Tag Archives: LDL

Acai Berry With Heart Medications

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Can acai berry mend a broken heart? If the broken heart pertains to a heart disease that continues to be one of the leading causes of deaths, acai may help tame it before it becomes a full blown killer.

Heart diseases encompass a variety of conditions relating to the cardiovascular system. It may involve the ability of your heart to pump out blood, its valves, your blood vessels, and more instances that compromise the function of your heart.

Below are some of the most common heart conditions that warrant urgent attention:

Myocardial Infarction or heart attack
It happens when the cells of the heart die due to the disruption of its blood supply. The formation of cholesterol plaques contributes a great deal to the blockage of the coronary blood vessels. When the blood flow is compromised, there is no delivery of oxygen to the tissues, leading to cell death.

Hypertension or high blood pressure
When it requires more force to get the blood flowing, you get a high blood pressure. It makes the heart work harder to pump blood effectively to all organs in the body. Hypertension can be due to other coexisting diseases such as diabetes, kidney problems, arteriosclerosis, etc. Genetics play a significant role in primary hypertension.

Arteriosclerosis
It involves the blood vessels, particularly the arteries, and its ability to deliver blood to the organs. The arteries in this case have hardened due to the build up of plaques from fatty substances. This makes the vessels less flexible which makes it harder for blood to flow. When the plaques break apart, they travel in the bloodstream towards smaller arteries, where they may cause a complete blockage. This is how it contributes to heart attacks, stroke, and common heart conditions.

High Cholesterol
Chlolesterol makes up a part of the bodys lipids. It is vital to the structure of cells, and in the production of hormones and energy. When the levels go up, it creates problems in the blood vessels. The arteries are hardened and blocked. In turn, the blood pressure rises just to be able to push adequate blood for delivery to the organs. When the heart doesnt receive adequate amount of blood supply, heart attack can occur.

Heart Failure
The heart functions to pump blood into the body. When it fails, it doesnt mean that it has stopped beating. It just lost its ability to function efficiently, affecting all organs in the long run. The blood goes back to the lungs instead of pushing it forward. Breathing becomes laborious. Fluid accumulates in the dependent portions of the body like the feet.

How Can Acai Save You From A Broken Heart?

Acai berry (Euterpe oleracea), a superfood from the Amazon, offers hope for those with heart problems.

Acai is rich in fatty acids, giving it the oily feel. It contains 2 essential fatty acids called Omega 6 (Linoleic acid) and Omega 9 (Oleic acid). The Omega 6 is a polyunsaturated essential fatty acid that lowers both LDL (bad cholesterol) and HDL (good cholesterol) levels. The Omega 9, which is a monounsaturated, essential fatty acid, helps lower only the LDL, while maintaining a good level of HDL.

Acai is also unusually rich in beta-sitosterol, which is a phytosterol that competes with dietary cholesterol for absorption, hence reducing blood cholesterol. The high fiber content of acai berries may likewise reduce bad cholesterol levels.

The dark pigmentation of acai is attributed to anthocyanins, which are potent antioxidants. Even in trace amounts, anthocyanins effectively protect against LDL oxidation. The anti-oxidant properties of acai help heal the cell membranes and linings of arterial wall and help protect the integrity of smaller blood vessels. This prevents the development of arteriosclerosis and the subsequent increase in blood pressure.

Free radicals can speed up the process of arteriosclerosis and aggravate ischemia (the lack of oxygen supply to an organ). With the rich anti-oxidant content of acai, the damaging effects of the free radicals are taken cared of.

Be careful when choosing among the many acai supplements available in the market. The juice form uses other ingredients and preservatives, with only little concentration of acai. It has undergone the irradiation which is something you may want to avoid. The pill form, on the other hand, contains 100% acai, without preservatives. It has not undergone any procedures known to harm your health.

Can I Take Acai Together with my Heart Medications?

With early prevention, acai can lessen your need for expensive heart medications. However, if maintenance drugs should be used, no data has been found as to the drug-drug or drug-food interactions with acai and the common heart conditions.

