5 Unusual Things Neurologists Do Every Day To Lower Their Risk Of Dementia

 Mine are at least as good.

5 Unusual Things Neurologists Do Every Day To Lower Their Risk Of Dementia

Because we are living longer than previous generations did, there is a higher likelihood that people will experience brain deterioration.

A study published last January showed that an estimated half a million people may be diagnosed with dementia this year. By 2060, the number is predicted to reach 1 million cases annually.

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The aging population may be living with lifestyle chronic diseases like high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, which also raise a person’s dementia risk. “We estimate that about 40% of cases of dementia are preventable through lifestyle and other factors,” said Dr. Meredith Bock, neurologist and chief medical officer at Remo Health. Just because you carry a gene that puts you at a higher risk for developing dementia doesn’t mean that you will.

“There’s certainly a benefit to lifestyle interventions, both at reducing the time of onset of dementia or potentially getting it at all,” Bock said.

Some of these interventions, like getting plenty of exercise or doing brain puzzles, are well known. Others, however, may not be. Below, neurologists share the behaviors they do daily to keep their risk of dementia low, which may seem unusual to some:

 Related video: Nearly half of dementia cases may be preventable, doctor explains (FOX 32 Chicago)

They walk to their colleague’s office instead of sending an email.

A great reason for my buying a 4 level condo, I have to either take 1 flight up or 2 flights down to get to a bathroom, needed because of all the coffee I drink.

Instead of being glued to a chair in front of a computer at work, Dr. Gabriel Leger, a neurologist at UC San Diego Health, is very intentional about getting up and moving to break up prolonged sitting periods.

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“If I’m not with patients, I’m more likely to stand up and go across the building to speak to somebody instead of sending an email just because it gets me off the chair and makes me more active,” Leger said.

Our bodies weren’t designed to be still for prolonged periods, explained Leger. A 2023 study of nearly 50,000 adults revealed that 10 hours or more of sitting per day is linked to increased dementia risk.

They interact with people IRL as often as possible.

Another reason Leger will discuss a matter with a colleague face-to-face instead of simply sending an email is that interacting with other people helps preserve brain function.

“The more social interaction you have, the more connections your brain is making,” Leger said. Socializing with others is a protective factor to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. He added that it is as much a stimulator of brain connections as education.

 My longevity is going to be fun and my social connections will get me there.

(Sunday is music at Red Cedar, Tuesday is music at Moriarties, Thursday is trivia at Moriarties; all are bars, so alcohol is involved, there will be no condemnations of that.) All part of my plan to exponentially expand my social connections to prevent dementia. 

“When you have a typical conversation, there are a lot of different cognitive domains you may be drawing on, comprehending language, speaking, following a story, and a lot of behavioral aspects, socio-emotional cues that you’re picking up on and responding to,” Bock explained. “Social interactions are also just really good for mood, which is also closely related to cognition.”

Caring for pets can have brain-protecting benefits.

If they have pets, they really commit to caring for them.

Not going to occur, they are furry anchors, stopping spontaneous activity and lots of travel options.

Leger owns two dogs and two cats. With dogs in particular, “you interact with them socially, you are obligated to take them out every day for a walk, and they force you to interact with other dog owners,” Leger said.

“You have a responsibility and are maintaining the sense that ‘There’s something that I need to do. I need to feed my dog. I need to make sure that they’re well.’ It’s a bit like parenting, where that sense of purpose is kept.” 

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These may protect a person’s cognitive function, as they provide daily opportunities for mental stimulation, social interaction and exercise. If you have a pet, this is another great reason to commit to its care.

They steer clear of foods with pesticides, preservatives or that are highly processed.

“It’s not quirky, but I try to stay away from highly processed foods, and try to eat organic food as much as possible. That’s not possible for everybody, but I do believe that pesticides, herbicides and highly processed foods are associated with elements that can stress the brain, that can increase the risk of dementia,” Leger said.

A practical way to do this is to buy fresh produce from the local farmer’s market or community food garden. If not weekly, try to do it once a month. If this isn’t possible, make it a habit to rinse your fruit and vegetables thoroughly with water before consuming them, as Leger does.

They eat lots of olive oil.

Dr. Gustavo Roman, a neurologist at Houston Methodist Hospital, takes a tablespoon’s worth of extra virgin olive oil every morning with his breakfast.

