Heart Health Beyond Cholesterol Testing: The Stress-Inflammation Connection
Picture this: I'm sitting across from my patient, let's call her Diane.
Her cholesterol came back "normal."
Her blood pressure is "fine."
Her doctor told her everything looked good and sent her home. But Diane knew something was off. She was exhausted, her skin looked dull, and the sparkle in her eyes just wasn't there. She didn’t have the energy for her usual activities and she felt “deflated”.
Sound familiar?
Here's the thing, the standard blood panel is a starting point, not the whole story. It often misses key markers and fails to get ahead of things enough. I would rather help you focus on true prevention, not just symptom management or have you be told to “come back when it’s worse”.
Minnie and Boo know you deserve better care at your Doctor’s visit!
Prevention is the best medicine.
Heart health is so much bigger than one number on a lab report.
.And this February for Heart Health Month, I want to pull back the curtain on contributing factors driving heart disease in today's world, and more importantly, what we can do about it.
The Lab Tests That Actually Matter for Heart Health
I had a patient recently whose numbers looked perfectly fine by conventional standards. Cholesterol 202. Triglycerides 65. His HDL:LDL ratio? Not bad at all. (Target is 1:2)
A standard doctor's visit might have sent him home with a clean bill of health, or worse, a statin prescription he didn't need.
But alarm bells were going off for me. ⚠️
His skin had lost its natural warmth and looked sallow. His energy was low. He was tiring more easily and losing interest in things he normally loved. His body was talking, and we were listening. Symptoms are clues to messages the body is trying to tell us. Suppressing the symptoms doesn’t “fix” the problem, just like taking the batteries out of the smoke alarm doesn’t treat or prevent a fire.
When we dug deeper, here's what we found:
His HbA1C was 5.7% — edging into pre-diabetes territory. This number represents your 3-month blood sugar average, and ideally we want it under 5.2%. When blood sugar climbs even a little, it triggers a chain reaction: inflammation goes up, blood gets stickier, and the stress hormone cortisol kicks in. Then cortisol raises blood sugar even more. It's a vicious loop, and it puts serious strain on your heart health. It speeds up the aging process increasing risk of cardiovascular disease, including heart attack and stroke as well as brain health risks such as dementia. Did you know Alzheimer’s disease is also called Type 3 diabetes? This is the connection right here. Elevated blood sugars cause glycosylation or “sugaring” of the cells. That’s not good.
His hs C-reactive protein (CRP) was over 6 mg/L — double my target. CRP is an inflammation marker, and this was the real red flag. I like to see it under 1 mg/L. Anything in the 1–3 range is moderate risk. Above 3? We need to get on this and reduce the inflammation in his body STAT.
His liver enzymes were within normal ranges. (Good to see but in Chinese medicine the issues show up in the pulse and symptoms often before the lab work reflects an issue)
His homocysteine was slightly elevated, another marker worth knowing about. But it was that CRP that told the story no standard blood work panel was going to catch.
Here's the good news: his fasting insulin was still low, which meant this blood sugar issue was newer and absolutely easier to address. And that's why I always recommend testing both fasting insulin AND HbA1C together. Fasting insulin can start rising before HbA1C does. Testing both gives you the clearest possible picture of your metabolic heart health.
Ask your doctor for these labs:
hs C-reactive protein (CRP)
HbA1C
Homocysteine
Fasting insulin
Vitamin D
If yours have never been checked, now is a great time to ask, these are also great to get a baseline and track over time. Need help ordering? There are now resources where you can order your own labwork online, ask me how!
Movement Is Medicine ~ for Your Heart
We got him back on his bike. We cleaned up the food choices and meal timing. We added a few targeted supplements. Within weeks? He transformed. I didn't even need him to tell me, I could see it! His eyes were brighter. His skin tone was richer and warmer. He radiated vitality.
That's what movement and the right supplements, at the right time, does for heart health.
We're not talking about running marathons here. We're talking about 20–30 minutes of walking every day. Research consistently shows this is more heart-protective than most medications. Dancing is even better! It lowers blood pressure, improves insulin sensitivity, reduces CRP, and supports your nervous system. Win-Win-Win.
A sedentary lifestyle is one of the top contributors to the inflammation that drives heart disease. Less movement means less circulation, more blood stickiness, and more strain on your cardiovascular system over time. The good news? Your heart responds quickly when you start moving more.
Other movement wins for heart health:
Cycling (just ask my patient 🚴)
Swimming
Dancing — yes, truly! More on that in a minute.
Even daily walks around the block, especially after dinner and with friends for an added bonus!
The goal isn't perfection. It's consistency. Show up for your heart a little every day.
Blood Sugar, Real Food, and Your Heart Health
Let's talk about food, and let's clear up some confusion while we're at it.
Eggs aren't the enemy. That was a marketing angle that got scrambled. Eggs are actually one of nature's most nutritious foods, full of the healthy fats your heart and brain actually need. Our brains are made largely of fat. Cholesterol is an essential nutrient. Boston University researchers found that people with naturally higher cholesterol actually scored better on cognitive tests than those with lower levels.
Butter, especially from grass fed cows, is one of the most nutrient dense foods we can find and is actually heart protective! Grass-fed butter is loaded with Vitamin K2, CLA (conjugated linoleic acid, a powerful anti-inflammatory fat), and fat-soluble vitamins A, D, and E — all of which actively protect your heart, your bones, your brain, and your gut. One Medical Research Council survey found that men who ate butter had roughly half the risk of developing heart disease compared to men eating margarine. Grass-fed cows on pasture produce butter with up to 500% more CLA than grain-fed cows!!! So yes, the source genuinely matters. The deeper yellow the butter, the richer the nutrients. (Be alert to butter that has been colored with annatto, a natural product but is added to cover up the lighter color of winter butter that may not be as nutrient dense.) And if all you have is some regular store bought butter? That’s still better than none or margarine. Keep it to real foods, bless your food and enjoy.
