CoQ10, Minerals, And Herbs For Heart Health

When it comes to heart disease, you can never be too cautious. About 610,000 Americans die of cardiovascular-related illnesses each year. Prevention is always better than cure and by feeding your body the right minerals and nutrients, it reduces the risk. This is a list of heart-healthy herbs and minerals that will benefit your heart naturally.

Minerals:

Magnesium

Magnesium is responsible for countless biochemical reactions in the body, many of which are essential to a proper metabolic function. Not only does Magnesium play crucial roles in energy generation and cell growth, it also helps decrease the risk of heart disease.The average American diet lacks the necessary amount of Magnesium needed by the body and the consequences may be severe. Taking Magnesium supplements benefits your heart and overall health, here are some of the reasons why:

• Magnesium regulates blood sugar and improves insulin resistance
• Promotes a steady healthy heartbeat
• Regulates cholesterol production
• Lowers blood pressure

Potassium

The correct balance of Potassium is imperative in supporting a healthy heart. Potassium regulates the balance of water and minerals throughout the body. It is known to lower blood pressure from a high sodium diet. An insufficient intake of Potassium can result in both the muscles and nerves weakening and being unable to function properly. The same applies to an excess of Potassium, which may result in a dangerous and possibly life-threatening change in the heart rhythm. It is crucial to get your Potassium levels checked regularly and take the necessary supplements if you are not getting enough.

Coenzyme Q10

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is found in every cell of the body and is responsible for producing the energy needed for cell growth and maintenance. CoQ10 is essential to heart health as it produces the energy necessary for the heart to work and functions as an antioxidant which protects the heart from damage. Factors such as age and low cholesterol affect the production of CoQ10. Taking CoQ10 supplements ensures that your body has the correct amount to keep your heart beating strong and healthy.

Herbs:

Garlic

Garlic is a robust anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial agent that is significant in decreasing the risk of heart disease. Known as the Russian penicillin, garlic was used during the World War to prevent wounds from getting infected. Garlic has several antibiotic properties and promotes a healthy heart by:

• Lowering high cholesterol
• Lowering high blood pressure
• Protecting arteries from hardening
• Lowering triglycerides

Hawthorn Berries

Otherwise known as the cardiotonic herb, these berries have been used for centuries for many cardiovascular benefits. Hawthorn berries are packed with antioxidants that neutralize free radical cells. There are many reasons why Hawthorn berry is known to reduce the risk of heart disease:

• Hawthorn berries strengthen heart muscles
• Eases strain on the heart by promoting improved circulation
• Lowers high blood pressure

Ginger

Much like garlic, ginger is also known as a wonder herb because of its powerful anti-inflammatory properties not only for the digestive system but for the heart as well. Ginger is not only easy to find, it is also inexpensive. Including ginger in your daily meals promotes a healthy heart and here are some reasons why:

• Ginger promotes circulation
• Gingers “warming effect” stimulates the heart and cleanses the body through perspiration
• Lowers cholesterol
• Prevents blood from clotting
• Prevents plaque buildup on artery walls

A Healthy Diet And CoQ10 For A Healthy Heart

Regardless of your age, stamina, exercise routine or if you are recuperating from a heart attack or inhibiting the possibilities of one, you need a healthy diet to keep your heart strong. To have a healthy heart you need to fill up your plate with food that is healthy. Supplementing with CoQ10 has also been found to provide many healthy heart benefits. Besides composing a list of healthy foods, you need to be aware of the foods that are not healthy for your heart. We will examine the foods that are good for your heart and which foods to limit to ensure you minimize your risk of heart disease.

Yogurt

Studies have revealed that yogurt fights gum disease. It has been proven that if gum disease is not treated, it can increase the possibility of heart disease. Studies conducted in Japan discovered that a high intake of dairy, especially yogurt, leads to healthy gums.

Whole Grains

Persons who consume a lot of whole grains are usually leaner and are at less risk of having heart disease than persons who do not. Whole grains consist of antioxidants, which fight coronary disease. Whole grains, also, contain high-fiber. Studies indicate that a large intake of high-fiber foods reduced the risk of getting heart disease by 40%.

