Winter Bugs & Your Heart
Don't let illness lead to crisis
It’s never fun to have a big viral illness like the flu or COVID or whatever bug is making the rounds wreaking havoc. Unfortunately, being sick might put you at much greater risk for a heart attack or stroke. In October of 2025, an analysis found that COVID increased the risk by three times of both stroke and heart attack for as long as 14 weeks after infection. And an influenza infection increased the risk of heart attack four times, while increasing the risk of stroke five times for a month after testing positive.
And I think that these risks aren’t limited to just COVID and the flu. It stands to reason that any acute infection that sets off a big inflammatory cascade in the body will also increase the risk of having a cardiovascular event.
Today, I want to talk about why this phenomenon happens, ways to look for an increased risk of heart attack or stroke, and strategies to prevent a cardiovascular event from happening. Knowing why this happens and what to do to take action is so empowering and may help you or a loved one.
Why does our risk increase?
Sometimes, a viral respiratory infection will set off a cascade of events that overwhelm our immune system’s ability to modulate inflammation. When this loss of control happens, inflammatory markers increase in our blood, our endothelium (the inner lining of our blood vessels) gets irritated, our blood is more likely to clot at the wrong time, and any atherosclerotic plaques become more likely to rupture. It can be a perfect storm for a cardiovascular disaster.
Bloodwork may be helpful
Taking a look at lab markers isn’t done often after the flu or COVID, and I don’t usually look at bloodwork right after an infection in my patients, either. But, if my patient isn’t recovering or inflammation seems to be lingering inappropriately after an illness, I would consider ordering a handful of tests.
There are some basics such as a complete blood count and a comprehensive metabolic panel that can give us some general information about the immune system, thickness of the blood, potential anemia, liver and kidney function, electrolyte balance, and blood sugar. It’s a good move to check these basics.
I’d also consider looking at more specific markers of inflammation, such as C-reactive protein (CRP), sedimentation rate (sed rate), Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and ferritin. If inflammation is confirmed, these markers can give a good baseline reading and they can be rechecked to make sure inflammation is moving in the right direction.
Lab tests that can detect an increased risk of clotting can be important, as well. I’ve often seen both fibrinogen and D-dimer levels elevated after both COVID infection and COVID vaccination. This motivates me to be more aggressive with treatments that will prevent clotting and keep the blood slippery.
We can also look at damage to heart muscle more directly by ordering cardiac troponin testing and creatine kinase. These tests can tell us if the heart muscle has had damage which, of course, can help guide treatment.
What can you do?
Don’t worry, there is so much we can do to prevent a heart attack or stroke after infection from a holistic, naturopathic perspective, And my guess is that you already do many of these things as part of your general wellness strategy!
Diet & Hydration
When you’re dehydrated, your blood gets sticky and sludgy. Sticky, sludgy blood is more likely to clot and create an issue with the heart or the brain. Focus on hydration with both water and electrolytes. A quick and easy way to spot check hydration is to look at your urine in the toilet bowl. If it’s straw-colored or lighter, you’re doing well. If it’s darker, keep working on it!
With diet, the focus should be on eating foods that do NOT drive inflammation. Ultraprocessed foods, fast ‘food’, and other inflammatory foods are tempting after an illness because they’re easy if you don’t have your full energy. Focus on eating a variety of colorful fruits and veggies like blueberries, sweet potatoes, beets, salad greens, carrots, dark-skinned frozen cherries, broccoli, winter squash, and citrus fruits. These foods contain lots of antioxidant, anti-inflammatory nutrients.
Other areas to focus on with diet are protein including real food sources like beef, chicken, turkey, eggs, beans, bison, and pork. Healthy fats should be another focus, so you could include nuts, butter, and wild-caught, cold water fish.
Movement
It can be hard to get back into the groove of working out after you’ve been sick, but you need to start somewhere with moving your body! Movement keeps blood vessels open and keeps blood flowing. This means less chance of clotting and a lower chance of plaque rupture that can cause a cardiovascular event.
If you need to start gently, slow walks and restorative exercise such as yin yoga, Tai Chi, rebounding, and stretching are great places to start!
Inflammation quenchers
Supplementing with anti-inflammatory herbs and nutrients can be very helpful after illness to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. A great side effect is that they can help you feel better overall and back to your normal self.
We have an abundance of natural anti-inflammatories to choose from. A few of my favorites specifically for post-viral inflammation are curcumin or turmeric (also helps to balance the immune system), Vitamin C, n-acetyl cysteine (NAC), glutathione, and resveratrol.
Slippery blood
Recall that part of the reason we are at a higher risk for heart attack and stroke after a viral illness is because the blood can be more prone to clotting. We can keep the blood slippery by using natural substances that dial down how sticky our platelets are. Platelets are the components in our blood that are largely responsible for blood clots, which is very useful (of course) but not when they are overactive!
Three of my go-to natural substances to serve this purpose are the enzyme nattokinase, high quality fish oils, and Vitamin E. You will want to work with your naturopathic doctor when taking these substances because they can increase bleeding risk. They also have to be dosed properly or they won’t have the anti-coagulant effect we want to see.
Balanced immune health
After a viral illness, the immune system can get overactive and run amok. When the immune system is overactive, it can lead to inappropriate inflammation and potential autoimmune issues. So, we look to certain herbs and nutrients to help modulate or balance the immune system.
We are spoiled for choice in this category! Vitamins C, D3, and K2 are all immunomodulatory. We should be taking K2 with our D3 as a default anyway, so many people are already helping themselves with these vitamins.
Herbs to consider are reishi mushroom, astragalus, holy basil, ashwagandha, garlic, and ginger. Many more herbs help to modulate the immune system, but the list is so long that you would get tired of reading before you finished it!
As you can see, we have a large number of natural tools at our disposal to help with decreasing the risk of a post-viral heart attack or stroke. And, particularly when it comes to preventing blood clots, there are useful pharmaceuticals as well. Your best bet, for the most effective and specific treatment plan, is to work with a naturopathic or functional medicine doctor who has experience in treating post-viral inflammation.
I hope this information doesn’t scare you, but rather empowers you to know about a risk of heart attack and stroke that doesn’t get enough attention. Getting sick over the winter isn’t fun and, while we know that recovery is important, I don’t think we know just how important focusing on our recovery can be.
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