The real culprits driving poor heart health? Seed oils, excess sugar, and ultra-processed foods. These are the things driving chronic inflammation, the root issue behind most cardiovascular disease.
Real heart medicine looks like this:
Grass-fed beef and wild-caught fish
Eggs and good quality butter (yes, really — it's better with butter!)
Olive oil and avocados
Dark leafy greens
Fermented foods like yogurt, kimchi, and sauerkraut
These foods reduce inflammation, support stable blood sugar, and give your heart the building blocks it needs to stay strong. Homemade meals are almost always better for heart health than packaged options — you control the ingredients, and real food simply works differently in your body than something that was engineered in a factory.
A quick note on blood sugar management: every time you eat fat or protein alongside carbohydrates, you slow down how fast sugar enters your bloodstream. That means butter on your sweet potato, olive oil on your salad, and eggs with your (gluten free) toast are all genuinely heart-protective choices. Eating this way is one of the most impactful things you can do for your heart health every single day.
The Weight We Carry: Stress, Emotions, and Heart Health
Here's the part I really want you to hear. ❤️
Patients come into my clinic regularly citing the news, current events, and family stress as sources of genuine distress in their lives. And I want to say clearly: this is real. It is valid. And you are not alone.
But here's the question I sit with: How much can our hearts really carry?
The connection between emotional stress and heart health is not just poetic, it's physiological. Chronic stress raises cortisol. Cortisol raises blood sugar. Elevated blood sugar fuels inflammation. Inflammation strains your heart. This is the cycle. And the news cycle, social media, family worry, financial pressure- all of it is like adding gasoline on the fire. (Add perimenopause and hormonal changes and this all escalates, reach out www.drjenclemons.com if you need help with your perimenopause transition!)
I suspected that my patient's elevated CRP wasn't solely from his diet at all. There were other causes for the inflammation. He was carrying stress about his mother's health. His heart, literally and figuratively, was bearing the weight.
So what do we do with this?
I love this reminder from Andrew Kaufman: "Real power comes from a clear mind, regulated nervous system, and grounded sense of self."
For heart health, your nervous system is everything. When it's stuck in fight-or-flight mode, which is exactly what happens with chronic stress, your cardiovascular system pays the price. Your heart rate stays elevated. Your blood vessels stay constricted. Your inflammatory markers climb.
The fix isn't a statin. The fix is a nervous system reset.
Here's a practice I love and recommend daily: the cold water face splash. Splash cold water on your face for 30 seconds every morning. This activates the vagus nerve, the long nerve that connects your brain to your heart, and triggers your body's natural "rest and repair" response. Studies show measurable heart rate improvements within two weeks of consistent practice.
Add to that:
Slow breathing: Breathe in for 4 counts, out for 6. This directly shifts your nervous system toward calm.
Daily walking: Not just for the physical benefits, but because it genuinely resets your stress response.
Time outside: Trees, soil, sky, fresh air, there is real medicine in nature for your heart health. The sound of birdsong can increase HRV (heart rate variability) and lower stress markers.
Curating what you consume: You don't have to be uninformed to be a compassionate citizen of the world. Choose your information thoughtfully. Set limits. Protect your peace.
The Radical Act of Choosing Joy
The weekend after Valentines, I had the chance to dance. To hug old friends and new ones. To just be present and alive and connected.
It was one of the best things I love to do for my heart.
I know that in the middle of hard news cycles and real-world stress, joy can feel almost irresponsible. But I want to offer this: choosing joy is an act of resilience and resistance. Embodying vitality is its own kind of strength. Nourishing yourself — through movement, real food, connection, laughter, rest — is not a luxury. It is the work.
As one of my teachers often reminds me: everyone has something they feel like everyone should care about. There are so many worthy causes, so many heavy things pulling on our hearts. And we can engage meaningfully, by writing legislators, voting with our dollars, showing up for our communities, (adopting a rescue dog), while also choosing, on purpose, to tend to ourselves.
Here's where I land: Calm is a currency. The way you show up for the people right in front of you, your partner, your kids, your neighbor, that's how we actually change the world. Peace begins within. Be the change. And take good care of your heart. It's doing a lot. 💛
Meet our new dog Boo! He’s giving me a sweet kiss right here & we both feel like we won the lottery~
Your Heart Health Protocol: Start Here
Three daily practices:
Cold water face splash every morning and evening (30 seconds — vagal activation, measurable improvement in 2 weeks)
Real food and good fats at every meal — butter, olive oil, eggs, quality protein
20–30 minutes of movement daily — walking counts, and it's more powerful than most people realize
Supplements worth discussing with your provider:
Magnesium Glycinate also Magnesium Taurate — supportive for the nervous system and heart
Omega-3 Fish Oil — quality matters; look for third-party tested brands
CoQ10 — especially important if you are on or considering a statin
Hawthorn Berry — a traditional heart tonic with a long history of use
Labs to request at your next visit:
hs C-reactive protein (CRP)
Fasting insulin
HbA1C
Homocysteine
Vitamin D
Ready to Really Dial it in?
Working together over 3 months, (link to wellness package) we'll address your real risk factors through lab interpretation, a nervous system protocol, acupuncture support, 9 visits, and access for 1-year to the Well Nest membership with recipes, remedies and tutorials on health that you wish they taught us in high school!
Book your discovery call and let's protect your heart. ❤️🔥
Loving reminder: while the world goes through its seasons of intensity, you are allowed to choose peace. In doing so, you create space for more peace — and that is good for your heart, and for the world around you.