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Certain risk factors make it more likely that you'll develop coronary heart disease and have a heart attack. Risk factors you can control include smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, overweight and obesity, unhealthy diet, lack of physical activity, and high blood sugar due to insulin resistance or diabetes. Risk factors you can’t control include age, family history of early heart disease, and preeclampsia.

A heart attack happens if the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a section of heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked and the heart can't get oxygen. Most heart attacks occur as a result of coronary heart disease. A less common cause is a severe spasm of the coronary artery.

A heart attack happens when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to a section of heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked and the heart can’t get oxygen. If you think you or someone else may be having heart attack symptoms or a heart attack, call 9–1–1 for emergency medical care.

Understanding the DASH eating plan will help you start and follow this plan for life.

The DASH eating plan is just one key part of a heart-healthy lifestyle, and combining it with other lifestyle changes such as physical activity can help you control your blood pressure and cholesterol.

Three NHLBI-funded trials showed the health benefits of the DASH diet, such as lowering high blood pressure and LDL cholesterol in the blood, and shaped the final DASH eating plan recommendations.

DASH is a flexible and balanced eating plan that helps create a heart-healthy eating style for life.

If you have carotid artery disease, you can take steps to manage the condition, reduce risk factors, and prevent complications by making lifestyle changes, following your treatment plan, and getting ongoing care. Know the stroke warning signs and call 9–1–1 for emergency help if you think you are having a stroke.

Taking action to control your risk factors—through heart-healthy eating, maintaining a healthy weight, physical activity, and quitting smoking—can help prevent or delay carotid artery disease and stroke.

Your doctor will diagnose carotid artery disease based on your medical history, a physical exam, and results from one or more tests: ultrasound, angiography, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), and computed tomography (CT) angiography.