Heart Health in a Heartbeat :: Health and Disease :: Heart/Cardiovascular

> Health and Disease > Heart/Cardiovascular > heart attack

Heart Health in a Heartbeat
by author Michael T. Murray, ND

Each day the human heart beats 100,000 times and pumps up to 5,000 gallons of blood. That’s a lot of work, and it illustrates how essential the heart is in delivering oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body.

Having a healthy heart and circulatory system is essential to a long and healthy life. However, heart attack or stroke is by far the biggest cause of death in North America.

What is Heart Disease?

The term heart disease most often refers to the buildup of plaque containing cholesterol, fatty material, and cellular debris in the coronary arteries through the process of atherosclerosis (hardening of the artery walls).

A heart attack (myocardial infarction) occurs when something blocks the flow of blood to the heart–it can be a clot, a spasm of a coronary artery, or accumulation of plaque. This hard-working pump requires a steady supply of oxygen and other nutrients. The coronary arteries feed the heart. If something interrupts the blood supply, the starved muscle tissue begins to die very rapidly. The longer the blockage lasts, the greater the risk that the heart attack will be fatal.

Reduce Major Risk Factors

The good news about heart disease is that it is usually highly preventable. Since it is often a silent killer, in that the first evidence of heart disease is a fatal heart attack, it is important to be aware of the major risk factors for developing heart disease:

exposure to cigarette smoke
elevated blood cholesterol levels
high blood pressure
diabetes
physical inactivity

If your lifestyle includes two or more of these major factors, your risk increases significantly. For example, if you smoke, have high cholesterol, and have high blood pressure, you are more than 700 times more likely to develop heart disease–and you could die 20 to 30 years sooner–than someone without any of these factors.

In addition, there are several other risk factors that have been shown in some studies to be as important as the major risk factors. These are:

elevation of markers of silent inflammation such as C- reactive protein
low levels of omega-3 fatty acids
low dietary antioxidant intake

Lifestyle Prescriptions

To significantly reduce risk for heart disease, it is also important to follow a health-promoting lifestyle that includes avoiding cigarette smoke, engaging in regular physical activity, getting enough sleep each night, and dealing with stress effectively through such measures as meditation, prayer, yoga, Tai Chi, or deep breathing exercises.

Regular physical exercise is essential in reducing the risk of heart disease and strokes. It accomplishes this by lowering cholesterol levels, improving blood and oxygen supply to the heart, increasing the functional capacity of the heart, reducing blood pressure and obesity, and exerting a favourable effect on blood clotting.

Food Prescriptions

One diet that appears to provide significant protection against heart disease is the traditional Mediterranean diet. This diet, high in plant-based fibres and low in saturated fats, can play a role in fighting heart disease and cancer, as well as type 2 diabetes.

The two components of the Mediterranean diet that have received a lot of attention are red wine and olive oil. Red wine is thought to be responsible for the “French paradox,” a term used to explain why the French consume more saturated fat than Americans, yet have a lower incidence of heart disease. The protective effect is the result of the flavonoids in red wine, which protect against oxidative damage to the arteries from LDL (the “bad”) cholesterol.

Olive oil contains a heart protective monounsaturated fatty acid, oleic acid, and several antioxidant agents that prevent circulating LDL cholesterol from becoming damaged and subsequently damaging arteries. Olive oil lowers harmful LDL cholesterol levels and increases the level of protective HDL cholesterol. It has also been proven to lower elevated blood triglycerides.

C-reactive Protein

Inflammation is an important factor in the buildup of atherosclerotic plaque. To measure the degree of inflammation, physicians determine the level of C-reactive protein (CRP) in the blood. Most studies show that the higher the CRP levels, the higher the risk of developing heart attack.

1 2 3

Next Page >>>

Michael T. Murray, ND, is widely regarded as a leading authority on natural medicine. He is the author of over 20 books, including The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods (Atria, 2005).

Source: alive #280, February 2006

Heart Disease
A 1995 Gallup poll showed that one third of family physicians and 80 per cent of women in North America are not aware that heart disease kills more women than any other health problem.

Heart Helpers
Medical research indicates that eating foods rich in beta-carotene will lessen your risk of either a heart attack or a stroke.

