Back in the 1960’s and 70’s, people had no idea what to do to prevent heart disease.
But these days?
Thanks to the Internet, pretty much everyone knows the secret… Don’t smoke, eat healthy foods, get regular physical activity, avoid processed foods, slack off on hard alcohol, and watch your sodium intake.
There are even still a few myths hanging around that people adhere to, like the misguided idea that egg yellows are bad for you (they’re not)! Or that margarine is healthier for your heart than butter (it’s not)!
But knowing the secret to a healthy heart, and actually following through on achieving it are two very different things.
There are too just many temptations around us that interfere with our goals.
It’s way too easy to choose a cheeseburger over a veggie stir fry, to take a nap when you know you should be exercising, or to stop for a cocktail and a few hands full of salted pretzels instead of going straight home after a day of work or golf.
That’s why I recommend everyone over the age of 40 supplement with these five nutrients to support their aging hearts.
Study Reveals Top 3 Supplements for Heart Health
There was an interesting paper that came out in the December, 2022 issue of Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
A team of researchers analyzed the effects of 27 types of micronutrients on heart health. It covered 884 different trials with nearly 900,000 participants.
The research team discovered that certain nutrients had more of an effect on heart health than others.
At the top of the list? Supplementation with omega-3 fatty acid. In particular, omega-3 supplements reduced the risk of heart attacks, coronary heart disease events and cardiovascular death.
These fishy capsules work from many different angles to support cardiovascular health. Regular use of omega-3 fatty acids…
- Lowers heart rate and blood pressure.
- Improves function of the endothelial cells that line the blood vessels.
- Reduces blood clotting, improves plaque stability and reduces plaque formation.
- Lowers triglycerides, reduces oxidized LDL and improves LDL particle size.
- Reduces the chance of a cardiac event by increasing something called heart rate variability (HRV).
- Fights off inflammation.
That, on its own, is a lot of cardiovascular protection. But there is more to the story. The paper also concluded that CoQ10 supplementation protects against cardiovascular death.
The most important job CoQ10 has is to power up your mitochondria. These are the energy factories in your cells that produce ATP (adenosine triphosphate). This process is what creates all of the energy necessary to fuel the demands of your heart, along with your muscles, liver and other organs.
If you have heart disease, it could help improve cardiac output and cut your risk of experiencing a heart attack or stroke. And in patients who undergo bypass surgery, taking as little as 150 mg daily before surgery have better recoveries and are able to get out of the hospital faster.
CoQ10 also reduces your chances of a second heart attack, lowers blood pressure and helps slow the progression of neurological disorders, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
Last but not least, the study highlighted the effect of folic acid (folate) on stroke risk. Folate facilitates a process called methylation, which is necessary for DNA repair and tissue regeneration in damaged vascular tissue.
Folate is also required for the breakdown of an inflammatory amino acid called homocysteine, which is associated with a higher risk of heart disease and stroke.
2 More Supplements to Protect Your Aging Heart
While the study I cited above ranked omega-3 fatty acids, CoQ10 and folic acid as the top three supplements for prevention of cardiovascular disease, I would like to add a couple of honorable mentions.
The first one is vitamin D. This much-needed nutrient stimulates the production a nitric oxide (NO), which is extremely important when it comes to regulating blood flow, preventing blood clots, and reducing oxidative stress within the cardiovascular system.
Plus, on a molecular level, vitamin D appears to restore endothelial cells that have already been damaged. This means it has the potential to repair damage caused by things like hypertension, plaque build-up and diabetes; thus, reducing the risk of heart attack.
My second honorable mention is magnesium. Magnesium is crucial when it comes to maintaining a normal heartbeat. In fact, it’s involved in all of the electrical activity in your body – from heart contractions and muscle function to nerve impulses, energy production and brain activity.
Sadly, a magnesium deficiency could increase your risk of sudden cardiac death by more than 50%.
These are five of the most powerful supplements for your heart. They are inexpensive, effective and could potentially add a big boost to the health of your entire cardiovascular system.
SOURCES:
An P, Wan S, Luo Y, Luo J, Zhang X, Zhou S, Xu T, He J, Mechanick JI, Wu WC, Ren F, Liu S. Micronutrient Supplementation to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2022 Dec 13;80(24):2269-2285.
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