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“There are more blood vessels in the brain than in any other organ,” he said. When these blood vessels are affected, this raises the risk of developing dementia.

The Mediterranean diet is linked to healthier blood vessels. As Roman scoured the scientific research, he saw that “there was data that the Mediterranean diet was a factor linked to the decrease in frequency of dementia.” A key component of this diet is incorporating extra virgin olive oil at every meal.

(The Mediterranean diet has NO specifics, so you don't even know if you are following it correctly!)

He advises his patients to find a supermarket that allows them to taste test different olive oils to find the one that is most palatable to them. “When they purchase the olive oil,” he said, “it should be from the current year’s harvest, it shouldn’t have a very long shelf life, and its bottle should be black, dark green or brown or metallic because the oil is very sensitive to light.”

Men who age exceptionally well after 60 almost always share these 10 daily habits

Have your competent? doctor put these into protocols so you do them correctly and can blame the doctor for not having the correct protocol.

Men who age exceptionally well after 60 almost always share these 10 daily habits

Men who age exceptionally well after 60 almost always share these 10 daily habits

Elderly men who appear to age more slowly, stay vigorous and independent well into their senior years, tend to practice all of these habits daily.

1. Strength training

Rather than simply going for a stroll, aging men who stay fit continue to lift weights. Our bodies are naturally programmed to lose muscle mass and become weaker as we age. Resistance training fools your body into maintaining strong bones, keeping your joints from aching, and lifting heavy groceries feels like no effort at all.

2. Moving all day

These men don't work out for an hour and then sit on the couch for the rest of the day. They find ways to stay mobile all day long, whether it's gardening, walking to the local grocer, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Staying constantly active with light movement improves circulation, keeps your joints flexible and lubricated, and prevents pain associated with sitting too much.

3. Eating enough protein

Fueling your muscles properly with protein (especially at breakfast and lunch) is essential for having lean, strong muscles. Our bodies have a more difficult time breaking down protein as we age to rebuild muscle tissue. Eating eggs, fish, chicken, or beans will help restore your body and keep you energized.

4. Better sleep habits

Instead of viewing sleep as optional, aging gracefully allows you to prioritize a good night's rest. Healthy aging males have a set bedtime each night and ensure the bedroom is cool, dark, and quiet. Restorative sleep allows your brain and body to catch up on cellular repair, clear brain fog, and reboot energy levels for tomorrow.

5. Drinking water constantly

The natural urge to feel thirsty begins to diminish with age, so most elderly adults walk around chronically dehydrated without even knowing it. Aging males who maintain a high energy level and mental focus learn to make drinking water a regular habit. Staying hydrated allows your kidneys to function properly, avoids unexpected energy crashes, promotes healthy digestion, and can even prevent dry skin.

6. Trying new challenges

Rather than falling into a pattern of doing the same things every day while watching the same shows on TV, these men seek out new challenges. Activities like learning to play an instrument, practicing foreign languages, or solving puzzles force the brain to create new pathways. Continually challenging your brain is one of the best ways to improve memory.

7. Balance and core focus

Balance is honestly the best way to avoid serious trips and slips. Performing daily stretches or easy balancing exercises such as one-leg stands or beginner core exercises allows elderly men to stay mobile. It allows them to walk across rocky terrain or use stairs without worrying about a serious injury.

8. Staying close to friends

Loneliness or isolation is a serious, silent killer that can tear your body down over time. Those aging gracefully take time to keep in touch with friends, join community activities, or volunteer in their area. Talking regularly and sharing a laugh reduce stress and give a strong emotional uplift.

9. Taking care of skin

Healthy aging shows on your skin too. It's as simple as moisturizing daily. A basic moisturizer protects skin from becoming thin and fragile. Sunscreen protects skin from harsh UV rays. Keeping skin healthy and robust means fewer wrinkles that are deep or sun spots.

10. Having a purpose

Men who retire or slow down their pace of life can sometimes feel a little empty. But the energetic elderly never seem to lack motivation because they always have something going. Working on a restoration project, helping with grandchildren, or mentoring others are all great ways to keep them focused on a goal.

Skip the biohacks: 5 habits that actually keep you strong as you age

 I may have to change my habits a bit.

