Cholesterol & Heart Disease Prevention - by John Straus, MD, ND

 

Heart disease is the number one, although easily preventable, cause of death in adults the United States. Life style is the primary cause with tobacco use, excess body fat, inactivity, stress with poor sleep and improper diet being the main factors. These risk factors, as opposed to family history and thus genetics, are changeable but do require conscious choice. The following nutritional programs are all excellent with picking and sticking being the key! They all stress protein and fats that are high in omega 3 fatty acids, fruits, vegetables and limited carbohydrates. This way of eating is anti-inflammatory and alkalizing for the body. People who eat like this do not get diabetes, which carries a very high risk for heart disease.

 

1. Paleolithic Approach via the teaching of the Weston A. Price Foundation www.westonaprice.org. The work of two dentists who studied healthy indigenous cultures around the world.

 

2. ‘Optimal Diet’ balances protein, fat and carbohydrates in a ratio of 1.0 : 2.5-3.5 : 0.8 www.homodiet.netfirms.com/diet/optimaldiet1.htm.

 

3. ‘The Carbohydrates Addicts lifespan Program’. This book by Drs Rachael and Richard Heller is practical and easy to relate to. www.carbohydrateaddicts.com.

 

4. The Perricone Diet program. Dr. Nicolas Perricone has a number of books but to get started I recommend ‘The Perricone Promise’ - www.perriconemd.com.

 

Exercise is vital and if your job does not keep you fit, as is the case for most of us, you need a routine. Walking 30min 3-4/week gives the heart protection and with increasing activity this protection increases. A test of fitness is Heart Rate Variability where your resting heart rate is subtracted from your maximum heart rate (How fast your heart is beating just before you are forced to slow down). A score of 80 or more is desirable and shows fitness. Exercise decreases body fat and increases muscle mass, especially if part of your program has resistance weight work where you ‘feel the burn’.    

    

 Some super nutritional supplements include:

-Fish oil that now is also available as a prescription called Lovasa. Fish oil may raise your LDL Cholesterol but this is safe because the type of LDL that is raised is actually protective. (1000-4000mg of EPA and DHA combined)

-Vitamin E as both mixed tocopherols and tocotrienols, especially the gamma fractions. (About 400-800 IU)

-Vitamin C with Lysine and Proline (Vit C 3,000-18,00mg, Lysine 3-6 grams, Proline 250-3000grams)

-Niacin (not inosital hexanicotinate). This also is available as a prescription call Niaspan. (500-2000mg).

Get your lipids checked along with a risk marker called hsCRP and watch as your numbers improve!

 

For more information, Call John Straus, N.D., M.D., 401-490-2033.

 

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