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Nitrates are added to processed meats (such as bacon, ham, and deli meats) and are found naturally in leafy green vegetables (such as spinach and kale). But it's not clear how crucial these molecules are compared with other components of those foods, as dietary nitrate levels don't appear to affect heart disease risk. However, nitrate-based drugs are used to treat angina, a common symptom of coronary artery disease.

A study published online Aug. 26, 2021, by The Lancet found that blood pressure treatment protects against heart attacks, strokes, and other major cardiovascular disease problems in people up to age 85 and possibly older. For people younger than 75, the study confirmed that people taking blood pressure medicines had 10% to 20% fewer cardiovascular disease problems. For people 75 to 84, there still was a 10% reduction. For people older than 85, the results were mixed, but there still appeared to be a benefit from blood pressure treatment.

Exercise may help to reverse some types of heart damage. Not only can workouts prevent heart problems, but it may help to improve conditions that may raise risk for cardiovascular events. A 2021 study, for example, showed that a yearlong exercise program helped improve heart health in people who were at increased risk for heart failure.

It is possible to experience a stroke without symptoms. Addressing cardiovascular risk factors can help lower the risk.

Treating people who have low levels of vitamin D with supplements may reduce their risk for heart attacks and death from any cause.

Some people with borderline high blood pressure have higher readings during winter, even high enough to need medicine to control it. In spring or summer, they might be able to reduce the dose or stop taking the medication. Losing excess weight and cutting back on salt also can help.

The most common type of heart failure in older adults is heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. This is caused by the heart's left ventricle not being able to relax, which means less blood enters the chamber, so less gets pumped out. Prevention and treatments continue to evolve, but include controlling blood pressure, addressing weight gain with exercise and diet, not smoking, and curbing alcohol intake.

For people over 60, aiming for a blood pressure target below 130/80 mm Hg may prevent more cardiovascular problems than aiming for the higher target suggested by some physicians. Some feared that the more intensive treatment required to reach the lower target might cause more adverse side effects (such as dizziness and falls) in older people. But side effects do not appear to differ among people taking intensive versus standard therapy.

People who ate healthy plant-based foods had a 10% reduction in stroke risk, compared with people who ate unhealthy plant-based foods, according to a Harvard study published online March 10, 2021, by the journal Neurology.