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Maers of the Heart BY BRENNA HOLLAND Long before our modern understanding of cardiac health, the heart was considered to be the nucleus of emotion, intelligence and personality. As the decades have passed and our scientific understanding of the heart has evolved, physicians have become more adept at treating and diagnosing conditions of the heart. However, there is still much to learn about this mysterious organ and many, commonly-held beliefs about heart health that have become antiquated over time. Samuel Suede, MD, is chief of cardiology at Englewood Health and a founding partner of Cardiovascular Associates of North Jersey. Dr. Suede has spent much of his career dispelling the misconceptions he hears from his patients and their families—making him the perfect person to speak with to illuminate the truth when it comes to matters of the heart. Myth #1: If you work out regularly, you don't need to be concerned about your heart health. Truth: "Heart health is a combination of all your risk factors. You can work out every day and still have diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure—all major risk factors for heart disease. No one should take their heart for granted just because they are physically active." Myth #2: Limiting all cholesterol intake is good for your heart. Truth: "When it comes to cholesterol, there is cholesterol that is good for your heart and cholesterol that is bad for your heart. For this reason, diets that limit your overall cholesterol levels are not effective. Good cholesterol (high- density lipoprotein, or HDL) protects you from cardiovascular disease, and bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, or LDL) promotes the development of plaque in the heart and is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular disease. A proper diet includes maximizing HDL intake and minimizing LDL." —ENGLEWOOD HEALTH'S CHIEF OF CARDIOLOGY, DR. SAMUEL SUEDE, DISPELS 10 COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT HEART HEALTH. V U E N J . C O M 150

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