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Blocked Arteries
Blocked Arteries: Clean Them Out Naturally
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After a Heart Attack - Change Your Diet to Reduce Death Risk
Other research has produced findings that are relevant in showing the power of diet in reversing
coronary artery disease. A 1992 report did not measure regression but examined an important
issue: subsequent heart problems in heart attack survivors.42
Patients in the experimental group
were given a specific intervention diet that moved them strongly in the direction of
vegetarianism. Meat and eggs were not allowed. Their description of the dietary protocol sounds
essentially vegetarian, being described as "containing fruits, vegetables, cereals, and nuts,"
although some fish was apparently allowed. Among the (over 400) heart attack victims in the study,
those on the intervention diet experienced a dramatic decrease in total cardiac events. Within
just six weeks, the near-vegetarians showed a significant 35 percent decrease in total cardiac
occurrences that included fatal and non-fatal heart attacks as well as sudden cardiac death.
The report suggests that diet changes are superior to medication for someone who has had a recent
heart attack, which is astonishing to the medical community. One of the most widely touted
groups of medications in this regard are beta blockers and ACE inhibitors. They demonstrate only
half of the effectiveness of the vegetarian diet, with an average reduction in total mortality of
only about 20 percent.43, 44
Drawbacks of Drug Medications for High Cholesterol or Triglycerides
There are numerous medications now available to assist in lowering LDL cholesterol and in some
cases lowering triglycerides or raising HDL cholesterol. One of the most popular groups of drugs
is known as the "statins" and include prescription medications such as Zocor, Pravachol, Mevacor,
and Lescol. These medications can significantly lower LDL cholesterol while slightly raising HDL
cholesterol but only when used in conjunction with a good low cholesterol, low saturated fat diet.
Statins can infrequently cause severe liver inflammation and destruction as well as death of voluntary
muscles of the body.
Another popular agent used to lower both cholesterol and triglycerides is a very high dosage of the B
vitamin, niacin. When used in the high doses necessary to achieve significantly lower cholesterol and
triglycerides, niacin should be considered a drug because it can infrequently cause life-threatening
side effects. These side effects include destruction of the liver and internal bleeding from severe
inflammation of the stomach; other common annoying side effects are hot flashes and flushing of the
skin.
I prefer to reserve these medications for the approximately 1 in 400 people with a hereditary disorder
that causes the liver to greatly overproduce cholesterol or triglycerides. I also use them in heart
patients who have failed to achieve the desired serum levels of cholesterol with diet alone and who are
willing to pay the high costs. The costs consist of medications (a year's supply of a popular
cholesterol-lowering drug costs $1308),45
frequent doctor visits, and lab work necessary to monitor for
and possibly prevent serious side effects. The good news is that the majority of people with high
cholesterol can bring it down to an ideal level with an ideal diet and lifestyle program that includes
regular exercise without the use of drug medications.
References
42 Singh RB, Rastogi SS, et al. An Indian experiment with nutritional modulation in acute myocardial
infarction. Am J Cardiol 1992 Apr 1;69(9):879-985.
43 Yusuf S, Peto R, et al. Beta blockade during and after myocardial infarction: an overview of the
randomized trials. Prog Cardiovasc Dis 1985 Mar-Apr;27(5):335-371.
44 Cody RJ. Comparing angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor trial results in patients with acute
myocardial infarction. Archives of Internal Medicine 1994 September 26. 154(18): 2029-2036
45 Walmart Pharmacy retail price, Ardmore, Oklahoma obtained February 9, 1997 for Zocor (20 mg daily).
Notice of Credit
The article above is compliments of the Uchee Pines Institute, Seale, Alabama, a teaching and
treatment facility devoted to natural remedies. For mor information, call 334-855-4781,e-mail:
ucheepine@csi.com, or visit their Website:
http://www.ucheepines.org.
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