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learner202
09-17-2003, 08:30 PM
Your cardiovascular health has never been more important than it is today. Heart disease is the #1 killer in the United States for both men and women. Cardiovascular health includes the heart, arteries and veins, blood cholesterol and antioxidant levels. There are steps that you can take to protect yourself and your future.

The human heart beats at least 60 beats per minute pumping blood throughout hundreds of feet of arteries and veins. It never stops, and hardly rests. The heart requires substantial energy for it's continuous work. When you're young and healthy, your body makes enough energy to meet your heart's needs.

Starting at around 25, you begin to make less of the nutrients, like Coenzyme Q10, that are required to convert food into the fuel your body requires, called ATP (Adenosine tri-phosphate). Supplemental coenzyme Q10 can energize and protect the heart, even as you age.

Antioxidants
Antioxidant nutrients that prevent cell oxidation of the LDL (bad) cholesterol. It is a scientific fact that cholesterol is essential to your health and protects your cells and produces numerous hormones in the body. Cholesterol only becomes your enemy when the LDL faction is hit by a free radical and becomes oxidized. This is a similar process that occurs when food spoils and metal rusts. The following are nutrients that have been shown to act as antioxidants and protect the LDL cholesterol from oxidation:

Garlic (400 - 2,000 mg per day)
Vitamin E (400 - 1,200 IU per day)
Grape Seed Extract (50 - 200 mg per day)
Green tea extract (100 - 300 mg per)
Coenzyme Q10 (60 - 120 mg per day)
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Healthy Blood Vessels
Nutrients that promote strong and healthy blood vessels. Unfortunately, many people's diets supply enough Vitamin C and Bioflavonoids to prevent scurvy, but not enough to promote healthy blood vessels. Vitamin C and Bioflavonoids are critical to collagen formation, the major connective protein that maintains and promotes strong blood vessels.

The supplement, Pycnogenol®, is a nutritional supplement made from special pine trees found only in France. Pycnogenol is a powerful complex of antioxidants that may reduce the risks associated with health conditions precipitated by free-radical damage. Pycnogenol may benefit the entire cardiovascular system by preventing excessive platelet aggregation brought on by smoking and stress.

The following nutrients have benefit in promoting strong and healthy blood vessels:

Vitamin C (500 - 2,000 mg per day)
Bioflavonoids (100 - 500 mg per day)
Pycnogenol (50 - 200 mg per day)
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Cholesterol Levels
Nutrients that promote healthy cholesterol levels and ratios. Total cholesterol levels are not the best indicators of cardiovascular health, the ratio of HDL (good) versus LDL (bad) are far superior. A ratio of 4 or less is good with 3 being optimal.

The following nutrients have benefit in promoting healthy cholesterol levels and ratios.

Fish Oil (200 - 800 mg per day of EPA & DHA)
Garlic (900 mg per day - odorless aged extract)
Tocotrienols (312 mg per day)
Fiber (20 - 30 grams per day from food and supplements)
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Homocysteine Levels
Nutrients that promote healthy homocysteine levels. Over 500 studies have been published in the medical literature about the dangers of homocysteine. The majority indicate two critical facts:

Elevated homocysteine is up to 5 times more deadly than elevated cholesterol
Vitamins B6 and B12, Folic Acid and Trimethylglycine promote healthy homocysteine levels
Betaine has been reported to play a role in reducing blood levels of homocysteine, a toxic breakdown product of amino acid metabolism that is believed to promote atherosclerosis and osteoporosis. While the main nutrients involved in controlling homocysteine levels are folic acid, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12, betaine has been reported to be helpful in some individuals whose elevated homocysteine levels did not improve with these other nutrients. Source: Selhub J. Homocysteine Metabolism. Annu Rev Nutr 1999;19:217-46.

The following are recommended nutrients and levels to promote healthy homocysteine levels:

Vitamin B6 (50 - 150 mg per day)
Vitamin B12 (500 - 2,000 mcg per day)
Folic acid (400 - 1,000 mcg per day)