Beans

Consumption of beans on a regular basis leads to a healthy heart and all that is necessary is half a cup of pinto beans, which will decrease cholesterol. A chemical called flavonoids are found in beans, which protects the heart.

Eggs

If you are looking for protein, then eggs are the correct choice. Despite the nutrients, eggs contain saturated fats. As eggs are part of most people’s diets, opt for the healthy method by removing the yolk and consuming only 6 eggs per week.

Chocolate

Even the healthiest of hearts crave chocolate at times. Omit white chocolate from your diet. The International Journal of Molecular Science has stated that consuming dark chocolate in moderation reduces blood pressure. How moderation should be defined, we are not sure.

Sugar

The American Heart Association has warned the public to not take in more than 150 calories of added sugar daily. For the healthy alternative, try stevia or erythritol. Instead of drinking fizzy drinks, choose pure natural fruit juice.

Salmon

This fish is a great choice for keeping your heart healthy. Salmon contains heaps of omega-3 fatty acids, which have an anti-clotting effect that keeps your blood flowing. The American Heart Association recommends two meals of oily fish weekly.

Walnuts

Monounsaturated fats are found in walnuts, and experts suggest that by eating 5 ounces every week, you reduce the possibility of having heart disease by half.

Chickpeas

A great source of soluble fiber is chickpeas. By consuming chickpeas, you lower your level of cholesterol. Make sure you choose the no-salt canned beans, otherwise, wash them with water if they contain salt.

Having a healthy heart consists of eating the right food and avoiding the unhealthy food. To give your heart the best fighting chance, incorporate exercise into your healthy diet and omit tobacco.

The Anti-Aging Benefits of CoQ10

CoQ10 is short for a natural enzyme found in your body called Coenzyme Q10. Research has divulged findings that CoQ10 supplements can maintain healthy cells and increase cell function. CoQ10 helps stops aging processes built naturally into cells by reducing the amount of high oxidation (oxidant stress) and damage to the powerhouse of the cell (mitochondria). To provide energy to your cells, the cell uses CoQ10 for fuel. It has been found that the older you are, CoQ10 levels found in your blood are depleted.

What benefits do CoQ10 supplements have?

Lower than normal levels of CoQ10 can slow the cell’s ability to burn fuel, as well as accelerate aging in cells. Damage to the oxidant levels of the cell is proven to have shortened a person’s lifespan. Taking CoQ10 supplements assist the mitochondria and even reverses the aging process of cells, which promotes a longer, healthier life. Ways in which CoQ10 helps in the treatment of a disease and reduces side-effects of medications is detailed below.

Studies on CoQ10 levels in worms and mice have proven that their cells benefited greatly from taking CoQ10 supplements. Results of this experiment show that prove that a cell’s function rebounds when treated with CoQ10, returning to a point where cell functions respond more quickly in a youthful manner. When translating these findings to that of a human’s lifespan, this could mean that humans could live up to nine years longer with the aid of a supplement of CoQ10.

How can CoQ10 improve the brain’s function and reinvigorate overly-oxidized brain cells?

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s and ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) benefit from CoQ10.  All of these diseases are rooted in what is called “mitochondrial dysfunction,” in which cells do not output the correct amount of energy that is needed to maintain a healthy body. Without cells outputting energy, oxidation of the blood and chronic inflammation occurs. Cells not working properly will produce and deposit certain abnormal proteins which cause cells to eventually lose their function altogether and eventually die. IN neurodegenerative disorders, cell death results in slowed movements, cognitive impairment, and dementia. An addition of CoQ10 can stop cell deterioration and even destroy the abnormal protein deposits, reversing these unfortunate effects. Of course, there are many treatments for Alzheimer’s, Dementia, and other diseases, but CoQ10 fundamentally alters cell function while reversing detrimental side-effects.

Not only can CoQ10 maintain brain cells and prevent them from deteriorating, it also has shown to help normalize brain function. Mental illnesses such as depression and even schizophrenia have common roots as they both have side effects caused by mitochondrial dysfunction and high levels of oxidation in the brain. When taking a CoQ10 supplement, studies have shown to decrease symptoms of mental disorders.

