Advancing Your Health

Thank you to those who attended our  live web chat on Nutrition for the Heart! We had an excellent discussion and thank Emory Heart & Vascular Center Registered Dietician Cheryl A. Williams, RD, LD (pictured below) for her insight on this important topic!   If you were not able to attend the live chat, you can view the transcript from this chat and others using the “Past Web Chats” link in the top navigation bar. We would like to clarify a question posed in the chat regarding the amount of fish that is healthy for your heart.  The guidelines for fish consumption are 2 servings of fatty fish, salmon, trout, mackerel etc.,  per week for heart health. There are no separate guidelines for [...]

Two years have passed since the New York City Health Department announced its national initiative to reduce American’s salt intake twenty percent by the year 2015.  Being sited as the catalyst for increased blood pressure, heart attacks and stokes, salt in some circles is seen as public enemy number one.  Just last September the Department of Health and Human Services announced its own national campaign against heart attacks (and indirectly sodium intake) called Million Hearts. This national initiative has set the ambitious goal to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. But is salt really the problem?  Yes and no.  Salt consumed at the recommended serving size of 2300 mg a day is fine for seventy percent of the population who are not [...]

If you want a loved one to stop smoking and you feel tempted to nag him or her, you may want to try to curb your impulse. You might be doing more harm than good, a Winship Cancer Institute expert says. Reinforce positively and try not to nag, advises Carla Berg, Ph.D., a member of the Cancer Prevention and Control department of Winship and also a professor in the Rollins School of Public Health. With Heart Month upon us and roughly 17-18%  of adults in the United States continuing to smoke, this is important. Smoking is not only is the major cause of lung cancer, the nation’s number one cancer killer, but it's [...]

Emory Women’s Heart Program cardiologist, Dr. Susmita Parashar outlines some of the differences in the symptoms of heart disease in women versus men in this CNN news piece.

Emory Healthcare is a proud sponsor of American Heart Association’s My Heart. My Life program.

Join Emory Cardiologist Susmita Parashar, MD in a live chat on Stress and Heart Disease on Tuesday, February, 28, 2012 at 12:30. To learn more visit ...]

It’s well known that we eat more calories when we dine out at restaurants than we would eating at home.  But, you don’t have to completely avoid restaurants when trying to manage your weight.  Here are some smart strategies to help control your calories.

1. Don't be afraid to ask for what you want. Have your server put high-fat condiments like salad dressing and mayonnaise on the side so you can control how much gets put on your meal.  Ask to substitute high-calorie side items like French fries for salad or steamed vegetables.
2. Take half your meal home. Ask for a to-go box as soon as your meal comes to the table.  Put half of it away before you are finished eating.  Now you have [...]
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As Valentine’s Day approaches, Saint Joseph’s cardiologist Jason Reingold, MD, says go ahead and give your sweetheart some dark chocolate this year - to consume in moderation. In the past year, more research has suggested a beneficial link between higher levels of chocolate consumption and the reduction of the risk of cardiovascular events. In one study, participants with the highest levels of chocolate intake had a 37 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29 percent reduction in stroke compared with participants who consumed the lowest levels of chocolate. The secret behind chocolate’s beneficial effects on the heart is the effect of powerful micronutrients - flavonoids and phenols found naturally in the cocoa bean. These compounds function like antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables where free radicals are neutralized and destroyed, helping the body resist damage [...]

With Adele singing at the Grammy awards this weekend, news reports have resurfaced the singer’s laser vocal cord surgery.  While she did not have her treatment at Emory, Emory’s Voice Center is one of only 12 in the nation and the only one in the Southeast that offers laser surgery for the treatment of laryngeal (voice box) conditions.  Specifically the potassium titanyl phosphate (or KTP) laser is used to avoid damaging the delicate tissues of the vocal folds during surgery. Initially it was developed to treat port-wine stains caused by broken blood vessels, but it has since received FDA approval as a treatment for vocal disorders, including abnormal blood vessels, such as varices and ectasias, which often plague singers.  Most recently, it is being used as a treatment for larynx cancer in combination with anti-cancer therapies such as radiation and chemotherapy. “The laser basically works by [...]

Just before New Year’s Day of 2012 you couldn’t find Dr. Nicole Turgeon, Emory kidney and pancreas transplant surgeon inside Emory Hospital walls as she normally is. Instead, Dr. Turgeon was taking time out of her holiday schedule for a cause she really believes in– organ donation. Dr. Turgeon jetted off to Pasadena, CA on December 29, 2012 to help decorate the Donate Life float for the Rose Bowl Parade. "Although a small gesture, I wanted to pay tribute to the families who so selflessly give the gift of life to others," she says of the experience. "I have seen the float on TV over the past several years and had wanted to participate. I was able to make it work this year with the incredible support of my family." Each year for the past six years, Donate Life has decorated a Rose [...]

The annual Charles Harris Run for Leukemia, which benefits leukemia research at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, is scheduled for Saturday, February 25. The 10K run kicks off at 7:45 am at Tucker High School; the one-mile run/walk starts at Druid Hills Middle School. The run honors the late Dr. Charles E. Harris -- former teacher, coach and beloved principal of Shamrock High School. Dr. Harris passed away more than three decades ago from leukemia at the age of 49. Dr. Harris was an un-sung All-American football player at the University of Georgia and a Marine who volunteered for the Korean War. Playing on the Camp Pendleton football team, Pete Rozelle, father of the modern day NFL, attempted to [...]

Heart disease affects women of all ages.  Three Saint Joseph’s Hospital patients shared their incredible stories of surviving heart disease at a young age on Sunday, February 5, Focus Atlanta show.  In addition, Saint Joseph cardiologist, Dr. Lee Padove,  gives risk factors, symptoms and treatment options for women who have heart disease.   View these incredible patient stories by checking out the video below, and take charge of your heart health today! Emory Healthcare is a proud sponsor of American Heart Association’s My Heart. My Life program. [...]