People with diabetes are at increased risk for cardiovascular, or heart and blood vessel, disease—in fact, their risk is double that of people who don't have diabetes. Diabetes contributes to atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries. This narrowing can restrict or stop blood flow to the heart, brain, and other parts of the body, causing heart attack or stroke. To prevent heart and blood vessel problems, it's important to keep your blood glucose, blood pressure, and levels of artery-clogging blood lipids, such as cholesterol and triglycerides, in check. Read the articles below to learn about the cardiovascular complications of diabetes and their treatment and prevention.

Heart Attack by Wayne L. Clark

When a heart attack strikes, time is of the essence. Intuitively, we all know it: The faster we get help, the better the outcome. Doctors say that “time is muscle,” because the longer a heart attack goes untreated, the more heart muscle dies and is...

Lower Cholesterol to Lower Heart Risk by Wayne L. Clark

The news out of the United Kingdom in June 2003 was a call to action for people with diabetes and their physicians. Investigators in the Heart Protection Study had reported a year earlier that the drug simvastatin had lowered cholesterol levels in...

Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, and Physical Activity by Richard M. Weil, M.Ed., C.D.E.

It's no coincidence that the rate of Type 2 diabetes is rising as rapidly as the rate of obesity in the United States. The two are strongly related: The heavier people are, the more likely they are to develop diabetes. So...

Preventing Coronary Heart Disease by Heidi Mochari, M.P.H., R.D.

Coronary heart disease is the single leading killer of women in the United States, and women with diabetes are at particularly high risk. High blood glucose itself is believed to contribute to this increased risk, but diabetes is also associated with...

Statements and opinions expressed on this Web site are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the publishers or advertisers. The information provided on this Web site should not be construed as medical instruction. Consult appropriate health-care professionals before taking action based on this information.