Results of a new study comparing the effectiveness of Pfizer Inc.,’s Lipitor with Pravachol, made by Bristol-Myers Squibb, was recently published in the New York Times. The study details the clinical observation that Lipitor was significantly more effective than Pravachol in lowering patient’s LDL cholesterol levels. However, the study did not comment on the overall effect that Statin drugs have on patient health, or the research that indicates Statins may actually increase your risk of heart disease and heart attack.

Statin drugs have been proven effective in the reduction of LDL cholesterol in most patients. However, the bio-chemical reactions that the drugs use to decease cholesterol also inhibit the production of an important nutrient that is essential for good heart health; specifically CoQ10.

Lipitor and Pravachol work by inhibiting the body’s ability to make an enzyme called HMG-CoA. This enzyme is the precursor to two compounds, cholesterol and CoQ10. Because the intent of Statin drugs is to inhibit cholesterol production, this method of suppression is very effective in reducing cholesterol levels. However, by suppressing the manufacture of HMG-CoA, and subsequently CoQ10, the body actually becomes more susceptible to heart attack, angina, congestive heart failure, and many other pulmonary-related diseases.

CoQ10 is found in every cell in the body and is necessary for proper energy utilization, resistance to disease, and cardiac health. The compound is so necessary that it’s chemical name is actually ubiquinone, because of its ubiquitous presence in the body. By suppressing the mechanism that makes CoQ10, Statin drugs such as Lipitor and Pravachol put patients at significant risk of heart disease, as well as reduce overall resistance to cancer and other diseases.

CoQ10 is used by the heart and other muscles to facilitate contraction as blood is pumped through the body. If the body’s source of CoQ10, is lowered, either through Statin drugs or environmental factors, the hearts ability to contract is greatly diminished. This subsequently results in significant cardiac complications; including angina, heart disease, cardiac arrhythmia and heart attack.

In addition to its contribution to proper heart function, CoQ10 is also a significant ant-oxidant. When our ability to product CoQ10 is reduced, our body’s immunity to cancer, pollution and disease can be greatly diminished. This has been documented in a number of studies where CoQ10 levels have been measured in people with specific cancers, degenerative diseases, or HIV.

The relation between HMG-CoA, cholesterol, and CoQ10 has been well documented and is freely available. Subsequently, the solution to reduced CoQ10 levels has been made extremely simple. The solution is simply dietary supplementation with CoQ10 if you are taking a Statin drug. Much of the diminished CoQ10 supply can be made up through dietary supplementation. In fact, CoQ10 supplements can be purchased in the supplement section of your local health food store.

CoQ10 is essential to proper heart health and resistance to disease. Statin drugs such as Lipitor and Pravachol inhibit the body’s ability to product CoQ10. If not addressed, this can increase a patient’s risk of heart disease and other cardiac conditions. However, supplementation of CoQ10 by the use of a dietary supplement can balance the effects of Statin drugs and ensure that the patient’s risk of overall heart disease does not increase while his/her cholesterol levels decrease. If you are currently taking a Statin drug to reduce your cholesterol, talk to your doctor about supplementation with CoQ10 to ensure your continued good health.

A heart attack happens when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself (the myocardium) is severely reduced or even stopped entirely.

If you know the symptoms and the risk factors of a heart attack, you can avoid having one and live a safer, healthier, longer and happier life

Heart attack has been reported to be the number one killer disease among adult Americans aged 50 yrs and older.

Typical symptoms of a heart attack include a crushing pain in the chest, sweating, difficulty breathing, weakness and pain in the arms, particularly the left.

Here are some family healthcare insights on how to prevent heart attacks.

Symptoms one could attribute to something else can cause devastating delays in seeking treatment.

These include feelings of indigestion, back shoulder and neck pain and nausea.

Early signs of trouble may appear during physical activity and disappear with rest.

Any numbness or tingling of the fingers or toes, dizziness, shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing should not be ignored.

