Tools and Training

Use these resources in your practice to help you and your team work to prevent heart disease.

Health professionals can access a variety of tools, resources, and training materials to develop and support programs that focus on preventing heart disease.

Guidelines and Recommendations

• FDA Guidance for Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goalsexternal icon
  In October 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released guidance to set measurable voluntary sodium reduction targets for processed, packaged and prepared foods. The FDA’s guidance lays out short-term sodium reduction goals for food manufacturers, restaurants and food service establishments, for about 160 categories of food. The sodium reduction targets aim to decrease average dietary sodium intake from 3,400 milligrams (mg) to 3,000 mg per day, over the next 2.5 years. This guidance leads the public closer to achieving the Dietary Guidelines for Americans’ recommended sodium limit of 2,300 mg per day (for those 14 years and older) and will result in decreased risk of heart disease, stroke and hypertension.
• U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Draft Guidance on Aspirin Use To Prevent Cardiovascular Diseaseexternal icon
  The Task Force draft guidance recommends against starting a low-dose aspirin regimen for the primary prevention of CVD in adults age 60 years or older. For adults ages 40 to 59, the Task Force recommends assessing aspirin use as a primary prevention method based on an individual’s risk factors, as evidence indicates that the net benefit of aspirin use in this group is small.
• 2018 ACC/AHA Multisociety Guideline on the Management of Blood Cholesterolexternal icon
  The 2018 guideline updates the 2013 guideline on reducing the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease through lipid management and emphasizes a more intensive approach.
• 2017 Hypertension Clinical Practice Guidelines
  The 2017 ACC/AHA/AAPA/ABC/ACPM/AGS/APhA/ASH/ASPC/NMA/PCNA Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines was released on Monday, November 13, 2017.
• Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressureexternal icon
  Evidence-based guidelines from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute about preventing and managing high blood pressure.
• Surgeon General’s Reports Related to Tobacco Use
  Links to reports concerning smoking and health, including reports on involuntary exposure to tobacco smoke and on tobacco use among ethnic minority groups.
• 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americansexternal icon
  Provides authoritative advice about good dietary habits that can promote health and reduce risk of disease. Published jointly every 5 years by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA).
• Markers of Inflammation and Cardiovascular Disease: Application to Clinical and Public Health Practice: A Statement for Healthcare Professionals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Heart Associationexternal icon.
  Published in the journal Circulation.
• Guide to Community Preventive Servicesexternal icon
  Summarizes what is known about the effectiveness, economic efficiency, and feasibility of interventions to promote community health and prevent disease.

Public Health Programs

• WISEWOMAN
• Building GIS Capacity for Chronic Disease Surveillance
• Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Program
• Sodium Reduction in Communities Program
• Prevention and Management of Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Stroke

Tools

Use these tools from Million Hearts® to enhance your heart disease and stroke prevention and treatment efforts.

• Tobacco Cessation Change Packageexternal icon
• Cardiac Rehabilitation Change Packageexternal icon
• Hypertension Control Change Package for Clinicians pdf icon[PDF-680K]external icon
• Health ITexternal icon
• Hypertension Prevalence Estimator Tool

Training

• Roadmap for State Program Planning
  A Web-based resource for training and information to help build the competencies needed by state Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (HDSP) Program Coordinators. It provides suggested steps for carrying out requirements of the HDSP Program, as well as easy online access to training, tools, and other resources needed for successful program development and implementation. The Roadmap offers information on key areas of programmatic activities for developing and implementing a heart disease and stroke prevention program.

Data and Statistics

• Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
  Information about health conditions and behaviors in the United States, from the world’s largest ongoing telephone health survey.
• FastStats
  Statistics on public health topics; links to sources of additional data and related webpages.

Maps

• Heart Disease and Stroke Maps
  County-by-county rates of heart disease and stroke mortality and hospitalization in the United States, viewable by state, racial/ethnic group, and gender. CDC collaborates with each state to produce the maps.
• PLACES: Local Data for Better Health
  PLACES, a collaboration between CDC, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the CDC Foundation, allows local health departments and jurisdictions regardless of population size and urban-rural status to better understand the burden and geographic distribution of health-related outcomes in their areas and assist them in planning public health interventions.

Podcasts

Listen to CDC podcasts for reliable health and safety information when and where you want it.

• A Cup of Health with CDC: Take the Pressure Off Your Heart
  Hypertension, or high blood pressure, affects nearly one in three adults in America. It’s a major cause of heart disease and stroke, two of the leading causes of death in the U.S. In this podcast, Dr. Carma Ayala discusses the importance of controlling blood pressure.
  Date released: 3/01/18
• A Cup of Health with CDC: Rehab for the Heart
  In this podcast, Dr. Fleetwood Loustalot discusses the importance of getting cardiac rehab after a heart attack.
  Date released: 8/24/17

More Information

• Heart Disease Statistical Reports for Health Professionals
• DHDSP’s Evaluation Resources
• Million Hearts^® Initiativeexternal icon