Medical Problems

Posts Tagged ‘Supplements’

High cholesterol is determined by taking a blood test and is responsible for many health problems, including heart disease, gallstones, impotence, mental impairment and high blood pressure. 

The disease is caused by several factors, some of which can be controlled and others that cannot. It is a silent condition that does not cause recognizable symptoms. High cholesterol is frequently linked to various forms of heart disease, such as heart attacks, strokes, and artery disease. It’s is often linked to a diet which is, or has been, rich in saturated stout.

The condition can affect anyone because it is a condition that affects your arteries by blocking off some of the passageway for blood to reach the heart.  High cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia is defined as total cholesterol greater than 200 mg/dL with the high risk category greater than 240 mg/dL.

High levels are among the primary causes of heart disease, because cholesterol produces fatty deposits in arteries. It can be avoided by staying away from processed foods and fatty cuts of meat.

High cholesterol is the best known of all the many threats to a healthy heart. It is more common in men younger than 55 years and in women older than 55 years. This condition increases the risk of other conditions, depending on which blood vessels are narrowed or blocked.  It is largely preventable and treatable. A high cholesterol reading is a total cholesterol reading over 240. It is diagnosed by a total serum cholesterol test.

This disease is something that every individual should take seriously, even if you have not been diagnosed as having it. It may be genetic, but in order for it to get it out of hand, your diet must be poor. 

High cholesterol levels in the blood could affect the heart, kidneys, brain and other parts of the body and puts you at increased risk for heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral artery disease. It tends to run in families, so obviously genes play a role. High cholesterol caused by inherited (genetic) lipid disorders usually is treated aggressively at any age, often by using medications.

Treatment for the condition should not be based on a single LDL cholesterol measurement. It should be based on the average of 2 or 3 measurements. Treatment is even more critical for those who already have coronary artery disease or diabetics or those who have had a heart attack or stroke.

Treatment will depend on whether you need primary or secondary prevention. But, diet therapy is most effective for lowering cholesterol in people who have higher-than-average stout intake in their diets. 

Supplement your diet with vitamins A, C and E and the mineral selenium. Supplements contain specific ingredients that support the body and help it to normalize cholesterol levels naturally, lowering total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides.

Supplements For high triglycerides should always be discussed with your own health practitioner.  Supplements can be taken before or after meals. These are only part of Omega 3 total intake so be sure that Omega 3 foods are considered.

A recent study found that supplements containing red rice yeast and fish oil lower high cholesterol levels even more effectively than statin medications. Another fantastic supplement is GUGGUL: (gum guggul), a resin produced by the mukul mirth tree. 

Supplements as well as Omega 3 foods should be part of the calculated total intake.  Supplements contain specific ingredients that support the body and help it to normalize cholesterol levels naturally lowering total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides. 

Fish oil contains both docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), while some nuts (English walnuts) and vegetable oils (canola, soybean, flaxseed/linseed, olive) contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). 

Fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids) also may have some effect on lowering blood pressure. Fish contains omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids which decrease the chances of getting blood clots. Fish is a excellent source of cholesterol lowering foods because they help you achieve a level of excellent cholesterol. 

Omega 3 fish oils have the benefits of fish oil without the negative impact of consuming mercury, which is unfortunately now found in pretty much all fish sources. Omega 3 fatty acids are useful for fighting disease and also preventing disease before they gain a foothold on our bodies.

Omega 3 fatty acids are vital for their ability to fight a variety of disease organisms thereby improving your total health picture. They can also help with a multitude of common ailments and are available in supplements; but it is not necessary to buy these since it is contained in many of the foods we eat.

www.iHealthTube.com Robert Kowalski advises avoiding saturated and trans fats in your diet and eating omega-3 fatty acids and fibers to help lower cholesterol. Be sure to watch 3 Paths to Lower Cholesterol Part 2-Niacin and Part 3-Plant Sterols. Twitter: twitter.com Facebook: www.facebook.com Myspace: profile.myspace.com

Mainstream medicine and the media are fixated on cholesterol control. But cholesterol is not the primary predictor of a future heart attack. With their high price and serious side effects, you would do better to avoid them.

There is a measure that you don’t hear about in the news but is known in medical circles as NNT which stands for Number Needed to Treat. It refers to the number of patients that would need to be treated in order to prevent one terrible result. Any NNT over 50 is considered to be “worse than a lottery ticket”. The H-pylori virus, the main cause of stomach upset has an NNT of 1.1.1. 10 out of 11 people who take the antibiotic become free of the virus.

