Owning a car and TV may raise your risk of a heart attack.

Leisure time and on-the-job physical activity is associated with less likelihood of a hearrt attack. A 52 country case-control study involving more than 10,000 individuals has revealed, after controlling for confounding factors, that both light and moderate activity reduced the risk of acute mycardial infarction (MI) compared to sedentary individuals. Researchers also found that owning a car, a radio/stero and a TV were associated with higher MI rates.

PostiveTip: Put a stop to sedentary living--become active and avoid the coronary care unit!

Synthetic marijuana use may cause heart attacks in teens.

Myocardial infaction is very rare in teens, but physicians are now reporting that K2, a designer drug made from a collection of herbs and spices treated with a sythetic cannabinoid, is causing insufficient blood supply to the heart muscle of teens with no previous health problems or family history. K2 gives a marijuana-like effect without showing up on drug screens and is surprisingly easy to obtain.

PositiveTip: Parents and physicians should discourage teens from using any real or synthetic drugs.

Calcium supplements' small benefits to bone strength must be weighed against the cardiovascular risks.

There is evidence that supplemental calcium may hasten vascular calcification and can raise the risk of heart attacks in otherwise healthy older women. An analysis of 15 double-blind, randomized trials with more than 8000 participants taking at least 500 mg of calcium supplements each day or a placebo, has shown significantly higher rates of heart attack in those taking calcium supplements. The data suggests that treating 1000 people with calcium supplements for 5 years would only prevent 26 fractures but would cause 14 additional heart attacks.

PositiveTip: Taking calcium supplements? You should talk to your physician about the small bone benefits against the cardiovascular risks.

Working overtime is linked with a significant increase in heart disease risk.

After following 6000 British male and female civil servants who were free of coronary heart disease (CHD) at the beginning of the study for about 11 years, investigators report that those who worked 3-4 extra hours per day faced a 60% increase in risk of heart disease, compared to those who didn't work any overtime. No increased risk was seen in those who worked only 1-2 hours of overtime.

PositiveTip: Maintaining work-life balance is vital to both short-term and long-term wellness and longevity.