There isn't one single "best" indicator; rather, a combination of key numbers like blood pressure, cholesterol (LDL, HDL, triglycerides), blood sugar (HbA1c), and waist circumference, alongside lifestyle factors like regular exercise and sleep, paints the most complete picture of heart health, with blood pressure often cited as a crucial, silent predictor. Tracking these metrics helps assess your risk for heart disease, stroke, and peripheral artery disease.
Your blood pressure
A score of 120/80 is optimal, and 140/90 is normal for most people. Higher readings mean that arteries aren't responding right to the force of blood pushing against artery walls (blood pressure), directly raising the risk of heart attack or stroke.
5 Signs You Have a Healthy Heart
Electrocardiogram. An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a test that records the electrical activity of the heart. The ECG reflects what's happening in different areas of the heart and helps identify any problems with the rhythm or rate of your heart. The ECG is painless and takes around 5-10 minutes to perform.
Research shows that C-reactive protein is a better predictive marker for heart attacks and strokes than “bad,” or LDL cholesterol, short for low-density lipoprotein, as well as another commonly measured genetically inherited biomarker called lipoprotein(a).
“Smoking is one of the most harmful things people can do to themselves,” Dr. Maniar says. Blood flow drops, slashing oxygen that fuels the heart, which compensates by spiking blood pressure, heart rate and rhythm, and can lead to hardened and narrowed arteries and blood clots causing cardiovascular disease.
Cardiac troponins are widely recognized as the gold-standard biomarkers for diagnosing AMI due to their high sensitivity and specificity. However, various chronic cardiovascular conditions can also lead to persistently elevated cardiac troponin levels, complicating their interpretation in clinical practice.
Call your local emergency number if you suddenly experience chest pain, pressure, heaviness or discomfort, fainting or shortness of breath. You may want to ask your healthcare provider: What kind of heart disease do I have?
Coronary Angiography (Cardiac Catheterization)
This is considered the gold standard for diagnosing coronary artery disease. A thin, flexible tube (catheter) is inserted through a blood vessel in your arm or groin and guided to your heart.
Heart scans use computed tomography (CT) to create images of your heart. While these scans can detect calcium build-up in your arteries, they can't provide the same level of detail as an echocardiogram.
As the condition gets worse, symptoms may include:
Cardiac catheterization and angiogram.
This test can see blockages in the heart arteries. A doctor places a long, thin flexible tube called a catheter in a blood vessel, usually in the groin or wrist.
4 Heart Health Metrics You Should be Monitoring at Home
The Basics
When your heart can't pump effectively, less blood flows to your lungs and your muscles. Shortness of breath and fatigue when doing everyday activities, such as climbing stairs or walking across a parking lot, is a red flag.
Cardiologists generally advise avoiding processed meats, sugary drinks and sweets, and foods high in trans fats and sodium, like most fried foods and salty snacks, because they raise bad cholesterol, blood pressure, and inflammation, significantly increasing heart disease risk. Focusing on whole foods and limiting these culprits is key for heart health.
Some tests that show blocked arteries in the heart are echocardiogram, computed tomography angiography (CTA), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and intravascular ultrasound.
While an ECG measures the heart's electrical activity, it cannot detect heart blockages. They are useful for identifying certain heart conditions and abnormalities that might be related to blockages, like irregular heartbeats or signs of a heart attack, but they can't visualise blood vessels.
A chest X-ray shows the condition and size of the heart and lungs. Echocardiogram. Sound waves (ultrasound) create images of the moving heart. This test can show how blood moves through the heart and heart valves.
High cholesterol is often silent, but warning signs appear as plaque builds up, including chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, fatigue, numbness/coldness in limbs, dizziness, yellow fatty deposits (xanthomas), difficulty breathing, slurred speech, swelling in legs, or jaw/back pain (especially in women), often indicating a serious complication like a heart attack or stroke. A blood test (lipid profile) is the only way to know your levels.
Knowing you have heart problems involves recognizing symptoms like chest pain/pressure, shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness, palpitations, and pain in your arms, back, neck, or jaw, which signal potential issues like a heart attack or heart failure, but also less obvious signs like swelling, sweating, nausea, or indigestion, requiring immediate medical attention for sudden or worsening symptoms. Don't ignore symptoms, especially if they're new or severe, and see a doctor for persistent issues like swollen ankles or leg pain during walking.
“When stress hormones are elevated, your blood pressure may rise and you may feel heart palpitations, a racing heartbeat, shortness of breath, or even chest pain. In extreme cases, stress can also cause the heart to temporarily weaken, a condition called stress-induced cardiomyopathy.”
Troponin is superior to electrocardiogram and creatinine kinase MB for predicting clinically significant myocardial injury after coronary artery bypass grafting.
An ejection fraction of 60% means that 60% of the blood in the left ventricle is pushed out with each heartbeat. A normal heart's ejection fraction is between 55% and 70%. Your EF can help to detect and track heart failure. You can have a normal ejection fraction and still have heart failure.
A high-sensitivity troponin T test helps health care professionals diagnose a heart attack. The test also shows the risk of heart disease. An increased level of troponin T has been linked with a higher risk of heart disease in people who have no symptoms.