Reprinted with permission of Life Extension

In an article published online on August 10, 2009 in the American Heart Association journal Circulation, Harvard researchers report an association between higher plasma levels of vitamin B6 and a reduction in the risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) in women.

The study included 144 participants in the ongoing Nurses’ Health Study who were diagnosed with myocardial infarction. The women were each matched for age, smoking status and other factors with two participants in the same study who did not have a history of heart attack at the time of the heart attack cases’ diagnoses. Stored fasting blood samples were analyzed for plasma pyridoxal 5′ phosphate (PLP), which is the predominant form of vitamin B6 that exists in circulation, and homocysteine, an amino acid which, when elevated, has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Higher levels of PLP were correlated with greater dietary intake of vitamin B6, lower body mass index and lower levels of homocysteine. The researchers uncovered a significant association between plasma PLP levels and reduced heart attack risk. Women whose PLP levels were among the top one-fourth of participants at greater than 70 picomoles per milliliter had a 78 percent lower adjusted risk of undergoing a heart attack compared to those whose levels were lowest at less than 27.9 pmol/mL. When the women were analyzed according to age, those aged 60 and older whose PLP levels were among the top quarter were found to have a 64 percent lower risk than those in the lowest quarter, while those who were under 60 in the top fourth of PLP had a 95 percent lower risk.

The authors remark that the study’s findings are consistent with the role of vitamin B6 as a cofactor in the conversion of homocysteine to cysteine. The vitamin also plays a role in the transport of important minerals such as magnesium across cell membranes. The authors observe that the results of some research suggest that factors other than diet that control vitamin B6 levels could eventually be found to be more important in reducing heart attack risk.

The current prospective study is the first, to the authors’ knowledge, to examine the relationship of vitamin B6 levels with heart attack in postmenopausal women. “Our investigation revealed that a lower fasting concentration of PLP is significantly associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction in predominantly postmenopausal women, a relationship that may be causal,” they write. “Future studies are needed to better understand both dietary and nondietary determinants of plasma and tissue vitamin B6 status and their role in the prevention of myocardial infarction and other chronic diseases.”

Close on the heels of the publication of a study in the AMA journal Archives of Neurology linking the consumption of a Mediterranean diet to a lower risk of mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease, an article published online on February 17, 2009 in the American Heart Association journal Circulation reports an association between greater adherence to a Mediterranean diet and a reduction in deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke in women.

Olive oil is a part of a typical Mediterranean diet

Teresa T. Fung of Simmons College in Boston along with colleagues at Harvard University and Brigham and Women’s Hospital evaluated data from 74,886 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study for the current analysis. Dietary questionnaires administered six times during the follow-up period were scored for adherence to the Mediterranean diet, which is characterized by a high intake of vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains, legumes, fish, and monounsaturated fat, a low intake of saturated fat, red and processed meats, and moderate alcohol consumption (between 5 and 15 grams per day).

Over two decades of follow-up, 1,597 nonfatal and 794 fatal cases of coronary heart disease, and 1,480 nonfatal and 283 fatal strokes occurred. Women whose Mediterranean diet scores were in the top 20 percent of participants had a 29 percent lower adjusted risk of coronary heart disease, a 42 percent lower risk of fatal heart disease, a 13 percent lower risk of stroke, and a 31 percent lower risk of fatal stroke compared to women whose scores were among the lowest fifth. Combined coronary heart disease and stroke risk was lowered by 22 percent, and the risk of cardiovascular fatality by 39 percent, for those whose diet scores were in the top 20 percent.

Consumption of a Mediterranean diet has been associated with reductions in inflammatory markers (such as C-reactive protein), lipids and blood pressure, all of which increase cardiovascular disease risk when elevated. The beneficial effect of the diet on the vascular system may also explain the reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment observed in the Archives of Neurology study. The higher fish intake that characterizes the diet could explain, in part, the lower risk of fatal coronary heart disease events observed in the current study, since greater fish intake has been linked with a lower risk of death from heart disease.

“Greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet, as reflected by a higher Alternate Mediterranean Diet Score, was associated with a lower risk of incident coronary heart disease and stroke in women,” the authors conclude. “Because this analysis is conducted in women and because it is the first report on the effects of Mediterranean diet on stroke, our results need to be replicated in other populations, especially men.”

From The Life Extension Foundation.

Findings from published scientific literature indicate that resveratrol may be the most effective plant extract for maintaining optimal health.

Image by Trish Hughes

Scientists have hypothesized that resveratrol may be a key component of the famous “French Paradox,” whereby the French traditionally were protected against heart disease despite a diet high in butter and animal fats. Resveratrol is a phytoalexin, a natural plant antibiotic which is produced by Vitis vinifera as a response to attack by molds. Because of the wide-spread use of pesticides in modern wine-making, including the practice of copper sulphation, the level of resveratrol in modern wines has plummeted. Red wine contains resveratrol, but the quantity varies depending on where the grapes are grown, the time of harvest, and other factors. In fact, usually only one to three mg resveratrol per liter of red wine is currently found, even in the most robust red wines. After years of relentless research, a standardized resveratrol extract is now available as a dietary supplement.

This whole grape extract contains a spectrum of polyphenols that are naturally contained in red wine such as proanthocyanidins, anthocyanins, flavonoids, etc.

Based on studies that higher amounts of resveratrol may be beneficial, Life Extension offers a 100 mg standalone product.

We carry this product at the office. Ask about it at your next visit!

A unique opportunity to save countless lives and billions of dollars is being overlooked by the medical community. This technique increases blood flow to the heart, strengthens the circulation, and offers a proven way to treat heart disease in lieu of stents or bypass surgery.

Enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) is a safe, non-invasive procedure that can overcome heart disease in two ways—by passively exercising the heart to strengthen the vascular system and by targeting inflammation, the underlying culprit in damaged blood vessels that inhibits blood flow.

More than 100 studies have demonstrated its overwhelming effectiveness and unquestioned safety in improving blood flow in patients with heart disease. Some experts are calling for the EECP procedure to become first-line therapy for heart disease, long before surgery or other invasive procedures are used. Approved by the FDA for chronic stable angina, cardiogenic shock, congestive heart failure, as well as during a heart attack, EECP not only saves lives but is also considerably cheaper and safer than traditional invasive procedures such as angioplasty and coronary stents, which continue to be the mainstay of therapy. Medicare even pays for it!

For patients with some forms of heart disease, enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) is a non-invasive, high-tech, low-risk procedure, performed on an outpatient basis, which offers a remarkable reprieve from some of the potentially disabling symptoms of stable angina and coronary heart disease. Patients lucky enough to be offered this underused therapy may experience changes in their conditions that range from significant pain relief to renewed mobility and energy, to a rekindled libido. They may also literally gain a new lease on life, simultaneously avoiding the dangers of coronary bypass surgery while buying enough time to reverse the heart disease that brought them to this crossroads in the first place. But chances are, unless you inquire about it, you’ll never even be told this option exists.

To see the complete article by Dale Kiefer, visit the Life Extension website