Test Yourself for a Healthy Heart
 (American Health Newswire) -- Do you know what the number one cause of death is for both men and women in the U.S.? It's heart disease. The most common type of heart disease here is coronary artery disease, which can lead to a heart attack. Although genes play a big part in diagnosis, experts say you can do a few things at home to reduce your risk of death.
Joe Piscatella knows a thing or two about staying healthy. Thirty-three years ago, this now best-selling author thought his life was over.
"One day, I got a little pulling sensation on my chest when I was playing tennis and then I went back and played again and got another pulling sensation," Piscatella told American Health.
Two days after a doctor's visit, he was getting open-heart bypass surgery. At just 32 years old, Piscatella had a 95-percent blockage of his coronary arteries.
"You reach what's called a teachable moment, and all of sudden, you develop a perspective about, 'is this thing really the end of the world?'" Piscatella said.
Piscatella made sure it wasn't by focusing on healthy eating and exercise. He's now one of the world's longest-living bypass survivors.
So, what do you know about what you're eating? For instance, is 2% milk really just 2% fat?
"The 2% on the carton tells you what fat weighs in the carton. It doesn't tell you how many grams of fat," Piscatella said.
The 2% milk is actually 5 grams of fat per 8 ounces. Fat-free milk is better.
The fruit in your yogurt ... that's one daily fruit serving, right?
"When you get to the fruit-flavored ones where the fruit is down at the bottom, it's more like jam, so it's not unusual to have 5 or more teaspoons of sugar," Piscatella said.
More like a serving of sugar. Check the label: 4 grams of sugar equals one teaspoon of sugar. Finally, what about research that says strawberries are good for your heart?
"Strawberries and blueberries are two of the best things that you can have either by themselves or on cereal because they are tremendous antioxidants that are cardio-protective," Piscatella said.
 Strawberries help reduce hardening of the arteries while blueberries are packed with antioxidants. That knowledge -- and more -- helped Piscatella get back to what he does best: living.
"What I do is when I get up in the morning, I make a decision that day that I'm here and that I'm going to do the best for my health just for this one day," Piscatella said.
If you are at risk for coronary heart disease, doctors recommend taking two baby aspirins per day to help stave-off a sudden heart attack.
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