You can feel fine, pass your checkup and still have something working against your heart for years.
It’s chronic, low-grade inflammation. You can’t feel it. But a recent study says it’s linked to real, measurable changes in the heart — and to a much higher risk of heart attack and stroke.
Researchers at Imperial College London analyzed nearly 480,000 adults in the UK Biobank, combining blood tests, heart imaging and genetic data. The findings were published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
People whose blood showed the most inflammation had a 43% higher risk of heart attack and stroke than those with the least. That held even among people without diagnosed heart disease.
The inflammation also showed up in the heart itself: thicker heart walls, smaller chambers and poorer filling. The researchers say changes like these may develop for years before turning into heart failure.
Lead author Declan O’Regan, a professor at Imperial, warned that “millions of people could be living with hidden inflammation.”
This is an observational study, so it shows a link, not proof. But the drivers it points to are familiar: chronic stress and distress, smoking and excess body fat. And those are things you can do something about.
That matters, because heart disease is still the leading cause of death in America, killing 683,491 people in 2024, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Here are six ways to turn down the heat.
1. Tame chronic stress
The Imperial team was struck by how closely mental health and social factors, including financial hardship, tracked with inflammation and heart damage.
That fits earlier research. In a study funded by the National Institutes of Health, stress-related activity in the brain’s fear center was linked to more inflammatory cells and to inflamed arteries, according to the NIH. That pathway explained a meaningful share of the higher heart risk in lower-income neighborhoods.
What helps? Harvard Health notes that practices like yoga and deep breathing can lower both stress and inflammatory markers. Pick something you’ll actually do daily, even if it’s 10 minutes. And read about the type of stress considered worst for your heart.
2. Quit smoking — it pays off faster than you think
Smoking raises the risk of both coronary heart disease and stroke two to four times, according to the CDC. It’s also one of the drivers the Imperial study flagged.
The payoff for quitting starts quickly. The CDC says quitting reduces markers of inflammation, heart attack risk drops sharply within a year or two, and within 15 years your heart disease risk is close to a nonsmoker’s.
3. Trim the fat around your middle
Excess body fat was another driver in the study, and belly fat is the kind to worry about most. Body fat contains substances that promote inflammation, according to Dr. Robert Shmerling of Harvard Health.
Grab a tape measure. A waist of 35 inches or more for women, or 40 inches or more for men, signals higher risk, according to Cleveland Clinic.
The encouraging news: This deep belly fat responds well to exercise and a better diet, and Cleveland Clinic says you can see results within a few months.
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4. Move every day
Adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, like brisk walking, plus muscle-strengthening work at least two days a week, according to the CDC.
Exercise works on inflammation directly. In one study of adults, those meeting activity guidelines had substantially lower levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a key inflammation marker, than those who didn’t.
You don’t need a gym. Here’s why two easy walking habits beat the 10,000-steps myth.
5. Protect your sleep
“Even one night of disturbed sleep can spark inflammation,” said Harvard’s Shmerling.
The American Heart Association includes healthy sleep in its Life’s Essential 8 checklist for heart health and says most adults need seven to nine hours a night.
If you snore loudly, wake up gasping or feel exhausted after a full night in bed, tell your doctor. And read about the bad sleep habit linked to heart disease.
6. Ask your doctor about a CRP test
You can’t feel inflammation, but a blood test can measure it. A high-sensitivity C-reactive protein test, or hs-CRP, is a simple blood draw.
Under 1 milligram per liter is considered low risk, 1 to 3 is intermediate and above 3 is high, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Cardiology guidelines already treat a level of 2 or higher as a factor that raises heart risk, and the American College of Cardiology now recommends screening hs-CRP more broadly.
Ask about it at your next checkup, especially if you’re weighing whether to start a statin. It’s one more number, alongside your cholesterol results, that can help you and your doctor decide how hard to push.
The bottom line
Inflammation is the part of your heart health you can’t feel and probably haven’t measured.
The good news is that the habits that cool it — less stress, no smoking, a smaller waist, daily movement and good sleep — are the same ones that protect your heart in every other way.
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