It is not enough to know the symptoms of a heart attack, which can be wide-ranging and confusing.

It appears that most Americans are oblivious of the risk factors of a heart attack.

It is very important also to know the risk factors such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and family history.

Clinical studies, laboratory investigations and a number of surveys show that certain personal characteristics and lifestyles can lead to increased danger of a heart attack.

These danger signs are called “risk factors.”

These well established risk factors are high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, cigarette smoking and diabetes mellitus.

Attempts at modifying risk factors most certainly have contributed to the declining death rate from heart attacks in the United States.

While a few decades ago, U.S. death rates from heart attacks were on the rise, but today’s figures show that incidents of heart attacks have comparatively fallen dramatically.

And, overall, heart-related problems have declined about 25 percent in the last decade.

This decrease undoubtedly is due to better medical care of heart attack victims, but it is likely that a sizable percentage is related to modification of risk factors.

New drugs can stop or limit the damage of a heart attack, but only if the patient gets help immediately, experts say.

Once the flow of blood to a portion of the heart is blocked for several hours, the damage is irreversible.

Medical technology is advancing at an increasingly rapid rate. More drugs and medical technology are available than ever before and the entire population is now more aware of the seriousness of heart attacks.

There has been an increased interest in learning CPR and many community organizations now offer this valuable training.

Of particular concern by doctors and researchers is the role that the American diet plays in the health of one’s heart.

Obesity predisposes individuals to coronary heart disease. Some of the reasons for this are known, but others are not.

The major causes of obesity in Americans are excessive intake of calories and inadequate exercise.

When caloric intake is excessive, some of the excess frequently is saturated fat, which further raises the blood cholesterol.

Thus, obesity contributes to higher coronary risk in a variety of ways.

Many of the major risk factors for a heart attack are silent and much of the responsibility for their detection lies with each of us as individuals.

Regular checkups are particularly necessary if there is a family history of heart attacks of heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels or diabetes.

May these family healthcare insights help you live a healthy and happy life.

What is a coronary heart attack?

Are you at the risk of a coronary heart attack?

Here are some insights to help you…

A heart attack happens when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself (the myocardium) is severely reduced or even stopped entirely.

The medical term for a heart attack is myocardial infarction.

The reduction or stoppage of blood supply happens when one or more of the coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart muscle is blocked.

This may be caused by the buildup of plaque (deposits of fat-like substances), also known as atherosclerosis.

The plaque may eventually burst, tear or rupture, creating a “situation” where a blood clot forms and blocks the artery.

This may lead to a heart attack.

A heart attack is also sometimes known as a coronary thrombosis or coronary occlusion.

It is a medical fact that heart disease is among the most dangerous health hazards facing people 50 yrs and older in America.

Clinical studies, laboratory investigations and a number of surveys show that certain personal characteristics and lifestyles can lead to increased dangers of a heart attack (coronary heart disease).

These danger signs are called “risk factors”. The well established risk factors are high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, cigarette smoking and diabetes mellitus.

Other risk factors that may increase or lead to the risk of having a heart attack are obesity, a sedentary life-style, an aggressive response to stress, and certain drugs.

In the past two decades, millions of Americans have learned about these risk factors and have tried to decrease them by seeking medical attention and by changing their lifestyles.

Many adults have stopped smoking. The medical control of high blood pressure has greatly improved.

The average cholesterol level of the population has decreased continually over the last two decades, probably due to changes in dietary habits and increased exercise.

This attempt to modify risk factors almost certainly has contributed to the declining death rate from heart disease in the United States.

Overall, heart-related problems have declined about 25 percent in the last decade.

Some of this decrease undoubtedly is due to better medical care of heart attack victims, but it is likely that a sizable percentage is related to modification of risk factors.

The entire population has become more aware of the seriousness of heart disease and coronary heart problems.

CPR training is offered in schools, places of business, and church and community functions, and everyone seems to recognize that prevention of coronary heart disease is a partnership between the public and the medical community.