When The Heart Gives Out
On June 16, 2000 my husband Doug went to the local emergency department because he had severe chest pains. Shortly after arriving at the hospital, he had a massive heart arrest.

Diet, Exercise And Supplements Help Keep Your Heart Young
In most industrialized countries, the incidence of cardiovascular disease goes up with age. Canada is no exeption-heart disease is the number-one cause of death in this country. However, this may have more to do with lifestyle factors such as diet, inactivity and stress than with aging.

Reel in Some Fish Oil
Although best known for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease and arthritis, one of the hottest areas of omega-3 fatty acid research is related to brain health and behaviour.

Canadian Lecture Tour

Arresting Canada's Number One Killer of Women
Heart disease among women is on the increase. This may be because its incidence rises after menopause, and women in the baby-boom generation are nearing the age of menopause. But something else is happening here.

The Flaming Heart
We all know what inflammation is. We recognize it as the redness, heat, and swelling that accompany injuries or infections. Although we may not like how it feels, inflammation is actually a beneficial process.

Lifesaver or Billion-Dollar Industry?
Coronary artery bypass surgery took centre stage in 2004 when former US President Bill Clinton underwent emergency bypass surgery.

Preventing Heart Disease
Has blood cholesterol been overemphasized as a risk factor for heart disease? Elevated blood cholesterol levels, particularly the bad form of cholesterol - low-density lipoprotein (LDL) - is definitely a risk factor, bu.

Shopping List for a Healthy Heart

Vitamin E (100 percent natural source mixed toco.

Top 10 Supplements
In June 2002 the Journal of the American Medical Association published an article that concluded nutritional deficiencies are an important cause of chronic disease.

Gulp, Don't Gag
Big gulps, burgers, chips, chocolate bars, and video games...sound familiar? Keeping children healthy in today's super-sized, convenience-food, fast-paced environment is immensely challenging. It is better to start today by creating a healthy lifestyle for our children than it is to deal with the health problems that may develop down the road.

All Aglow
From sunburn to psoriasis, acne to eczema, inflammation is often the common thread in most skin conditions. As nutritional medicine advances, it is becoming increasingly clear that a diet that includes omega-3 fatty acids from fish can influence inflammation and promote healthy skin.

Crohn's Disease
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory condition that most commonly affects the lower part of the small intestine, although it may be present anywhere within the digestive tube. The inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can extend deep into the lining of the affected organ. Symptoms, often exacerbated by stressful conditions, include abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, diarrhea, weight loss, anemia, and nutritional deficiencies.

Essential Differences
Heart disease is the number one cause of death in women over 40. Women are also less likely to survive heart attacks (acute myocardial infarction) than men, but why?

Heartfelt Shopping
We've all heard the morbid statistics telling us heart attacks and strokes are the top killers of Canadian men and women. However, heart disease is usually preventable. Rarely do the conditions and symptoms leading to heart disease require more than a dedicated change of habits.

After a Heart Attack
You've just had a brush with death. Maybe not the white-light-in-a-tunnel experience, but a close call nonetheless. Lucky for you, you're still alive to read this.

Back to Basics
Building your strongest nutritional foundation begins with two basic steps: eating a balanced nutritious diet and taking a high-quality daily multiple vitamin and mineral supplement. This back-to-basics strategy has proven effective for young and old alike.

Sushi-Can It Prevent Lung Cancer?
After observing the eating patterns of 5,885 Japanese residents over 14 years, scientists at the Aichi Cancer Center found that participants who ate large amounts of both fresh fish and shell fish (common ingredients used in sushi cookery) significantly decreased their risk of developing lung cancer, regardless of their age or gender.

Breathe Easier With Better Air

BMD Tests

Mediterranean Diet Good for Heart Disease and Cancer

Eating Ã la Italia for Joint Wellness
The Mediterranean diet may "suppress disease activity in patients who have modestly active rheumatoid arthritis.

After a Heart Attack
You've just had a brush with death. Maybe not the white-light-in-a-tunnel experience, but a close call, nonetheless. Lucky for you, you're still alive to read this.

Eat Well-Age Well
Getting older isn't what it used to be. Seniors are staying active well into their golden years, people are retiring later, and 60 is the new 40. The latest generation of retirees is more active and health-conscious-and living the motto "a rolling stone gathers no moss.