By David Liu, PHD

Monday Dec 3, 2012 (foodconsumer.org) -- Experiencing perceived stress may increase risk of coronary heart disease, according to a study in American Journal of Cardiology.

S. Richardson at College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University Medical Center in New York, New York and colleagues meta-analyzed data from 6 previous studies and found high perceived stress was associated with 27 percent increased risk for coronary heart disease.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) also known as coronary artery disease, is a disease in which a waxy substance called plaque builds up on the inner wall of the coronary arteries - a process called atherosclerosis. atherosclerosis occurs over many years, which is why older people are more likely than young people to get heart disease.

A plant-based diet can completely stop the progression of coronary heart disease or even reverse the condition.  Dr. Dean Ornish, PHD and MD, physician at University of California in San Francisco and Dr. T Colin Campbell, nutrition professor at Cornell University advocate use of a plant-based diet to prevent or even treat coronary heart disease, cancer and diabetes mellitus.