Diet and Heart Disease

In spite of dozens of drugs and numerous surgical procedures, heart disease is still the number one cause of death in most industrialized nations. While there are many forms of possible heart disease, the heart attack is the most common and most feared. Heart attacks can also come as a result of several causes, but the most common cause is the slow and steady blockage of arterial blood flow leading away from the heart. This narrowing of the arteries is called atherosclerosis. In theory, if we could reduce or remove the amount of atherosclerotic plaque, we could prevent the majority of heart attacks. This can now be done, in most cases, by safe, all-natural means. The American Dietetics Association has been telling us for decades, that the major cause of heart disease is the high saturated fat diet. This concept has prevented millions of people from preventing heart disease by diverting their attention to a factor that is minimal in the heart disease process. Diet does play a major role in the pathology of heart disease, but it's not the saturated fats that are the culprit but rather the oxidized, rancid vegetable oils consumed in extremely high amounts that have led us to the heart disease epidemic. If you wish to follow a truly heart health diet, consider eliminating as many vegetable oils from your diet except for olive oil, which is actually heart healthy. Olive oil is monounsaturated and as such does not oxidize and form free radicals easily. It is the polyunsaturated vegetable oils such as corn, safflower and others that generate high amounts of free radicals, the very free radical compounds that can specifically attack the walls of your arteries, leading the clogged arteries through calcification and eventual atherosclerosis. By consuming a moderate amount of natural saturated fats and monounsaturated oils such as olive oil, you can prevent the formation of dangerous free radicals that will continue to attack the muscle wall of your arteries, leading to atherosclerosis.

Reversing and Preventing Atherosclerosis

Since the leading cause of the heart attack is the clogging up of the arteries, preventing the build up of plaque is essential in controlling this health epidemic. Atherosclerosis prevention begins by controlling the intake of the wrong fats as discussed above. Once the condition has been established the damage to the arteries is often permanent. This requires that constant support and attention be given to the removal of atherosclerotic plaque as it builds up. The first step in atherosclerosis prevention is removing the calcium deposits on the inner wall of the arteries. This condition, called calcification of the arteries, occurs when the artery wall has been damaged by free radical attack. Once the calcium has built up on specific damaged sites, cholesterol, which naturally circulates in the blood, attaches itself to the calcium. This explains why an artery can be perfectly clean and just inches away, the same artery can be 90% clogged. This clogging of the arteries can lead to other complications such as high blood pressure. As the artery narrows, the blood pressure increases in order to drive the blood from the heart to the rest of the body. Focus on finding a safe and natural way to remove the calcium from the arteries lead to first developing IV Chelation and later an Oral Chelation process that made the procedure affordable for virtually everyone. Oral Chelation has been around for about 25 years. In the early days, oral chelates were somewhat ineffective since the main ingredient, EDTA, a synthetic amino acid, was unstable in the digestive system and broke down before being effective. In recent years, methods of protecting the EDTA molecule have made oral Chelation both viable and highly effective. There are many chelates and when used in combination, seem to work better than when used individually. The amino acid Cysteine is another powerful chelating agent and together with EDTA, Cysteine can add to the power of the chelating effect. There are many all-natural Chelation products on the market and the key ingredients are Cysteine hcl and EDTA. These are often supported by a variety of nutrients such as vitamin C and others. Often antioxidants are added to help prevent the formation of free radicals. The link between free radicals and antioxidants is well established and unfortunately the industrialized diet provides few concentrated antioxidants for free radical prevention. Anyone using an oral chelate should also use a Full Spectrum Vitamin/mineral formula to help ensure that there is a constant balance of nutrients available to the biochemistry of the body. Chelation can remove other, beneficial minerals and these should be replaced by supplementation. A good heart supplement formula, together with a Full Spectrum supplement should provide and replace any lost beneficial minerals through the oral Chelation process.

Detoxification and Chelation

There has been much discussion as to the benefits of detoxification, especially of the liver and its relationship to preventing heart disease. While there is little evidence to directly link the two, we do know that a regular detoxification of the organs of elimination can certainly help the body to function better overall. The Chelation process also produces specific metabolic waste and detoxification can help to clear this residue from the soft tissues of the body. Routinely we find that detoxifying the body after a specific period of oral Chelation has proven to increase the overall well being of the individual. Regular detoxification can also help to reduce blood pressure.

Finding An Optimal Oral Chelation Formula

When looking for an oral Chelation formula you should consider the potency and totality of the formulation. It should contain ample amounts of EDTA in a buffered and protected form. Cysteine hcl and vitamin C should also be included in a 2 to 1 ratio. To round out the formula, antioxidants and other supportive nutrients should also be present. Here at our Research Institute, we have developed a very effective oral Chelation formula, which we have used successfully with our clients for many years. Heart disease can be both prevented and managed, but you must take action. This is not a problem that should be ignored. Since atherosclerosis can lead to both heart attacks and stroke, diagnosing and addressing the issue is of paramount importance.