When it comes to heart and brain health, these are numbers you should know

Heart disease is once again the leading cause of death in the U.S., according to a new statistical report from the American Heart Association.

Cardiovascular diseases, which include heart disease and stroke, claimed more lives in the U.S. than all forms of cancer and accidental deaths – the No. 2 and No. 3 causes of death – combined. But that key stat from the annual update, published Monday in the AHA journal Circulation, is not the only one worthy of your attention.

Here are other details about the state of heart disease and stroke in the U.S. – and how you can use that info to increase your own odds of staying healthy.

1. A post-COVID decline, but still a problem

According to the report, in 2022 (the most recent year for which final data is available) the overall number of cardiovascular disease-related deaths in the U.S. was 941,652, an increase of more than 10,000 from 2021.

But the rate of deaths from cardiovascular disease that adjusted for age fell slightly, from 233.3 per 100,000 in 2021 to 224.3 in 2022.

Cardiovascular-related deaths appear to be leveling off after an increase during the COVID-19 pandemic. Age-adjusted death rates dropped for all but one of the 10 leading causes of death: kidney disease.

But nearly 2,500 people in the U.S. are still dying from cardiovascular disease every day, Dr. Keith Churchwell, the AHA's president, said in a news release.

"Those are alarming statistics to me – and they should be alarming for all of us, because it's likely many among those whom we lose will be our friends and loved ones," said Churchwell, an associate...