Cardiovascular Disease

February is American Heart Month—a good time to consider whether complementary health approaches can help manage risk factors for heart disease. Let’s look at three important risk factors:

High blood pressure: High blood pressure is managed with lifestyle changes and, if necessary, medicine. Some mind and body practices—such as meditation and yoga—and certain dietary supplements--such as garlic and fish oil--may have small beneficial effects on blood pressure. However, these approaches have not been shown to have effects comparable to those of the medicines used to keep blood pressure under control.

Cholesterol: If your cholesterol is high, your health care provider may recommend heart-healthy lifestyle changes and prescribe cholesterol-lowering medicine. People sometimes wonder whether dietary supplements could also help. Current evidence indicates that a few, such as soy protein supplements and garlic, may have some effect on cholesterol, but their effects are small compared to the effects of cholesterol-lowering medicines.

Smoking: Conventional smoking cessation treatment (counseling and medication) has been proven to increase the chances that a smoker will be successful in quitting. Certain mind and body practices, such as mindfulness meditation-based therapies, yoga, and relaxation techniques (guided imagery or progressive muscle relaxation) may also be helpful, but the evidence supporting them isn’t as strong as the evidence favoring counseling and medication.