A new study from Emory Universityreveals that maintaining optimal cardiovascular health can significantly improve overall physical and psychological well-being.

Published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the study synthesizes findings from nearly 500 peer-reviewed studies. It confirms that the benefits of heart-healthy behaviors extend far beyond the heart, positively impacting brain function, vision, hearing, muscle strength, and even reducing the risk of chronic diseases such as cancer and dementia.

“While we recently learned that heart-health and brain health are closely tied, in this review we found that almost every organ system and bodily function from head to toe benefit from a heart-healthy lifestyle,” says Liliana Aguayo, PhD, MPH, research assistant professor at the Emory University Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and core faculty member at Emory’s Global Diabetes Research Center, who led the study.  

The review is the first of its kind to systematically examine how the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7™ metrics — which include not smoking, healthy eating, regular physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, and managing blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar — influence health outcomes across multiple organ systems. The updated Life’s Essential 8™ also includes sleep as a key factor.

Among the key findings were that those with heart-healthy habits:

The study was supported in part by the American Heart Association and the National Institutes of Health. It calls for further research in underrepresented populations, including children and pregnant women, and emphasizes the need to understand how even minor lifestyle improvements yield significant health benefits.