Be cautious when taking medications containing anti-coagulants or blood thinners because acai contains vitamin k, which exerts the opposite effect.

Potassium is abundant in acai, so you might as well be careful with drugs reacting to potassium:
ACE-inhibitors which are used for the treatment of hypertension. Examples are captopril, enalapril, lisinopril. Potassium levels may increase further with ACE inhibitors especially those with diminished kidney function.
Potassium-sparing diuretics like spironolactone, triamterene, or amiloride may increase potassium levels in the blood.
Heparin which is a blood thinner, used for the prevention of heart attacks. Potassium levels may be further increased with concomitant use of acai, aside from with the antagonistic effect of vitamin K present in acai.
Beta blockers such as metoprolol and propranolol that are used to treat high blood pressure can potentially increase blood potassium levels when mixed with acai.

The high amount of calcium in acai may create potential reactions with certain medications:
Beta-blockers. Calcium may interfere with the blood levels of beta-blockers and vice versa.
Calcium-channel blockers are a class of anti-hypertensives. Calcium may reverse the therapeutic effects of calcium-channel blockers, although studies are conflicting.
Digoxin is used to treat irregular heart rhythms. Calcium may make this drug ineffective.
Anti-cholesterol drug, particularly bile acid sequestrants such as cholestyramine, colestipol, and colesevelam, may interfere with calcium absorption and increase loss of calcium in the urine.

Anti-oxidants in general, are not advised to be taken along with most chemotherapeutic agents that act by producing free radicals to kill the tumor.

There are no documented effects of the above drugs interacting with acai berry supplements, only possible risks. Nonetheless, caution must be taken to avoid untoward reactions.

Heart Disease remedies

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Black strap Molasses has long been revered for it’s ability to strengthen heart muscles. It has a considerable amount of chromium which is good for reversing heart disease, and for a high blood pressure remedy as well.The major causes of heart failure, according to cardiologist, are coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, cardiomyopathy, and valvular heart disease. There are many other various risk factors- smoking, high serum cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, family history of heart disease, low HDl cholesterol, and inactivity.

The tendency of the heart to adjust to changes in the mode of living of its owner, known as compensation, is one of the vital factors, which prolong life in spite of maladies to which this king of organs is susceptible. This adjustment sometimes enables a person to go through life without suspecting the disease, which invade the heart. The answer is the same as it is for everything in life, YOU. Use your God given intelligence to find out and incorporate as many naturally healthful heart solutions as you can possibly stomach, into your life. You already have a good idea of what you need to focus on and the first place I would recommend, is on the readout that comes with the medication your taking.

The danger of poisoning with lily of the valley does not exist as its glycosides have a unique chemical structure that ensures they are easily excreted and do not build up in the body – but there is still the possibility of some toxicity. Diet does matter but it doesn’t have to be all fish and salads. The Mediterranean diet is one of the best and while it includes fish you can enjoy low-fat recipes with chicken, veal, and even red meat.

Although the herb is considered safe and may be useful in the handling of heart failure, angina, and cardiac arrhythmias, these are serious, potentially life-threatening circumstances require professional medical care. Olive oil also boosts heart health by keeping a lid on cholesterol levels. It lowers total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.

Overall, no herbs or supplements have clearly been shown to be better than prescription meds in preventing heart attacks. And the best prevention is from diet and exercise, which is twice as good as any herb or supplement, or prescription drug for that matter. If you are suffering from rhythmic disturbance heart disease, you are recommended to consume fish oils. In this type of cardiovascular condition, you may experience an array of things, such as palpitation, flutter, and fibrillation.

Nattokinase is an enzyme found in a cheese like food, natto, made from fermented soybeans. There are strong claims made for its properties. Apparently it quickly lowers blood pressure, controls cholesterol levels, and prevents and even breaks up blood clots. The heart is a four chambered, hollow muscle and double acting pump that is located in the chest between the lungs. Heart diseases caused by high blood pressure contributes to hardening of the arteries. Complementary and alternative medicine includes a variety of medical systems. Eastern cultures have used traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, and acupuncture for centuries.