Necropsies have shown that the same heart diseases exist amongst whales as in humans, which may be an indicator for human health. From “Beached whale’s heart disease a disturbing sign to scientists in Fort Pierce“:

‘One of our concerns is, this is a problem for these whales, but a lot of these whales are good sentinels for ocean health and also human health,” Bossart said. “So what’s impacting this whale could very easily be impacting us. So it’s really in our own best interest to understand these problems. Our oceans are undergoing quite a bit of stress right now.’