According to a recent study by leading health experts, the number of people dying from heart attacks has halved in just under a decade.

Researchers from the Department of Public Health at Oxford believe that these figures are down to the effort of millions who have stopped smoking, managed to keep their blood pressure down and reduce their cholesterol levels.

They also cite improvements in healthcare as a contributing factor to the reduced number of heart attack fatalities.

The results of the study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) come from the analysis of health data between 2002 and 2010.

Experts looked at the data of 840,000 people who were admitted to hospital for a heart attack, or who died suddenly from an attack, and assessed the total death toll as well as those who passed away within 30 days of an attack.

Researchers found that the death rate decreased by more than half across this eight-year period, with a 50% drop in men and 53% in women.

Further to this, the study found that 61% of people who experienced a heart attack were men, with 36% of these attacks resulting in death and 73% in those aged 65 and over.

“This impressive fall in death rates is due partly to prevention of heart attacks by better management of risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure and cholesterol and due partly to better treatment of heart attack patients when they reach hospital,” says professor Peter Weissberg from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

But he also warns that far too many heart attack victims still die from cardiac arrest before medical help arrives.

“Many deaths could be prevented if bystanders performed the ‘hands-only’ CPR if they saw somebody suffering from a heart attack. “

If you want to keep your heart healthy through exercise, get inspiration from how the world keeps fit or if you want to make diet changes, swap your usual foods with high-fibre snacks or try the new superfoods of 2012.

Alternatively, you could try these foods that’ll keep your heart healthy.

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• Foods That Ward Off Heart Disease

  Eat yourself to a healthy heart with these cardiovascular-friendly foods.

• Oats

  Oats contain beta glucan, a soluble fibre that helps reduce cholesterol levels, especially LDL (bad cholesterol), which damage the heart.

• Green Leafy Vegetables

  Green leafy vegetables like spinach, fenugreek, pak choy, radish leaves, lettuce are known to reduce the risk of heart disease as they are rich sources of folic acid, magnesium, calcium and potassium - the essential minerals for keeping the heart functioning properly. Studies have shown that one daily serving of green leafy vegetables can lower the risk of heart disease by 11%.

• Tofu

  Soy is a healthy protein alternative to red meat, as it has a low saturated fat content, no cholesterol and even increases your HDL 'good' cholesterol, which is good news for your heart.

• Tomato

  Regular consumption of tomatoes is known to reduce the risk of heart disease, as they contain a rich source of vitamin K, which help prevent hemorrhages.

• Wholegrains

  Wholegrains contain high levels of vitamin E, iron, magnesium and a host of anti-oxidants, which are all beneficial to the heart as they help reduce blood pressure.

• Apples

  Apples contain guercetin, a photochemical containing anti-inflammatory properties, vital for keeping blood clots at bay, which can lead to heart attacks.

• Almonds

  Almonds, when eaten in moderation, are known to lower cholesterol levels as they contain monosaturate fats (the 'good' fats), as well as vitamin B17, vitamin E and minerals like magnesium, iron and zinc.

• Red Wine

  Red wine (when drank in moderation) can be good for the heart as it contains a powerful antioxidant called resveratrol, which helps prevent damage to blood vessels, reduces "bad" cholesterol and prevents blood clots.