Tai chi keeps seniors on their feet

Scottsdale, Arizona - Exercise is important for everyday health, but one exercise in particular helps prevent falls and broken bones in seniors, according to recently published research. Dr. Robert Wermers, a Mayo Clinic endocrinologist, says tai chi is a low-impact balance exercise that can reduce falls and prevent life-impairing bone fractures in seniors.

YMCA and American Heart Association Join Forces to Improve Blood Pressure Control

Chicago, Illinois - With almost half of all American adults having high blood pressure, YMCA of the USA (Y-USA) and the American Heart Association are combining efforts to help more people better manage their blood pressure.

Treatment rates for dangerously high cholesterol remains low

Dallas, Texas - Less than 40 percent of people with severe elevations in cholesterol are being prescribed appropriate drug treatment, according to a nationally representative study reported in the American Heart Association’s journal Circulation.

Heart disease, stroke less widespread among foreign-born vs. U.S.-born adults

Dallas, Texas - Foreign-born adults living in the United States had a lower prevalence of coronary heart disease and stroke than U.S.-born adults in nationally representative data spanning 2006-2014, according to new research in Journal of the American Heart Association, the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

NIH study may help explain why iron can worsen malaria infection

Washington, DC - Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have a possible explanation for why iron can sometimes worsen malaria infection. By studying mice and samples from malaria patients, the researchers found that extra iron interferes with ferroportin, a protein that prevents a toxic buildup of iron in red blood cells and helps protect these cells against malaria infection. They also found that a mutant form of ferroportin that occurs in African populations appears to protect against malaria. These basic findings, published in Science, may help researchers and healthcare officials develop strategies to prevent and treat malaria (link is external) infections, which numbered nearly 216 million worldwide in 2016.