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Blood Viscosity: A Major Player in Heart Disease (And what
you can do about it) By Anthony G. Payne, Ph.D. One
of the lynchpins of the plague-building process in people is blood viscosity.
When blood is viscous -- think of Karo syrup or "grade D motor
sludge" -- it damages blood vessel walls. The cells that line damaged
arteries and veins will attempt to adapt to the assault and offset the impact
by actually building up plague ("Atheromas" in medical parlance).
This, at least, is the contention of researcher Kenneth Kensey, MD of
Rheologics, Inc. (RHEOLOGICS). Dr.
Kensey's contentions are well argued, supported by lots of data, and are
logical and forthright. If
you smoke, have high blood pressure, are diabetic, drink excessively, do drugs,
have a high homocysteine level, etc. -- guess what? Major players in increasing
blood viscosity like fibrinogen and hematocrit go up! As does the risk of
developing significant blockage in circulatory vessels that are get the blunt
of the movement ("shear stress) of this sticky, viscous blood. Since
heart disease is the #1 killer of adult Americans, it follows that a lot of us
are walking around with "grade D motor sludge" in our circulatory
systems. How can this viscosity be reduced so that the damage will slow or stop
-- if not reverse? Here
are some of the things high risk people can do: If
your LDL ("bad cholesterol")
level is high, work with your MD or DO and/or an RD to reduce this. Also check
out HEARTROL, an herbal blend that has
been shown to lower serum lipids and impact peripheral artery disease in five(
5) separate double-blind, placebo controlled clinical trials HEARTROL Benefits
The Heartrol™ blend is approved in Switzerland by the Swiss equivalent of the
FDA for use in treating periperhal arterial occlusive disease (PAOD). If
your triglycerides or fibrinogen are high, ask your MD or DO about slow release
niacin or other approaches to reducing this. Also take a look at the herbal
drug HEARTROL Consider
taking coenzyme-Q10, as this has been shown to lower blood viscosity. This
said, make sure to scout of a form that is optimally absorbed and utilized. A
product called CARDIUM contains a
patented form of Q10 that is 300% more bioavailable than other Q-10s. If
you are obese, get the excess weight off
slowly under medical supervision ("The Paleodiet" is highly
recommended, as is anthropologist Dr. Loren
Cordain's highly informative book, “The
Paleodiet: Lose Weight and Get Healthy by Eating the Food You Were Designed to
Eat”) If
you smoke or use tobacco in any form, you should stop. If you drink excessively, you should curtail
your intake or stop. Take a look at the HBO documentary titled “ADDICTION” for some cogent medical
help pointers. Check out any drugs you take with a physician
or pharmacist concerning their impact on blood viscosity. If you are taking or
using a drug that increases blood viscosity, then see if any alternatives exist
and look into switching to this (or them). Take a B multiple. This will help the body
deal with artery-damaging homocysteine. One of the better ones that contains
the best utilized forms of various homocysteine-lowering nutrients in
time-release caplets is NUTRACENE Take
a comprehensive or full-spectrum antioxidant supplement (Antioxidants help the
body deal with the cell damaging free radicals generated by viscous blood). As
an alternative to popping pills or tablets, look into the many drink powders on
the market that furnish a wealth of food-derived antioxidants. Eat food low in saturated fat. Favor omega-3
rich foods over those high in omega 6 fatty acids (Check out the PALEODIET ) If you are diabetic, keep your condition under
control and ask your doctor about Carnosine and other protective compounds. Clean up dental infections and inflammation in
the body (Make sure your MD or DO monitors your serum C-reactive protein level).
If you are stressed out or depressed, consider
stress management courses and/or Cognitive Therapy. Original
article © 2004 by Dr. Anthony G. Payne. Revised version © October 2007 by Dr.
Anthony G. Payne. All rights reserved, but feel free to spread the good word! Kato
T, Yoneda S, et al, ‘Reduction in blood viscosity by treatment with coenzyme
Q10 in patients with ischemic heart disease,’ Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther Toxicol
1990 Mar;28(3):123-6. |