Skip the biohacks: 5 habits that actually keep you strong as you age

Takeaways

• A 2026 U.S. News survey asked 63 longevity doctors, researchers, and dietitians what matters most for aging well. The winners were boring, free, and things you already know.
• Physical activity and a nutrient-dense diet tied at the top (89% each). Everything trendy, supplements, wearables, AI, cold plunges, ranked far behind. Nearly a third of experts said the biohacks offer no proven value at all.
• The 5 habits that beat the biohacks: (1) train, especially lift; (2) eat real, mostly-plants food; (3) protect your sleep; (4) stay socially connected; (5) build functional fitness and track it (grip strength, VO2 max).
• Two warnings men should hear: 76% of experts flagged muscle loss on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, and social isolation was named the single most underrated accelerator of aging.
• Grip strength alone predicts your risk of dying better than blood pressure does. Strong hands, long life, is not a slogan; it is data.

Bottom line: the fanciest longevity strategy is a barbell, a plate of vegetables, eight hours of sleep, and people who care about you. Then keep showing up.

The longevity industry wants your money. Cold plunges, red-light panels, NAD drips, greens powders, sleep rings, AI health coaches, blood-testing subscriptions, there is an entire economy built on the promise that the secret to aging well is something you have not bought yet. So it is worth pausing when a panel of the people who actually study aging is asked, point-blank, what works, and they answer with a collective shrug at almost all of it. That is exactly what happened in the 2026 U.S. News Healthy Aging Survey, and if you lift weights and eat like an adult, you are going to like the results.

U.S. News surveyed 63 members of its Medical Review Board and Top Diets Panel, longevity physicians, clinical researchers, and registered dietitians, on what truly preserves healthspan. The verdict was blunt: foundational habits crush the gadgets. Nearly a third of experts said the trendy biohacks offer no proven value whatsoever. Here are the five habits they put above the noise, and the science that backs each one.

 Related video: Research reveals the habits scientifically proven to add a decade to your lifespan (Talking With Docs)

1. Move your body, and lift heavy

This was the co-winner: 89% of experts named consistent physical activity as one of the most critical factors for aging well, and they specifically called out resistance training to fight age-related muscle loss. This is the least surprising and most important item on the list. Muscle is not vanity; it is your metabolic and functional insurance policy for the back half of life.

How hard does strength actually predict your future? Harder than you think. In the landmark PURE study of nearly 140,000 people across 17 countries, grip strength predicted all-cause mortality better than systolic blood pressure did, each roughly 5-kilogram drop in grip was tied to a 16% higher risk of dying. Think about that: a cheap hand squeeze out-forecasts one of the vital signs your doctor obsesses over. Strength is a longevity biomarker, and unlike your blood pressure, you can directly train it. Lift a few times a week, progress the load, and you are not just building a better physique, you are buying years of independence.

2. Eat real food, mostly plants, low on the junk

The other co-winner, also at 89%, was a nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory diet. Note what the experts did not say: they did not say keto, carnivore, fasting windows, or a cabinet of supplements. When asked to name one supplement worth taking, 35% said a basic multivitamin, 22% said vitamin D, and 14% said none was necessary. The supplement aisle is not where aging is won.

The pattern that keeps winning in the hard data is unglamorous: more whole foods and plants, more fiber, adequate protein, and less ultra-processed junk. As one example of the direction the evidence points, a large 2025 analysis in a major medical journal found that swapping butter for plant-based oils was associated with meaningfully lower total and cancer mortality, higher butter intake tracked with a 15% higher death rate, plant oils with a 16% lower one. You do not need a bloodwork subscription to act on this. Build meals around protein and vegetables, keep the ultra-processed stuff occasional, and you have captured most of the benefit any “longevity diet” can offer.

3. Guard your sleep like it is training

Restorative sleep rounded out the experts’ top tier. For the ambitious guy grinding on four hours and a pre-workout, this is the inconvenient truth: you cannot out-train, out-supplement, or out-biohack a chronic sleep deficit. Sleep is when your body actually banks the adaptations you worked for, muscle repair, hormonal balance, memory, and metabolic control all run on it.

And sleep is a performance lever, not just a recovery one. In a well-known study, college athletes who extended their sleep to around ten hours in bed got measurably faster and more accurate, better sprint times and shooting accuracy, with no other changes. If more sleep sharpens elite athletes, it will do more for you than most of the powders you are considering. Aim for seven to nine hours, protect it like a training session, and treat a wrecked sleep schedule as the performance-killer it is.

