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First the bad news. This year more than a million Americans will have a coronary event -- a heart attack or some other complication of heart disease. And more than 40% (440,000) of the people who have a heart attack will die from it. That amounts to two coronary events and one death every minute.

Heart disease is often referred to as cardiovascular disease -- a term that also encompasses stroke and rheumatic heart disease, among other things. It is the number-one killer of both women and men in the United States, and it has killed more women than men every year since 1984. In addition to death, disability, and suffering, this epidemic of heart disease contributes to our nation's economic ills -- it is estimated that the costs of cardiovascular disease will total more than $214 billion in 2000 alone.

And now the good news. Heart disease is one of the most preventable of all diseases. Numerous studies have demonstrated that if you commit yourself to four basic lifestyle changes -- not smoking, eating healthfully, exercising regularly, and controlling your blood pressure -- you can significantly reduce your chances of having a first heart attack and can reduce your overall risk for coronary heart disease.

For example, the Harvard Alumni Health Study, a long-term study of nearly 15,000 graduates of Harvard College, found that men who began exercising regularly, quit smoking, reduced their blood pressures, and lost weight substantially extended their life span in comparison to their classmates who did not make these lifestyle changes. And recent findings from the Nurses' Health Study, which followed 85,941 women from 1980 to 1994, showed that eating healthier diets and not smoking accounted for much of the 31% drop in coronary heart disease among these women over that period.

If you've already survived your first (or second, or third) heart attack, don't feel that you've lost your chance to prevent another. These same measures -- along with additional steps such as taking low-dose aspirin, cholesterol-lowering drugs, or B vitamins -- may decrease the likelihood of a subsequent heart attack in those who already have heart disease.

This report will guide you through the basics of heart disease and heart-disease prevention, beginning with a straightforward explanation of the condition. The following pages also describe the factors that put you at risk for the disease and explain the most effective prevention strategies. In addition, the report offers practical tips on implementing this information and making what can be difficult changes in lifestyle. After reading this report, you'll be armed with the information you need to get heart-healthy.