Supplements that may be helpful in Heart Failure or Heart Disease
There are quite a number of herbs and supplements that could have a beneficial effect on heart disease. I have listed some below. You may click on each one for more information but ultimately the use of supplements has to be done with the knowledge of your health care provider.

Cutting calories may slow age-related changes in the heart's genes that lead to chronic disease.
Reduce caffeine from coffee, tea, and guarana. Avoid stimulants of any sort.
CoQ10 may be beneficial in heart failure. You can find CoQ10-50mg here.
Carnitine is potentially helpful since the heart uses Carnitine for energy production
Folic acid, vitamin B12 and vitamin B6 can help prevent reoccurrence of blocked arteries in patients who have undergone coronary angioplasty.
Hawthorn is vasodilatory, increases coronary flow, acts as an inotrope (stimulates heart contraction), decreases peripheral resistance, and has ACE-inhibitor-like effect. Daily dosage 3 to 5g or 160 to 900 mg extract for a few weeks. Appears to be useful in mild heart failure.
Psyllium reduces cardiac risk
Cutting calories may slow age-related changes in the heart's genes that lead to chronic disease.
Reduce caffeine from coffee, tea, and guarana. Avoid stimulants of any sort.

CoQ10 Helpful in heart failure
CoQ10 supplements appear to be helpful in strengthening the heart. Dr. Romualdo Belardinelli, of Lancisi Heart Institute in Italy studied 23 patients, average age 59 years, with moderate to severe heart failure. They were assigned to four weeks each of CoQ10 supplements or placebo pills, with or without supervised exercise training. The dosage of CoQ10 was 100 mg three times a day. Those taking CoQ10 had improvement in peak exercise capacity. There was an improvement in cardiac function with CoQ10 treatment. Combining exercise training with CoQ10 produced more marked improvements than CoQ10 alone. The researchers conclude that the use of CoQ10 improves several aspects of heart failure without any side effects.
   Those who have heart failure should discuss with their doctor the use of CoQ10 supplements. Keep the amount of CoQ10, at least initially, to 30 mg or 50 mg once or twice a day. CoQ10 can be taken with breakfast and or lunch. The study went on only for one month, and even though the researchers did not observe side effects on 100 mg three times a day, it is possible that prolonged use of 300 mg a day over several weeks or months could lead to adverse events. We also don't have a good understanding how CoQ10 supplements interact with heart medicines.

Magnesium Good for Heart Patients
Patients with heart disease are often placed on several medicines including beta-blockers and nitrates, but doctors rarely think about suggesting mineral supplements. In a study published in the American Journal of Cardiology, researchers enrolled 187 patients with heart disease to try oral magnesium and compare the results with those on placebo pills. The dose of magnesium was about 200 mg twice daily and it was in the form of magnesium citrate. At the beginning of the study, blood magnesium levels were similar in both groups, but increased significantly in those who took the magnesium supplements. After six months of treatment, those taking magnesium were found to have a significant improvement in the amount of time they could exercise without chest pain, but there were no changes in cholesterol levels between the two groups.
     Comments: In patients who are already taking heart medicines and still have not had the best results possible, it seems that magnesium is a safe, cheap, and effective natural mineral to add to the regimen. The ideal dose of magnesium is not known, but it would seem reasonable to take 100 to 200 mg twice daily.

Psyllium
An article published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports that supplementing the diet with psyllium fiber has positive effects on blood lipids while potentially cardiovascular risk. Sixty-eight adults with high cholesterol consumed a high-fiber and a control diet for 1 month each in a randomized crossover study. The high-fiber diet included 4 servings per day of foods containing psyllium that delivered 8 g per day of soluble fiber than did similar, unsupplemented foods in the control diet. Fasting blood samples and blood pressure readings were obtained at baseline and weeks 2 and 4, and the subjects' weight was monitored weekly. Compared with the control diet, the high-fiber diet reduced total cholesterol levels. Applying the Framingham cardiovascular disease risk equation to the data confirmed a reduction in risk of 4 percent. Small reductions in blood pressure were found after both diets. The subjects reported no significant differences in palatability or gastrointestinal symptoms between the diets.
     Comments: Even though the reduction of cholesterol was small, it was nevertheless a positive response. Adding psyllium to the diet, for instance about a teaspoon in a glass of water two or three times a day with meals will help reduce cholesterol and also helps regulate bowel movements.
Magnesium mineral is helpful

Signs and symptoms of heart disease
The clinical syndrome of heart failure manifests when cellular respiration becomes impaired because the heart cannot pump enough blood to support the metabolic demands of the body, or when normal cellular respiration can only be maintained with an elevated left ventricular filling pressure. Symptoms and signs include shortness of breath, weakness, and fluid accumulation in the legs and feet.

