Scientists used near-infrared spectroscopy to spot telltale lesions in mummies' arteries.

Millions of years ago, after the ancestors of humans diverged from the last link they shared with chimpanzees, they began developing the numerous adaptations that made endurance one of the defining traits of our species. By about 2 million years ago, the genus Homo had emerged and the process really took off. Today, humans can run for miles or walk all day thanks to those changes. In new research, scientists have shown just how substantially evolution has changed one crucial organ: the heart.

A study of more than 12,000 people by Johns Hopkins University also found opting for vegetables over meat reduced their risk of dying early from any cause by a quarter.

More plant based foods and fewer animal products may be the key to optimal heart health and lowering the risk of heart attacks or strokes.

Gothic rock icon Peter Murphy has cancelled the remainder of his New York residency, after the former Bauhaus frontman suffered a heart attack this week.

Young adults with healthy blood pressure go on to have better thinking and memory skills in midlife than their peers with higher blood pressure, according to a new analysis. Previous studies have linked poor fitness and heart health in middle age to declining mental function and dementia around age 70 or 80

Though we’ve known about the connection for some time, a large-scale study hints at the degree to which depression may increase the risk of future heart disease. Looking at data from almost 63,000 people in Norway, and following up over 11 years, the researchers found that mild depression was linked to a 5% increase in the risk of heart failure in the future. Moderate to severe depression was linked to a surprisingly high 40% rise in the risk.

The new study's conclusion shouldn't surprise anyone familiar with modern nutritional science, however. The fact is, there has never been solid evidence for the idea that these fats cause disease. We only believe this to be the case because nutrition policy has been derailed over the past half-century by a mixture of personal ambition, bad science, politics and bias.

On the heels of research suggesting too much running could lead to an earlier death, two new studies say too much high-intensity exercise could lead to heart problems.

Obesity is on track to overtake smoking as the most common risk for heart disease in Canada by 2015, according to a study published Tuesday. “Obesity is a major problem in Canada, affecting nearly one in five adults,” said lead author and Ottawa Hospital Research Institute senior scientist Dr. Doug Manuel.

Scientists believe they have an explanation for the axiom that stress, emotional shock, or overexertion may trigger heart attacks in vulnerable people. Hormones released during these events appear to cause bacterial biofilms on arterial walls to disperse, allowing plaque deposits to rupture into the bloodstream, according to research published in published in mBio®, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

Feeling angry? Let it all out, punch a pillow, blow off steam, but don’t keep it in, right?

Study finds that people who reduced carbs saw bigger drop in risk factors for heart disease.

Twice now, surgeons in Australia have revived a dead heart—a heart that had stopped beating—and brought it back to life before transplanting it into a new person. It’s a huge breakthrough that could potentially save 30 percent more lives compared to ordinary heart transplants, according to the surgeons who performed this feat.

A ground-breaking bionic heart without a pulse is hoped to be saving lives within three years. The world-first device was designed by Brisbane engineer Dr Daniel Timms, who instigated the project in 2001 while studying at the Queensland University of Technology. It recently passed its biggest test when it was successfully transplanted into a live and healthy sheep, and Dr Timms now wants it ready for human trials by 2018.

This award-winning 3-D model of the heart isn't just a feat of science, it'll help you better understand your own body.

This trip in the NPR Books Time Machine, we're rewinding Richard Kadrey's hardboiled supernatural noir series about a half-angel, half-human man who fights crime and occasionally saves the world.

Cardiac disease is the world’s leading cause of death. Cardiac Disease's pathogenesis is largely attributed to cholesterol, predominantly carried by low-density lipoproteins(LDL).However, recent research has found that oxidized-LDL is significantly more potent in the initiation and development of atherosclerosis. Tests for both cholesterol and ox-LDL tests are lab-based and expensive. With every third American at risk for Cardiac Disease, this research aims to produce an on-site, ultra-low cost.

World Heart Federation.

Steve Williams couldn’t breathe. The former athlete had cardiomyopathy, which occasionally choked his lungs with fluid, making him gasp for air. But this felt different; Williams felt like he was dying. He was raced to an Orange County hospital, and shortly after checking in, his heart stopped. For 30 minutes, ER workers compressed his chest in an attempt to revive him. At one point, his wife Mary remembers being called into his room to say goodbye to...