There are a number of factors implicated in coronary heart disease. Some of these may raise coronary risk by accentuating the major risk factors already discussed.

Others may act in ways not understood. Still others may be linked mistakenly to coronary risk.

Obesity predisposes individuals to coronary heart disease. Some of the reasons for this are known, but others are not.

The major causes of obesity in Americans are excessive intake of calories and inadequate exercise.

When caloric intake is excessive, some of the excess frequently is saturated fat, which further raises the blood cholesterol. Thus, obesity contributes to higher coronary risk in a variety of ways.

Most of the major risk factors are silent. They must be sought actively, and much of the responsibility for their detection lies with each of us as individuals.

Regular checkups are particularly necessary if there is a family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels or diabetes.

May these health insights into heart disease help you to live a healthier and happier life.

The American Heart Association estimates that one of three Americans have have hypertension. And yet many of us don’t know what it is, why it’s dangerous, and what the treatment options are.

What Is Hypertension?

Hypertension is a fancy medical word for high blood pressure.

Your blood carries nutrients and oxygen to your body, and picks up waste like carbon dioxide. The heart pumps the blood through “pipes” - blood vessels called arteries- and the blood returns to the heart through veins.

Blood pressure is the “push” of blood against the walls of the arteries. It is a good thing to have blood pressure - if blood pressure is zero, it means there’s no blood moving through the arteries! But like the water pipes in a house, if the blood is being pushed too hard against the walls of the vessels, they might be damaged. Extra pressure can also contribute to creating blood clots that block needed blood supply to the brain.

Hypertension can lead to dangerous conditions including heart failure (when the heart has to work too hard just to get the blood moving around the body), stroke (interference with the blood flow in the brain), and kidney disease, to name a few.

How Do I know If I’m At Risk?

While having a family history of hypertension may increase your risk for hypertension, not all people with hypertension have family members with it. Hypertension is generally “asymptomatic” - most people don’t have symptoms as they develop it - so checking your blood pressure should be a part of regular healthcare.

How Is High Blood Pressure Diagnosed?

When your blood pressure is taken at a health clinic or doctor’s office, the result is a mysterious number like this:

120 / 80

The first/top number is called the “systolic” (sis-tall-ick) blood pressure; the second/bottom, the diastolic (dye-as-tall-ick) pressure. The American Heart association recommends that the top number in adults should be no higher than 120 and the bottom no higher than 80 (children have different ranges of healthy blood pressure for different age groups - ask your pediatrician if you’re concerned). If your systolic pressure is between 140 to 159 and/or your diastolic pressure is between 90 and 99, that’s considered mild hypertension. Moderate to severe hypertension includes systolic pressures over 160 and/or diastolic over 100.

What Are My Treatment Options?

Treatment depends on the severity of the high blood pressure. Keep in mind that a very stressful day can increase your blood pressure readings, as (for some people) can a trip to your doctor’s office. So if your blood pressure reading is on the border between healthy and hypertensive, you may need to make a return visit.

If you have a pre-hypertensive blood pressure after a repeat check, your doctor or nurse practitioner may recommend a trial of lifestyle changes that can help lower blood pressure including:

-exercise

-a lower-salt diet

-increased intake of potassium

-weight loss

-moderation of alcohol consumption

-stress reduction

However, if you have mild to severe hypertension (Stage 1 or 2), or if you have pre-hypertension in combination with conditions like heart disease, kidney disease, or diabetes, your health care provider may prescribe medications.

There are many different hypertension medications. They don’t all work the same way, and different ones work differently for different people, so your provider will probably have you check in to make sure the medication first prescribed is working for you. Sometimes two medications can compliment each other, so your healthcare provider may prescribe two kinds.

Once medication has been prescribed sit down with your health care provider or pharmacist and a list of all the medications you take (including over the counter medications) to make sure that there are no harmful interactions between them and tyour blood pressure medicines. In addition, keep in mind that most blood pressure medications have side effects; ask your healthcare provider to write down likely side effects for you, noting side effects and symptoms that indicate that you should come in to have your dose changed.

