Talk to your doctor before taking aspirin daily, and stick to tried and true methods of lowering your cardiovascular disease risks.

Aspirin may protect heart health of some with type 2 diabetes; going for walks almost certainly will.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—When it comes to type 2 diabetes, people suffering from the disease tend to worry most about making dietary changes and measuring their insulin levels. But an often-ignored side effect of diabetes is that it significantly raises a person's risk for heart disease and stroke. According to the American Heart Association, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among diabetes patients. "It's a very serious problem," says Richard Becker, MD, professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine. In fact, he adds, "diabetes has always been considered equivalent to someone having cardiovascular disease. That's how strong the risk is."

Therefore, people suffering from type 2 diabetes should see good news in the results of a new study published in the most recent issue of Diabetes Care, in which Australian researchers saw a significant drop in the deaths associated with heart disease among diabetic adults who took a low-dose aspirin supplement every day.

THE DETAILS: The researchers followed 1,294 adults with type 2 diabetes for an average of 11 years. At the onset of the study, each adult was given an annual checkup, during which each was assessed for cardiovascular disease, and asked whether he or she was taking aspirin. The scientists focused on the 651 adults they found who had no history of, and no other apparent risk factors for, cardiovascular disease. Of those adults, 7 percent were taking 75 milligrams or more of aspirin per day. After 11 years of follow-up, the researchers found that those taking aspirin were 50 percent less likely to develop or die from heart disease—or from any other disease, for that matter—over the course of the study than adults who weren't taking aspirin. And the association was particularly strong in adults over 65.

Read on to find out how people with type 2 diabetes can protect their heart health.