaging 68 years.

They found that sedentary individuals' hearts were 50 percent stiffer than the athletes'. What they didn't expect was that the hearts of senior athletes were in the same shape as non-exercisers in their 20s. 

The research team then designed an age-appropriate resistance-training program for the participants. After a year, their hearts were more muscular and more flexible. 

Avocado finally gets praise for raising HDL levels

Long scorned by the health conscious, today avocado lovers know they can eat this exotic fruit without hesitation. That's because avocados contain monounsaturated fats, particularly one kind called oleic acid.

Doctors at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas say eating foods high in monounsaturated fat could result in a significant drop in triglycerides. To get that effect, people are advised to eat 33 grams of monounsaturated fat a day. They can get about that much from one avocado.

Avocados are especially good for people with diabetes. They eat a lot of carbohydrates and tend to develop high levels of triglycerides, a type of blood fat that contributes to heart disease. When they replace some carbohydrates with the type of fat found in avocados, triglycerides decline.

Other studies show that a diet that includes avocados raises levels of healthful high-density liproprotein (HDL).

And half of one avocado contains more potassium than a medium banana. Doctors know that people who eat potassium-rich diets have a much lower risk of high blood pressure and related heart diseases.

Avocados are loaded with folate, which protects against birth defects and may also keep hearts healthy.

A caution: Avocados appear to interfere with absorption of the heart medication warfarin (Coumadin). Skip avocados if you must take that medication.