Not so with statin drugs. Most of them have NNTs between 250, 500 or higher. Lipidor has an NNT of 100. That means 100 people must be treated in order to prevent one from suffering a heart attack. The other 99 receive no benefit!

Cholesterol alone is simply not as vital as C-Reactive protein and your homocysteine levels which are better markers for predicting future heart attacks.

If you are fixated on your cholesterol and want to do it safely, try the following natural products:

–Fish Oil and Flax seed: Fish oil and flaxseed are rich is omega-3 oils and improve blood flow and prevents blood clotting. Consuming less than one ounce of fish daily has been shown to reduce glucose intolerance. Fish oil helps to normalize heart rhythm and reduce the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. You should take 2 to 8 grams of fish oil daily.

–Folic Acid: Along with B6 and B-12 it help lower your levels of homocysteine and cleans out arterial plaque. Homocysteine can hurt artery walls as has been shown in tests on baboons. It’s this hurt that allows cholesterol to stick to the artery walls. The recommended dose is between 800 to 1200mcg (micro grams).

–Magnesium: It relaxes artery walls making them more flexible so blood flow is greatly improved. It helps lower blood pressure. Most magnesium comes from seeds, nuts, legumes, tofu and green leafy vegetables. Magnesium is severely lacking in our diets. Take between 300 to 600 mg.

–Vitamin C and E both work to prevent free radical hurt that contributes to cardiovascular disease. Vitamin C helps in maintaining the elasticity and function of the blood vessels and helps maintain proper blood pressure control. Vitamin E prevents free radical hurt from LDL (terrible) cholesterol and the hurt to vascular linings. Recommended doses are 1000 to 5000mg of Vitamin C and between 400 to 800 IU of Vitamin E.

–CoQ10: If you are taking a statin, supplementing with CoQ10 is a must. Statins are notorious in robbing your heart of this enzyme and that’s what eventually leads many to get heart attacks. It helps to increase the efficiency of the heart muscle. It is a powerful antioxidant and has the ability to trigger beta-cell function in the pancreas that helps to produce more insulin leading to better sugar control in diabetics. 100 to 400 mg daily is recommended.

–Niacin: It’s a B-3 vitamin that helps reduce fats in the blood and has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels by 18%, triglycerides by 26% and increase the excellent HDL cholesterol by 30% when 1800 to 3000mg is used daily.

Statins are generally worthless. The above natural alternatives are far better at controlling cholesterol without the serious side effects that statins present.

There are many years of fantastic scientific information by Mel Siff available for free at his Supertraining Group – http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Supertraining/ and the best of these has been posted at www.melsiff.com

Someone recently questioned for more recent information on heart disease and

cholesterol levels, especially since some cholesterol-lowering drugs

(statins) recently have caused several dozen deaths. Here is a website with

some useful information in this regard:

In addition, I have appended information on other “natural” ways of dealing

with different types of cardiac disorder, based largely on what I have used

or am using to deal with my own health after a near fatal infarct and

quadruple bypass surgery about 4 years ago. I responded very adversely to

beta blockers, so, in conjunction with my cardiologists, I weaned off these

drugs and settled for the use of several supplements such as hawthorne berry

and others listed later. I also took a small course of the antibiotic,

azithromycin, just in case reports are accurate that cardiac disease has a

lot to do with inflammation associated with bacterial infection of the

cardiovascular system.

I regarded the small, though very real risk posed by (very costly) statins to

be unacceptable in my life, so that I have managed to effectively use many

of the supplements below to control any increased levels of cholesterol

(see our archives for more information on the statins).

So far, medical tests seem to show that I am in brilliant health and my

lifting performance and work capacity seems to corroborate this – not that

this really means all that much, because, as I found out when I suffered my

heart attack, it is not unusual to have a clean bill of health and compete in

top level sport one day and to suffer a massive coronary the next day. What

is of supreme importance is one’s quality of mental and physical health and

vigour right now, not one’s hoped-for health in one’s ancient age. Note, but,

that cardiac disease is not something to be trifled with and that whatever you

do should be done in consultation with suitable medical specialists. What suits

me might not necessarily suit anyone else.

Here are a few extracts from the article which I mentioned earlier:

HOMOCYSTEINE

Researchers conclude that homocysteine is up to 40 times more predictive than

cholesterol in assessing cardiovascular disease risk.

Cardiovascular disease causes 44% of all deaths in the United States.

