The You Docs: Seven surprising heart risks – solved!

Let’s say that, by the numbers, your heart looks to be in great shape. Your weight’s down. Your waist is trim. Your lousy LDL cholesterol’s under 100, and your blood pressure’s pretty good (we like 115/75). Whew. One less thing to sweat, right?

Not quite. Nearly half of all heart attacks happen to people whose tickers look as good as yours. So doing a little extra could save your life. Here’s our crash course in avoiding seven hidden causes of heart trouble.

BRILLIANT MOVE NO. 1: Heed those dirty-air warnings on the news.

Why your heart loves it: Inhaling ozone — the nasty gas that results when tailpipe and smokestack fumes meet sunlight and hot weather — can kill cardio cells, throw off your heartbeat and boost your odds for a heart attack even if you don’t have heart disease. Smart moves: Exercise indoors on high-ozone days. Do your best to avoid exhaust-choked streets. Get out from behind diesel buses and trucks; their tailpipes spew out chemicals and tiny particles that can inflame lungs and arteries, rupture plaque build-ups, encourage blood clots and boost blood pressure.

BRILLIANT MOVE NO. 2: Do not stop daily aspirin on your own.

Why your ticker loves it: If you take low-dose aspirin for any reason, check your supply and run out for a new bottle if it’s low. Stopping suddenly can triple your odds for trouble-causing clots in 10 days (yes, 10 — that’s no typo). If you’ve got surgery scheduled, have a careful talk with your doc now about the pros and cons of stopping your little white tablets.

BRILLIANT MOVE NO. 3: Ask your doc if there’s anything in your health history that might mean trouble for your kidneys.

Why your heart loves it: Kidneys are vital to your body’s waste-disposal system — but in many adults (1 in 9) these ingenious little filters aren’t firing on all cylinders. Over time, this triples your odds for heart problems because hinky kidneys gunk up your bloodstream, which stiffens arteries and fires up inflammation. High blood pressure, diabetes and unlucky genes weaken kidneys. If you’ve got any of ’em, get checked (find free screenings at www.kidney.org).

BRILLIANT MOVE NO. 4: Treat your siblings’ heart health like your own.

Why your heart loves it: Bet you know that having parents with early heart problems ups your vulnerability. But did you know that having a sib with heart disease before 60 doubles your own odds of trouble? Sharing clothes is one thing, but heart attacks? No way. Tell your doc about this part of the family tree. Then do everything you can to stay healthy (from eating whole grains and walking, to not smoking).

The Intercontinental Gardener: Lakewold Gardens

I've always loved the work of Thomas Church, one of the greatest and most influential landscape architects of the last century. Anyone with the slightest interest in garden design cannot have escaped seeing pictures of his most famous work with its iconic, kidney-shaped pool from the mid-50s, the Donnell Garden  in Sonoma, California. Also, his book Gardens are for people Here in Washington state were are lucky to have two gardens on grand scale by Church that are open to the public. One of them is the Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island, a magnificent garden with great calm and elegant simplicity that I never get tired of visiting. The garden design is not completely by Church, but it includes many features by him, like the impressively architectural Reflective Pool at the end of the long garden walk. The other is the Lakewold Gardens, a large estate garden an hours drive south from Seattle. With its Church-credentials, it had been on my radar for a while, but has somehow managed to escape closer attention. Built as a typical weekend 'playground' for a wealthy Northwest family in the early 20th century, Lakewold entered its golden age when it was sold to Corydon Wagner and his garden-loving wife Eulalie in 1938. It was Eulalie, an eager gardener and plantswoman, who commissioned Church in 1958 to create a framework that would provide a structural background to her beloved plants and flowers. The gardens were laid out as a series of garden rooms in a formal, traditional style that blends European influences from Edwardian gardens in England to French parterres. A medieval knot garden, a rose-covered belvedere, a swimming pool disguised by its formal quatrefoil form, parterres with topiary swans, a fern grotto and a Japanese influenced woodland garden complete with a rippling stream are only a few eclectic features of the Lakewold Gardens, all surrounded by naturalistic areas that mix native vegetation with choice exotics. Considering the mix, it is remarkable how serene the gardens appear when strolling through the areas. Despite being clear that a masterful hand had planned the garden, I still did not experience that blissful elation that usually follows visits to gardens I really enjoy and admire.