Causes of Heart Disease
The following are heart disease causes: coronary artery disease, previous heart attack, hypertension, cardiomyopathy, valvular heart disease, arrhythmia, drugs, alcohol, aortic stenosis, mitral or aortic regurgitation, pulmonary hypertension.
   The risk of developing heart failure increases with a person's weight: rising slightly in those who are only slightly overweight, and eventually doubling in those who are obese.

The medical treatment of heart failure is often effective and includes:
Salt restriction
Aspirin is a more cost-effective way to treat patients at risk of having a second heart attack or stroke than the new drug Plavix (clopidogrel), but may lead to more hospitalizations. Perhaps a lesser dose should be tried. 
Angiotension-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors
Angiotensin II receptor blockers
Beta blockers

Predicting Death from Heart Failure
A simple points system may guide treatment of elderly heart failure patients. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that by counting how many of seven easy-to-obtain health factors a patient has, physicians can estimate the patient's risk of dying. The seven factors that most affect patient survival in heart failure are:

advanced age is a strong predictor for heart failure
a history of dementia (contributes to a host of conditions related to the inability to properly care for oneself)
coronary artery disease (arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle are hardened and narrowed)
peripheral vascular disease (similar to coronary artery disease but involving blood vessels outside of the heart and brain)
low sodium in the blood (an indication of neurohormonal imbalance)
high urea in the blood (a reflection of poor cardiac output that affects kidney function)
low blood pressure (a result of weakened heart function) is a good predictor for heart failure.

Heart Failure Questions
Q.  was doing some research about fish oil the other day , and i was surprised to see something on Wikipedia that i think should be considered by everyone, i know that many people take fish oil, well, i do, and a lot of them have health problems, and one may not know that he or she has congestive heart failure, and taking fish oil can cause death, im sure you will be interested in reading the article below. Omega-3 fatty acid, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Warning for persons with congestive heart failure: Persons with congestive heart failure, chronic recurrent angina or evidence that their heart is receiving insufficient blood flow are advised to talk to their doctor before taking omega-3 fatty acids. It may be prudent for such persons to avoid taking omega-3 fatty acids or eating foods that contain them. In a congestive heart failure, cells that are only barely receiving enough blood flow become hyperexcitable. This, in turn, can lead to an increased risk of irregular heartbeats, which, in turn, can cause sudden cardiac death. Omega-3 fatty acids stabilize the rhythm of the heart by effectively removing these hyper-excitable cells from functioning, thereby reducing the likelihood of irregular heartbeats and sudden cardiac death. For most people, this is a very good thing and accounts for most of the large reduction in the likelihood of sudden cardiac death. However, for persons with congestive heart failure, the heart is barely pumping blood well enough to keep them alive. Omega-3 fatty acids may eliminate enough of these pumping cells that the heart is no longer able to pump sufficient blood to live, causing an increased risk of cardiac death.
   A. Just because something is mentioned on Wikipedia does not make it correct. We have seen no studies regarding the benefits and side effects of fish oils in congestive heart failure. Therefore the above report is premature. Perhaps in severe cases of heart failure using high doses of fish oils may cause a problem, but until human trials are done we would not know. It is also unwise to make a statement that people should not eat fish if they have congestive heart failure. In congestive heart failure blood clotting is possible, hence one benefit of fish oils is that it can thin the blood and improve circulation. The jury is still out and no definite statements can be made at this time regarding the use of a fish oil supplements and heart failure.

Q. I was in the hospital for heart failure and the modern drugs that the doctors gave me helped me a lot. I do believe in natural supplements but I also think drugs are very helpful.
   A. We agree. Both can be used together is many cases.
 

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