4. Stay connected, seriously

Here is the one most men skip, and the experts flagged it hard: social isolation was named the single most underappreciated accelerator of biological aging, with 59% of the panel putting it at the top of the overlooked list. They noted that a lack of real connection sabotages sleep, compounds stress, and feeds heart disease and dementia. This is not soft-lifestyle filler; it is a hard health variable.

These for tweaking your doctor!

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 My longevity is going to be fun and my social connections will get me there.

(Sunday is music at Red Cedar, Tuesday is music at Moriarties, Thursday is trivia at Moriarties; all are bars, so alcohol is involved, there will be no condemnations of that.) All part of my plan to exponentially expand my social connections to prevent dementia. 

The mortality data are genuinely startling. A meta-analysis of 148 studies and more than 300,000 people found that people with strong social relationships had roughly a 50% higher likelihood of survival, an effect the researchers rated comparable to quitting smoking and larger than obesity or inactivity. Read that again: your friendships may matter as much to your lifespan as your bench press. For a demographic that tends to let its social circle quietly shrink after 30, this is the highest-leverage, zero-cost longevity move on the list. Keep your people close, and make new ones.

5. Build functional fitness, and track the right markers

The fifth theme was about aging as a strong, capable, independent man, not just a living one: build and preserve functional fitness, and actually measure it. The experts specifically recommended tracking meaningful markers like grip strength and VO2 max, and prioritizing resistance training to prevent muscle loss, a warning that lands especially hard for anyone on a GLP-1 weight-loss drug. A striking 76% of experts flagged accelerated muscle loss as a severe threat for GLP-1 users, because dropping functional muscle alongside fat accelerates frailty later.

This is where the survey quietly endorses the exact things a serious lifter already values, and gives you better targets than a resting heart rate on a smart ring. Grip strength and VO2 max are two of the most robust predictors of how long and how well you will live, and both respond directly to training: lift to build strength, do some hard conditioning to build your engine. If you are going to track anything, track those. And if you are using a weight-loss medication, treat resistance training and adequate protein as non-negotiable, so the weight you lose is fat, not the muscle that keeps you strong at 70.

What people chase	Expert verdict	What to do instead
Supplements stacks	Not top-3; most said a multivitamin or nothing	Eat protein + plants; skip the powder aisle
Wearables, sleep rings, AI coaches	Only ~40% saw real value; ~31% said none proven	Use them as nudges, not as the plan
Cold plunge, red light, “hacks”	Ranked far below the basics	Spend that time and money training and sleeping
The 5 basics (train, eat, sleep, connect, track)	Overwhelmingly ranked #1	This is the actual longevity protocol

Strip away the marketing and the 2026 experts are telling you something both humbling and freeing: the most powerful longevity protocol on earth is nearly free, and you already know it. Train hard and lift, eat real food built on protein and plants, defend your sleep, stay genuinely connected to other people, and build the functional strength, grip and engine, that keeps you independent. Everything on the biohack shelf is, at best, a rounding error on top of those five, and nearly a third of the experts said it is not even that.

That is the good news for men who lift: the gym was never a shortcut around the longevity game. It is the main event. Add real food, real sleep, and real relationships, keep showing up for decades, and you will out-age every guy chasing the next $400 gadget. Build a life that supports movement, nourishment, connection, and strength, then keep tending to it.

FAQ

What is the single most important habit for aging well?

Experts split the top spot between consistent physical activity and a nutrient-dense diet (89% each). If forced to pick one for men specifically, resistance training has an outsized payoff: muscle strength, measured by grip, predicts mortality better than blood pressure, and unlike most markers you can directly train it.

Are supplements and biohacks worthless for longevity?

Not worthless, but wildly overrated relative to the basics. Experts did not rank supplements in the top three, most recommended only a multivitamin or vitamin D, and about a third said the trendy biohacks offer no proven value. Treat them as optional extras on top of training, diet, sleep, and connection, not substitutes for them.

Why does social connection matter for a fitness-focused guy?

Because it is a hard health variable, not a soft one. Strong social relationships track with roughly 50% higher survival odds, comparable to quitting smoking. Experts named isolation the most underappreciated accelerator of aging. For men, whose social circles often shrink with age, it may be the highest-leverage, zero-cost longevity habit there is.