Most importantly, medication is not enough! Make sure to modify your lifestyle to help the medications do a good job. “High Blood Pressure” Nidus Information Services, 2004

“Percentage of adults aged ≥20 who were ever told they had high blood pressure” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, Center for Disease Control, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, volume 51, issue 21, 2002

Monitoring your CRP level is vitally important because it is one of the best indicators of heart disease. C-Reactive Protein has proven to be one of the best indicators of looming Heart disease.

Find out why high cholesterol alone is NOT responsible for heart disease. And you will find out how to keep your CRP Level in the normal range.

Because your body produces C-Reactive Protein as part of your body’s defense ? like when you are injured, it signals your immune system for help. Your immune system sends out white blood cells and inflammatory molecules (including C-Reactive Protein) to the injured area.

This defensive system causes inflammation which is damaging to blood vessels and leads to heart disease. Because this is an continuous process, not like an ankle injury which heals and then inflammation goes away.

Elevated C-Reactive Protein levels are an early indication of inflammation in the body. When there is inflammation in the body, there is usually a problem. Realize this is why C-Reactive Protein is a great indicator.

Naturally you can easily understand that C-Reactive Protein is a better indicator of heart disease than cholesterol. A huge study on CRP backs this up.

The New England Journal of Medicine published A report where nearly 28,000 people participated in a study of CRP. Researchers in the study used LDL cholesterol and CRP to predict heart attacks and stroke.

What the researchers found was that CRP was a better predictor of cardiac events than LDL cholesterol -1

So ? what can you do to keep your C-Reactive Protein level low? In a word, exercise. Activity is the best way to keep CRP levels low. Just taking a walk is a good way to get your activity level up.

There are also important nutrients to help limit the damage from the inflammation.

Here are several nutrients you have heard of:

Vitamin C

Vitamin E

And Folic Acid ? protects the blood vessels.

Two others you may not have heard as much about:

Taurine - is an amino acid-like compound and a component of bile acids, which are used to help absorb fats and fat- soluble vitamins. It is found in meat and fish.

L-arginine - A naturally occurring amino acid found in food proteins that the body uses to make Nitric Oxide.

You can easily get plenty of these nutrients through food and supplements combined.

Talk to your doctor about a simple test for CRP levels, it is like a blood test. It is best to keep your levels under 5 mg per liter, preferably 3 mg per liter.

1 - Ridker P., et al. Comparison of C-reactive protein and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the prediction of first cardiovascular events. NEJM 2002 Nov 14; 347(20): 1557-1565

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Pill Proof LLC introduces the first, easy to use medication compliance kit for consumers and medical professionals. Owner, Jane Langdon, has a sister in law with Parkinson’s Disease. While visiting her sister in law’s doctor, he noted that the biggest problem with her progress was correctly taking her many medications. Jane asked if there was a system available to help her. The doctor replied,” No, I wish there was”. Jane asked if she made one, would he be interested in it. “Make it and I will use it”, he said. After two prototypes, the doctor approved it.

The kit consists of a large transparent 36 compartment hinged pill case, stickers for the time of day, two 8′ x 10″ erasable detailed medication charts and a pager size alarm with 31 alarm or vibrator settings per day. All the products are warranted and volume discounts are available.

Jane has two other successful internet businesses. Jane says her background from a medical family was helpful in developing and promoting the Pill Proof kit. The facts of non compliance are startling. She added that 9 out of every 10 outpatients are taking prescribed medicines improperly, contributing to prolonged or additional illness, More than 125,000 Americans die each year due to prescription medication non compliance, twice the number killed in automobile accidents,1,000,000 Americans are hospitalized each year due to medication errors, more than 1.3 million of US hospital admissions each year and 125,000 premature deaths are due to complications from people not following medications properly, and problems related to medications were the fourth leading cause of death - behind heart disease, cancer and stroke.