Alzheimer’s dementia affects 4 million Americans now, and is expected to

increase sharply as the population ages. Both cardiovascular and Alzheimer’s

disease have now been linked to the accumulation of a toxic amino acid called

homocysteine. (See my article on Alzheimer’s Disease for more details.)

Vitamin supplement users have assumed they are being protected against

homocysteine elevations. Unfortunately, this is just not right. There is a

very specific groups of nutrients needed to work together, which you will see

as I proceed with this article.

Homocysteine is formed by the body as a naturally synthesized byproduct of

methionine (a very vital amino acid in your body) metabolism. Like

cholesterol, homocysteine performs a necessary function in the body, after

which, if the right cofactors are present, it will eventually convert to

cysteine (and this is one of the amino acids needed to produce glutathione,

which is very critical in your detoxifications pathways.) and other

beneficial compounds such as ATP, (the energy molecule of the body) and

S-adenosylmethionine (SAM). When left intact, it enters the bloodstream and

starts attacking blood vessel walls, laying the foundation for heart disease,

stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.

The clear message from new scientific findings is that there is no safe

“normal range” for homocysteine. While commercial laboratories state that

normal homocysteine can range from 5 to 15 micromoles per liter of blood,

epidemiological data reveal that homocysteine levels above 6.3 cause a steep,

progressive risk of heart attack (the American Heart Association’s journal

Circulation, Nov. 15, 1995, 2825-30). One study found each 3-unit increase in

homocysteine equals a 35% increase in myocardial infarction (heart-attack)

risk (American Journal of Epidemiology, 1996, 143, 9: 845-59).

Many enzymes, or catalysts are involved in the complete metabolism of

homocysteine. If any of these enzymes is defective or functions

inefficiently, the body is less able to successfully process homocysteine.

Although this enzyme dysfunction may be due to a mutated or defective gene,

(identified by Dr. Rima Rozen at McGill University in Montreal), more often

this breakdown in metabolism is due to deficiencies of certain nutrients –

particularly B-6, B-12 and folic acid. When this function is disordered,

whether due to genetic defect or nutrient deficiency, homocysteine

accumulates and enters the bloodstream where it promotes oxidation of lipids,

causes platelets to stick together, enhances the binding of lipoprotein (a)

to fibrin and promotes free radical hurt to the inside of arteries.

Some have suggested that the obvious solution to reducing homocysteine would

be to restrict methionine intake by restricting foods such as meats that are

rich in methionine. Then the supermarket shelves would be lined with low

methionine and methionine-free foods. That makes about as much sense as

switching cabins on the Titanic. Methionine is a sulfur-containing amino acid

that is involved in the synthesis of protein, vital in the maintenance of

cartilage, and needed for the formation of other vital amino acids such

as taurine and carnitine. Methionine is not at fault. The problem is when

homocysteine cannot be converted……

For many people, the daily intake of 500 mg of TMG, 800 mcg of folic acid,

1000 mcg of vitamin B12, 250 mg of choline, 250 mg of inositol, 30 mg of

zinc, and 100 mg of vitamin B6 will keep homocysteine levels in a safe range.

But the only way to really know is to have your blood tested to make sure

your homocysteine levels are under 7. If homocysteine levels are too high,

then up to 6 grams of TMG may be needed along with higher amounts of other

remethylation cofactors. Some people with cystathione-B synthase deficiencies

will require 500 mg a day or more of vitamin B6 to reduce homocysteine to a

safe level. For the prevention of cardiovascular disease, you would want your

homocysteine blood level to be under 7. For the prevention of aging, some

people have suggested that an even lower level is desirable, but more

research needs to be done before any scientific conclusions can be

reached…….

[TMG - trimethylglycine - is sometimes also known as betaine. The betaine,

B6, B12 and folic acid combination is very reasonably priced and anyone with

heart disease could benefit from daily intake of this supplement. Mel Siff]

Homocysteine is Not a New Tale

Also from the Life Extension article: “The homocysteine theory of

cardiovascular risk was first tested and published by Dr. Kilmer McCully in

1969, but, with everyone focusing on cholesterol at that time, his findings

were ignored. Finally, nearly 30 years later, the word is out on

homocysteine. In addition to NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, articles have

been published in Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times,

Prevention magazine and more.”

