By Serena Gordon
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, June 24 (HealthDay News) -- Monitoring your blood pressure at home and reporting those results to a pharmacist via the Web helps keep blood pressure readings lower than standard care does, a new study found.

In fact, more than half of people who used this system of blood pressure management were able to achieve normal blood pressure readings, compared to just 31 percent of people on standard blood pressure management, according to the study.

MONDAY, June 9 (HealthDay News) -- Taking good care of teeth and gums may be crucial in preventing heart valve infection, a U.S. study finds.

Researchers examined whether daily dental activities such as brushing were as likely as major dental procedures such as tooth extraction to cause infective endocarditis (IE), a dangerous infection of the lining of the heart or heart valve that can occur when bacteria enter the bloodstream.

(AP) Everyone with high blood pressure — some 72 million Americans — should own a home monitor and do regular pressure checks, the American Heart Association and other groups urged Thursday in an unprecedented endorsement of a medical device for consumers.

High blood pressure is a leading cause of heart attacks, strokes and death. Having it checked a few times a year in a doctor's office or at the drugstore is not enough to keep tabs on it, and regular home monitoring is more accurate, the new advice says.

By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, May 22 (HealthDay News) -- More than 100 million Americans should be monitoring their blood pressure at home, according to three major health organizations that are issuing recommendations on what to do and how to do it.

"We have an estimated 72 million [people] with hypertension [high blood pressure] and another 25 million with pre-hypertension," said Dr. Suzanne Oparil, professor of medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

WEDNESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- Just a few hours of exposure to particulate matter air pollution can increase blood pressure and harm blood vessel function within 24 hours, a new study finds.

By Ed Edelson
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- The path to heart disease begins in childhood, and that means preventive measures must be embraced by those at risk long before adulthood, researchers report.

By Randy Dotinga
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- Italian researchers have some advice for those with high blood pressure: Breathe slowly. Turn on some quiet, rhythmic music. And watch your high blood pressure take a little tumble.

WEDNESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- While research suggests that moderate alcohol consumption may have health benefits, heavy drinking increases blood pressure, stiffens blood vessels and causes more rigid heart muscles in men and enlarged hearts in women -- all risk factors for cardiovascular disease, a new study warns.

MONDAY, May 12 (HealthDay News) -- High blood pressure and high cholesterol levels not only are bad for your heart, they may also harm your eyesight, a new report suggests.

By Carolyn Colwell
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, May 12 (HealthDay News) -- Daily doses of statins and blood pressure medications will not be enough to prevent heart disease among the ever-growing number of Baby Boomers who are overweight or obese, a new study suggests.