I didn’t realize my “statin insanity” blog would be so well received. Thank you all for those “attagirl” comments. Today, I’m going to give you some natural options because I promised you that. If you have heart disease or high cholesterol, it’s high time you started thinking outside the pill. Why? Because drugs only lower your numbers, they don’t typically repair the damage in your body, or offer nutritional benefits. They fix the numbers and when your numbers look good, your doctor is happy. The labs come out and all your numbers are within normal range. But the inflammation in your body continues, and the cellular death continues, but your numbers look good. If they don’t look good, you will be given a higher dose of your medicine. Modern healthcare is obsessed with good-looking numbers, and I am banging my head over here wondering why there aren’t more physicians focused on natural alternatives that actually REPAIR the damage. Repair it, don’t mask it. That’s not too much to ask for the good money you spend on visits. Heck, I bet you’ll learn more from this blog than you will in 10 appointments with your doctor.
If you are have angina (chest pain), or have had a heart attack then you will want to read this. Also, if you have congestive heart failure or high blood pressure, this blog can save your life. I don’t care if you have a 90 percent blockage to all your arteries. Why do I say that when it looks like there is no more hope? Because one of my dear friends, Terry was sent home to die, after having 2 massive heart attacks and 90% blockage in 1 artery, 80% in the other. They gave him a week to live and sent him home with Hospice care. He gave away his car, all of his belongings and many precious things. His family flew in to say goodbye, they videotaped him and he did all the necessary things one does when preparing to leave the Earth.
That was one year ago. He climbs upstairs 4 or 5 times a day, and can drive and do mild activities. He uses much less oxygen now and tells good stories. He’s not in any marathons unfortunately, I’m not that good ;-) But he’s doing well, and his family is grateful to me. He has bought my books and sent them to his friends and relatives which I take as his way of showing gratitude and spreading better health. I know that I’m not the sole reason for his improvement, as he has a loving wife who cares for him daily, and cooks him healthy foods which offset the bacon cheeseburgers that he manages to sneak.
Terry’s story is one story of many that I am proud to share. One year, and hospice is still cross-eyed. They can’t figure out what’s going on. So give me a chance, learn about some natural options, print them and study hard. Then go to your doctor with your head held high and ask if it’s okay for you to buy some of these products at your natural health food store. You will have to decide what is right for your individual condition; decide this with your family, and your team of practitioners because I don’t offer personal consultations. I just want to shine a light for you, and offer some hope and natural remedies that address the underlying cause of heart disease and circulation disorders. Here goes:
1. Clean out your kitchen cabinets and fridge. Get rid of any foods and pastries that contain “trans fats” or the word “hydrogenated” on the label. That’s the stuff that clogs up your arteries and prevents blood from flowing to your heart (and brain). Why add more burden to your arteries, there’s enough going on in there already. No bacon cheeseburgers! Not one.
2. Get used to the taste of tea, like green tea, matcha tea or red tea (Rooibos). It doesn’t matter to me which tea you choose from that list, because all of them help strip clean your arteries, and get rid of fatty deposits that are blocking blood flow. These teas also help preserve your vision and kidney function which is crucial if you have diabetes.
3. Hawthorne berry: Hawthorne is an herb, that means it comes from plants. But let me tell you, I think it works better than most drugs in terms of powering your heart. Hey, I can say that, this is my blog isn’t it?! Hawthorn has been shown (yes proven in clinical trials) to help people with heart failure. You can take supplements and fluid extracts or drink hawthorne tea. I love hawthorne—just don’t over do it. Hawthorne is more effective with time, not in large doses. That’s important. What I’m saying is go easy on the dosage, but stick with it because repeated use is better than high doses. It relaxes and widens your arteries so blood flows to and from your heart, improving circulation. This makes hawthorne essential for people with swollen ankles or cold hands and feet -think Reynauds Disease. Many well-designed clinical trials conclude that hawthorne is beneficial for people with congestive heart failure. If you get too strong an effect from the supplement, just drink tea like I do. It’s good for anyone and only a few dollars at your health food store. One or two cups a day.
4. Arginine: Another powerful and inexpensive cardiac tonic –it’s actually an amino acid that increases blood flow to the heart, and all over. Seriously, I mean all over. That’s why you find it in sex enhancement pills. It helps blood flow up North to your heart, and down South to your nether regions. It improves circulation for men and women. Arginine unclogs arteries, increasing cardiac blood flow and making your arteries more elastic. Arginine relieves that feeling of being winded after doing hardly anything.
5.
Coenzyme Q10: If you really want to loosen the gunk from your arteries and strengthen your heart muscle, think of CoQ10. I’ve written about this antioxidant many times over the years because it sweeps away damaging toxins and free radicals from your water cells, and your fatty cells. This means it goes everywhere, every single nook and cranny. You make it infact. But many people run out of it, and if you have irregular heart beats, high blood pressure, heart failure, shortness of breath, or statin-induced muscle aches, CoQ10 is your pot of gold. It powers every heart beat and gives your cells some oxygen, sort of like the generator in each cell. It helps your heart beat in perfect rhythm. If you want to do one better, my recommendation is to take the ACTIVE form of CoQ10, the ‘reduced’ form of it; it’s called “ubiquinol.” This gives your body exactly what it needs and this is really important if you have heart disease. It’s hard to find, but if you are online savvy, what you are looking for is “Kaneka QH.”
6. Fish Oils or Cod Liver Oil: These provide essential fatty acids which help regulate cholesterol and blood pressure. Studies show that these supplements may prevent the gunk from building up and sticking to your arteries in the first place. There are many brands, the one I use is made by Nordic Naturals. I take this daily for good health. Fish oils improve autoimmune conditions, skin problems, GI disorders, inflammation, arthritis and best of all, they smooth out wrinkles. Not bad for fish oils, they come from such slimy critters.
7. D- Ribose: A natural, simple sugar that you need to make energy. Ribose improves the pumping action of your heart and a study showed that it helped improve heart function in patients undergoing open heart surgery. Plus, it gives you more energy. Get only the highest quality brands, there are several. The two that I use at home are Corvalen and Morningstar Minerals.
8. Magnesium: Reduces blood pressure and acts like a drug, I mean like ‘calcium channel blocker’ drugs. It balances out minerals and keeps your heart from going into a spasm or a muscle cramp. The type of magnesium matters. If you buy “magnesium oxide” or “magnesium citrate” it may upset your stomach. There are gentler versions sold at your health food store, “magnesium glycinate” or “magnesium chelate.” Those forms provide your body with magnesium, but reduce your risk for GI side effects. While I’m on magnesium, I should tell you that it’s fantastic for psychiatric issues, such as depression (even suicidal depression), bi-polar (but as your doctor okay?) and panic attacks.