Homocysteine levels rise as people age. Therefore, any anti-aging program

must take homocysteine level control into consideration. Lowering

homocysteine has benefits beyond heart protection. When the blood supply to

the heart is blocked, a heart attack results. When blood to the brain is

blocked, a stroke results. If the penile artery is occluded, impotence

results. Blockages in the extremities results in intermittent claudication or

pain in the affected extremity……

Mel Siff

There are many years of fantastic scientific information by Mel Siff available for free at his Supertraining Group – health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Supertraining/ and the best of these has been posted at melsiff.com

Someone recently questioned for more recent information on heart disease and

cholesterol levels, especially since some cholesterol-lowering drugs

(statins) recently have caused several dozen deaths. Here is a website with

some useful information in this regard:

In addition, I have appended information on other “natural” ways of dealing

with different types of cardiac disorder, based largely on what I have used

or am using to deal with my own health after a near fatal infarct and

quadruple bypass surgery about 4 years ago. I responded very adversely to

beta blockers, so, in conjunction with my cardiologists, I weaned off these

drugs and settled for the use of several supplements such as hawthorne berry

and others listed later. I also took a small course of the antibiotic,

azithromycin, just in case reports are accurate that cardiac disease has a

lot to do with inflammation associated with bacterial infection of the

cardiovascular system.

I regarded the small, though very real risk posed by (very costly) statins to

be unacceptable in my life, so that I have managed to effectively use many

of the supplements below to control any increased levels of cholesterol

(see our archives for more information on the statins).

So far, medical tests seem to show that I am in brilliant health and my

lifting performance and work capacity seems to corroborate this – not that

this really means all that much, because, as I found out when I suffered my

heart attack, it is not unusual to have a clean bill of health and compete in

top level sport one day and to suffer a massive coronary the next day. What

is of supreme importance is one’s quality of mental and physical health and

vigour right now, not one’s hoped-for health in one’s ancient age. Note, but,

that cardiac disease is not something to be trifled with and that whatever you

do should be done in consultation with suitable medical specialists. What suits

me might not necessarily suit anyone else.

Here are a few extracts from the article which I mentioned earlier:

HOMOCYSTEINE

Researchers conclude that homocysteine is up to 40 times more predictive than

cholesterol in assessing cardiovascular disease risk.

Cardiovascular disease causes 44% of all deaths in the United States.

Alzheimer’s dementia affects 4 million Americans now, and is expected to

increase sharply as the population ages. Both cardiovascular and Alzheimer’s

disease have now been linked to the accumulation of a toxic amino acid called

homocysteine. (See my article on Alzheimer’s Disease for more details.)

Vitamin supplement users have assumed they are being protected against

homocysteine elevations. Unfortunately, this is just not right. There is a

very specific groups of nutrients needed to work together, which you will see

as I proceed with this article.

Homocysteine is formed by the body as a naturally synthesized byproduct of

methionine (a very vital amino acid in your body) metabolism. Like

cholesterol, homocysteine performs a necessary function in the body, after

which, if the right cofactors are present, it will eventually convert to

cysteine (and this is one of the amino acids needed to produce glutathione,

which is very critical in your detoxifications pathways.) and other

beneficial compounds such as ATP, (the energy molecule of the body) and

S-adenosylmethionine (SAM). When left intact, it enters the bloodstream and

starts attacking blood vessel walls, laying the foundation for heart disease,

stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.

The clear message from new scientific findings is that there is no safe

“normal range” for homocysteine. While commercial laboratories state that

normal homocysteine can range from 5 to 15 micromoles per liter of blood,

epidemiological data reveal that homocysteine levels above 6.3 cause a steep,

progressive risk of heart attack (the American Heart Association’s journal

Circulation, Nov. 15, 1995, 2825-30). One study found each 3-unit increase in

homocysteine equals a 35% increase in myocardial infarction (heart-attack)

risk (American Journal of Epidemiology, 1996, 143, 9: 845-59).

Many enzymes, or catalysts are involved in the complete metabolism of

homocysteine. If any of these enzymes is defective or functions

inefficiently, the body is less able to successfully process homocysteine.

Although this enzyme dysfunction may be due to a mutated or defective gene,

(identified by Dr. Rima Rozen at McGill University in Montreal), more often

this breakdown in metabolism is due to deficiencies of certain nutrients –

particularly B-6, B-12 and folic acid. When this function is disordered,

whether due to genetic defect or nutrient deficiency, homocysteine

accumulates and enters the bloodstream where it promotes oxidation of lipids,

causes platelets to stick together, enhances the binding of lipoprotein (a)

to fibrin and promotes free radical hurt to the inside of arteries.

