6 Health Metrics Everyone Should Know for Heart & Vascular Health ❤️

February is Heart Health Awareness Month, and this month at Elevated Integrative Medicine, we’re putting the spotlight on the heart of the matter.

Heart disease remains the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, accounting for more deaths each year than cancer (American Heart Association, Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics).

The good news? With awareness, there is so much we can do to prevent, detect early, stabilize, and even reverse cardiovascular disease.

It all starts with paying attention and understanding your individual risk. These are six foundational metrics I believe everyone should be aware of. Awareness creates opportunity, and opportunity allows you to take proactive, protective action.

1. Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is often silent, but over time it can be very damaging and is one of the

leading contributors to heart and vascular disease.

What to know:

• Ideal: <120/80 mmHg

• Even mildly elevated blood pressure accelerates arterial aging and plaque formation

Bonus: Home blood pressure monitoring is often more informative than single office readings.

When blood pressure is elevated, an integrative approach, combining nutrition, movement, sleep,

stress regulation, targeted supplements, and medication when appropriate, can be highly effective

in optimizing vascular health.

2. Cholesterol: Beyond “Total”

Cholesterol is often discussed in oversimplified terms. In reality, the breakdown matters far more

than the total number, as total cholesterol alone doesn’t reflect true cardiovascular risk.

More meaningful markers include:

• LDL and ApoB

• HDL

• Triglycerides

• Triglyceride-to-HDL ratio

These markers provide insight into particle burden, metabolic health, and plaque risk, not just the

amount of cholesterol circulating in the blood.

3. Blood Sugar & Metabolic Health

Heart disease and metabolic health are deeply intertwined.

Key markers include:

• Fasting glucose

• Hemoglobin A1c

• Fasting insulin (measured here in annual panels)

• Calculated HOMA-IR (a measure of insulin resistance)

Even “normal” blood sugar levels can conceal insulin resistance, one of the most powerful

drivers of cardiovascular disease. In addition, repeated blood sugar spikes after meals can

directly damage the vascular lining, accelerating arterial inflammation and plaque development

(American Heart Association; endothelial dysfunction literature).

4. Inflammation

Inflammation plays a central role in vascular damage and plaque instability. According to the

American College of Cardiology, chronic, low-grade inflammation is now recognized as a root cause of atherosclerosis, not just a byproduct of the disease process (ACC; atherosclerosis and inflammation literature).

Markers I often look at include:

• hs-CRP

• Lp-PLA2

• Homocysteine

Heart disease isn’t just about cholesterol; it’s about inflamed arteries. For a deeper dive, see my Substack post: Fire in the Arteries.)

5. What’s Happening Inside the Arteries

Today, we no longer have to rely on estimates or guesswork to assess cardiovascular risk. We can

actually look inside the arteries to see what’s happening in real time.

These tools allow us to evaluate:

• Hard (calcified) plaque

• Soft (non-calcified) plaque

• Blood vessel thickness (intima-media layers)

• Early arterial and endothelial damage

Examples include:

• Coronary artery calcium (CAC) scan (non-contrast; detects calcified plaque)

• Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) ultrasound (assesses arterial wall thickness and both soft and hard plaque)

• CT coronary angiography (CTA) (with IV contrast; evaluates both calcified and non-calcified plaque, as well as arterial and endothelial integrity)

• Advanced lipid and endothelial markers

  
  

Together, these measures help us understand arterial age, plaque burden, and disease activity,

allowing for earlier, more precise, and more effective intervention.

6. Family History & Genetic Risk

Diet and lifestyle matter, but genes shape the terrain.

Important considerations include:

• Family history of early heart disease or stroke

• Elevated inherited markers such as ApoB or Lp(a)

• Genetic lipid or metabolic risk variants (such as APOE)

Genetics do not determine destiny, but they inform how proactive we need to be, and which

strategies matter most. For some individuals, even with an excellent diet and healthy lifestyle, additional interventions may be necessary to protect vascular health.

The Takeaway

There is no single marker that defines heart health. Lasting cardiovascular health comes from

understanding the whole picture, knowing your personal risk, and taking small, meaningful steps

consistently, often long before symptoms ever appear.

The encouraging part is that the heart and blood vessels are remarkably responsive to the right

care. With awareness, guidance, and consistency, heart health can be protected, strengthened, and

improved over time. This is the heart of proactive, personalized cardiovascular care.❤️

[Return to February Newsletter]