I take a GLP-1 for weight loss. What should I prioritize?

Resistance training and adequate protein, non-negotiably. Most experts (76%) flagged muscle loss as a serious threat on GLP-1 medications, because losing functional muscle along with fat accelerates frailty. Lifting and hitting your protein target help ensure the weight you drop is fat, not the muscle that keeps you strong and independent later.

Ending the single versus multi-bedroom debate: Hybrid rooms meet stroke rehabilitation needs

 Multi-bedrooms should NOT BE USED! The morning vampires came almost every morning way too early and wake everyone up! Social interactions never occurred; differing rehab schedules and extreme fatigue prevented any interaction. And Julie Bernhardt is a rock star stroke researcher, which shows you that even rock stars can't know everything without consulting stroke survivors!

Ending the single versus multi-bedroom debate: Hybrid rooms meet stroke rehabilitation needs

• Marcus White ,
• Mark Huen Choong Lam,
• Tianyi Yang,
• Ruby Lipson-Smith,
• Juan Pablo Saa,
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
   
• Aaron Davis,
• Mehrnoush Latifi Khorasgani,
• Julie Bernhardt,
• on behalf of NOVELL Redesign 

Published: September 3, 2026

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0356623

Abstract

Stroke is a leading cause of disability worldwide, and stroke rehabilitation plays a critical role in recovery. Early rehabilitation often occurs in a hospital setting, but the hospital built environment is rarely designed to support the specific needs and priorities of people who have had a stroke. In recent decades, there has been an ongoing debate regarding the benefits of single versus multi-bed rooms in healthcare settings. This debate centres around balancing privacy and rest, with social interaction and safety. While single rooms may be beneficial for some people, multi-bed rooms may be better for others. Both options, however, come with their own set of drawbacks in the context of stroke rehabilitation. In this study, we conducted a collaborative Living Lab to design a series of provocative-prototype hybrid room typologies that merged different aspects of single and multi-bed rooms to provide options specific for stroke rehabilitation. These typologies were used to generate four alternative bedroom designs which were modelled in virtual reality. The designs were informed by a values-based brief, outlining a set of predefined key criteria for optimising stroke rehabilitation environments: opportunities for activity and rest, wellbeing, safety, efficiency, flexibility, personal control, access to outdoors and green space, and access to a positive and stimulating environment. Twenty lived-experience and professional experts evaluated these virtual designs against the predefined values-based criteria. Evaluation revealed two preferred hybrid hospital room designs that incorporated beneficial features of both multi-bed and single-bed rooms. Our approach of values-based design and evaluation within a virtual environment proved an effective means of generating and evaluating design options with meaningful input from a wide range of stakeholders. These findings highlight the potential for flexible and adaptable room design to meet the specific needs and priorities of people participating in early-stage rehabilitation after stroke.

Figures

      

Citation: White M, Lam MHC, Yang T, Lipson-Smith R, Saa JP, Davis A, et al. (2026) Ending the single versus multi-bedroom debate: Hybrid rooms meet stroke rehabilitation needs. PLoS One 21(9): e0356623. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0356623

Editor: Ruixin Liang, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, HONG KONG

Received: December 2, 2025; Accepted: August 5, 2026; Published: September 3, 2026

We Asked Cardiologists: Is Red Wine Still Good For Your Heart?

 Don't care, it lubricates a good amount of social connections; which is going to prevent dementia!

We Asked Cardiologists: Is Red Wine Still Good For Your Heart?

I envy generations who had the privilege of believing that their nightly glass of vino was good for their health. Now, we rationalize it as a harmless indulgence—even though science tells us pretty much everything to the contrary. Sadly, cardiologists do not recommend red wine for heart health.

In case you missed the memo—or simply buried your head for the sake of self-preservation—allow me to bring you up to speed: The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified all alcoholic beverages (including red and white wine) as Group 1 carcinogens. This is just a fancy way of saying your nightly pour isn't the wellness ritual we once thought it was. In fact, it's linked to cancer.

But is there any evidence left of its miraculous heart health benefits? And if wine isn't actually "good for you," why did we spend decades hearing the opposite? We tapped cardiologists Dr. Abid Husain, M.D., F.A.C.C., and Basel Ramlawi, M.D., System Chief, Cardiothoracic Surgery and Co-Director of Lankenau Heart Institute at Main Line Health, to get to the bottom of it.