Some have suggested that the obvious solution to reducing homocysteine would

be to restrict methionine intake by restricting foods such as meats that are

rich in methionine. Then the supermarket shelves would be lined with low

methionine and methionine-free foods. That makes about as much sense as

switching cabins on the Titanic. Methionine is a sulfur-containing amino acid

that is involved in the synthesis of protein, vital in the maintenance of

cartilage, and needed for the formation of other vital amino acids such

as taurine and carnitine. Methionine is not at fault. The problem is when

homocysteine cannot be converted……

For many people, the daily intake of 500 mg of TMG, 800 mcg of folic acid,

1000 mcg of vitamin B12, 250 mg of choline, 250 mg of inositol, 30 mg of

zinc, and 100 mg of vitamin B6 will keep homocysteine levels in a safe range.

But the only way to really know is to have your blood tested to make sure

your homocysteine levels are under 7. If homocysteine levels are too high,

then up to 6 grams of TMG may be needed along with higher amounts of other

remethylation cofactors. Some people with cystathione-B synthase deficiencies

will require 500 mg a day or more of vitamin B6 to reduce homocysteine to a

safe level. For the prevention of cardiovascular disease, you would want your

homocysteine blood level to be under 7. For the prevention of aging, some

people have suggested that an even lower level is desirable, but more

research needs to be done before any scientific conclusions can be

reached…….

[TMG - trimethylglycine - is sometimes also known as betaine. The betaine,

B6, B12 and folic acid combination is very reasonably priced and anyone with

heart disease could benefit from daily intake of this supplement. Mel Siff]

Homocysteine is Not a New Tale

Also from the Life Extension article: “The homocysteine theory of

cardiovascular risk was first tested and published by Dr. Kilmer McCully in

1969, but, with everyone focusing on cholesterol at that time, his findings

were ignored. Finally, nearly 30 years later, the word is out on

homocysteine. In addition to NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, articles have

been published in Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times,

Prevention magazine and more.”

Homocysteine levels rise as people age. Therefore, any anti-aging program

must take homocysteine level control into consideration. Lowering

homocysteine has benefits beyond heart protection. When the blood supply to

the heart is blocked, a heart attack results. When blood to the brain is

blocked, a stroke results. If the penile artery is occluded, impotence

results. Blockages in the extremities results in intermittent claudication or

pain in the affected extremity……

Stem Cell Enhancers – The Next Wave of Nutritional Supplements?

Driven by rising consumer demand and a growing body of supporting research, the nutrition industry has evolved to considerably more advanced levels in recent years. If you don’t believe me, just walk down the aisles of your nearest health food store.

Once limited to a few basic vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin C and calcium, their shelves now boast literally hundreds of different nutritional supplements – all the way from your age-ancient basics to a whole plethora of exotic-sounding antioxidants and super juices.

But no matter how different all these products may seem at first glance, they all have one common purpose: to provide extra nourishment or protection to existing, already-functioning cells within the body’s tissues.

Enter “stem cell enhancers” – a powerful new category of nutritional supplements. If initial results are anything to go by, this category is not only here to stay, it could literally turn the entire nutrition industry on its ear!

Rather than simply nourishing or protecting existing tissue cells, stem cell enhancers do something completely different: they support the release of “non-tissue” adult stem cells into the bloodstream.

The significance of this is huge, because adult stem cells are at the very core of the body’s natural renewal process! Because they can take on the characteristics of many different types of tissue cells in times of need, recent scientific data shows that larger numbers of circulating adult stem cells equate to greater health and wellness.

The way adult stem cells function is that they are continually released by the bone marrow into the bloodstream, where they circulate until being chemically signaled by tissues in need. Following the chemical signal, they flow to the tissue in need and migrate into it. It is here that the “magic” happens … the stem cells take on the same characteristics as the existing cells and initiate the growth process, thereby naturally “renewing” the tissue!

The first clinically proven stem cell enhancer on the market is a patented concentrate of Aphanizomenon flos-aquae (AFA), an aqua-botanical, and its results are impressive to say the least. Not surprising, because a recently published study showed an increase in circulating stem cells of 25% with just 2 capsules of the AFA concentrate daily.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur wanting to capitalize on the massive stem cell tidal wave, or a health-conscious consumer wanting to get to a whole new level of health, you owe it to yourself to check out this patented AFA concentrate.

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and any products mentioned, while supported by science, are not intended to diagnose, mitigate or treat any disease or illness.

For more information, visit:

www.somatic.stemtechbiz.com