Abella Heart Blog

Here's news straight from the heart: The American Heart Association (AHA), which for years singled out only smoking, high blood pressure, and high blood cholesterol as major risk factors for coronary disease, has added a fourth factor—physical inactivity—to those that...

Much of what young women do for their bodies now will determine their health and mobility in old age. Research suggests that women can build bone mass throughout their early adult years, beyond the time their linear growth stops, which is important in preventing...

Home-exercise bikes are uniting fitness with the cocooning craze. As more people seek entertainment and leisure activities in the comfort of their homes, these bikes allow them to stay trim and healthy while avoiding overcrowded gyms and the familiar hazards of...

Most athletes know that the suffix itis is bad news: not fatal, but annoying and probably painful. Itis actually means "inflammation," which describes both the sensation and the physiology of the body's reaction to connective tissue damage. Inflammation is swelling...

Many of my patients come to see me complaining of chest pain. These patients are frequently young, otherwise healthy and "freaking out" about why they should have chest pain. If the the diagnosis is mitral valve prolapse, take heart. Mitral valve prolapse is a benign...

The number of Americans that die each year from heart disease is sobering. As many as one in four deaths are due to heart disease. That is 610,000 deaths a year. It is the number one killer of both men and women. Coronary artery disease is the most common type of...