Where Did The Evidence Linking Red Wine & Heart Health Come From?

The idea that drinking red wine could promote good heart health came from observational studies and the "French Paradox," which suggested lower rates of coronary disease among populations that drank it. However, as Dr. Husain points out, that research did not account for a few major factors—like diet, exercise, socioeconomic status, smoking, and healthcare access.

"Current evidence does not support recommending red wine as a strategy to prevent cardiovascular disease. It was believed that much of red wine's benefits came from the polyphenol content, specifically resveratrol, but the concentration in wine is far below the doses typically shown to have biological effects in laboratory studies," he tells Delish.

"Any potential benefit from these compounds is offset by the negative physiologic effects of ethanol, including increases in blood pressure, atrial fibrillation risk, and heart failure," Dr. Husain continues.

The TL;DR? The American Heart Association agrees that there isn't sufficient evidence to tie alcohol to cardiovascular health.

So, Is There Any Evidence Left Linking Red Wine & Heart Health?

Ultimately, researchers have found that the evidence linking light-to-moderate wine drinkers with lower rates of coronary artery disease was actually just a flaw in the way these studies were designed.

"Most recent analyses using better methods, improved adjustment for confounding factors, and separation of former drinkers from lifetime abstainers suggest that much of the apparent benefit was attributable to healthier lifestyles rather than wine itself," Dr. Husain says.

How Does Alcohol Affect Blood Pressure, Cholesterol & Heart Rhythm?

It's not just that the evidence linking wine drinkers with good heart health is misleading; it's that research shows that alcohol can have a negative impact on it.

"Alcohol raises blood pressure through increased sympathetic nervous system activity, activation of inflammatory systems, weakening the lining of the arteries, increasing free radicals, increasing toxins, and impaired inflammation defense," Dr. Husain says. "The effect is worse with more alcohol, and blood pressure often improves when alcohol intake is reduced. Current hypertension guidelines recommend reducing or eliminating alcohol as part of blood pressure management."

As for how it affects heart rhythm, drinking is one of the biggest triggers for atrial fibrillation, and even moderate intake can increase arrhythmia risk in susceptible individuals. Binge drinking can even cause "holiday heart syndrome," Dr. Husain explains, which is a temporary irregular heartbeat.

"For patients with a predisposition to abnormal heart rhythms, drinking any amount of alcohol needs to be done with caution, if at all," he adds.

And while there is some evidence that red wine can raise your "good" HDL cholesterol, it does not reliably lower the "bad" LDL kind. Since there are other ways to raise your good cholesterol (and ones that effectively lower the bad kind, too), drinking alcohol isn't the answer here.

"Polyphenols and antioxidants [which are good for the heart] can be obtained from grapes and berries and nuts and olive oil and vegetables and other plant foods, without the potential adverse effects of alcohol that have been very well described," Dr. Ramlawi says.

Is There Any Amount Of Wine That's Considered 'Heart Healthy' For Drinkers?

No amount of wine or alcohol is actually "heart healthy." However, that doesn't necessarily mean you have to skip happy hour entirely—it's just a matter of being more intentional with your consumption. Moderate drinking (one drink per day for women and two for men, per Dr. Ramlawi) reduces your risk of negative health effects compared with drinking excessively, the CDC says.

"When people ask, 'Can I have a regular glass of wine nightly with dinner or after dinner?' I would say that is not a problem," Dr. Ramlawi says. "A small glass of wine is not a big deal. Drink it for enjoyment, not as a medicine for your heart. Keep consumption at a modest level, avoid binge drinking, and reduce overall alcohol exposure as much as possible, especially if you have cardiovascular risk factors like hypertension and atrial fibrillation."

If Your Goal Is To Promote Heart Health, What Would You Recommend Instead Of Drinking Red Wine?

Sadly for fellow wine lovers (including me), the key to a healthy heart isn't found in a glass of Pinot Noir. But there are plenty of other (and far more effective!!!) strategies, like regular exercise, eating a Mediterranean-style diet, maintaining a healthy weight, getting enough sleep, and not smoking.

"If you enjoy red wine, have it in moderation because you like it—not because you think it's protecting your heart," Dr. Husain finishes.