How can CoQ10 improve cardiovascular function?

CoQ10 has proven to improve blood oxygenation and heart rate in people suffering from lung diseases, high blood pressure, and/or diabetes. Diabetes and other metabolic diseases cause a higher oxidation in body tissues, while simultaneously lowering blood sugar levels. People suffering from high blood pressure are often prescribed medication under the category of “statins”. However, statins lower the natural occurrence of CoQ10 in the blood. A supplement of CoQ10 can combat any of these side effects and help balance the oxygen levels in your blood.

CoQ10: Summing Up

The coenzyme Q10 is already naturally found in the body, but a supplement has proven to greatly benefit many different people. It has shown to decrease side effects brought on by highly oxygenated blood and mitochondrial dysfunction, affecting all parts of the body from the brain to the heart. Results of CoQ10 supplement studies have shown to lengthen and improve quality of life.

CoQ10 Benefits For Heart Attack Patients

Produced naturally by your body, the Coenzyme Q10 is an over-the-counter supplement that helps cells produce energy. When using certain medications prescribed to people who have suffered a heart attack, CoQ10 is produced less and less. Unlike other antioxidants, Q10 is produced especially for healthy cells. Your cells constantly grow and need maintenance, and especially if you have low cholesterol or congenital heart defects, you will have a lack of CoQ10 that must be replenished in order to stay healthy. Below you will see the effects of CoQ10 in patients who have suffered from a heart attack, and how this natural supplement is emerging more and more in treatments to help you maintain a healthy heart.

Who Needs CoQ10?

If you are taking medication called statins that help lower your cholesterol, you should add supplements to assist higher antioxidant levels in your blood. Additionally, the older you are the less CoQ10 is found in your body. Reducing any muscle-related side effects from statins or aging is helped by taking a supplement of CoQ10, as reported by the Mayo Clinic. This supplement also helps treat high blood pressure and other muscle pains that might occur after someone suffers from a heart attack.

The Results

Hundreds of tests have taken place to see CoQ10’s effectiveness. In one randomized clinical trial recorded here, one group of patients with heart problems took Q10 as a supplement for three months. Afterwards, not only were patients more physically fit, their emotional health had also improved. Many studies like this were performed, some double-blind, testing to see whether a higher amount of antioxidants were helpful in patients recovering from the results of heart attacks. In most cases, there were significant changes and improvements in patients after taking Q10.

After two years, patients regularly taking CoQ10 were half as likely to be hospitalized from other heart-related problems. The death rate for people with similar symptoms plummeted as well; only half the amount of heart attack patients passed away due to heart-related issues.

CoQ10: What You Can Do Now

A lot of the time medications that you take to help your heart or prevent heart failure often have other unwanted side effects that block cell regrowth and other processes. Without cellular energy, your body has other deficiencies which effect the heart and creates a cycle that often arises in already weaker hearts. If you have suffered from a heart attack or currently have a heart disease, you may have an energy starved heart.

So, what can you do to help prevent an energy-starved heart? Taking a natural antioxidant is proven to help. It is reported that CoQ10 assists patients with heart disease and heart failure, a natural cure that is only just now starting to show as a standard treatment. Although some people are still skeptical about it, it has been proven in hundreds of clinical trials that besides ACE inhibitors and beta blockers, antioxidants in the blood help with treating heart diseases.

Red Wine, CoQ10 & Heart Health

There is still much debate about whether daily consumption of red wine is beneficial to physical health. Many scientific studies have linked the intake of red wine to a decreased chance of developing certain conditions – such as cardiovascular disease. An interesting paradox – known as the French Paradox, has baffled health scientists for a while. Scientists often wondered why French people seem to have a low rate of cardiovascular disease, despite the large amounts of fat they consume. It has been suggested that because they also drink fair amounts of red wine, their hearts are protected.  On the other hand, red wine is an alcoholic beverage, and with that, it carries some detrimental health effects. The answer to this debate lies in closely examining and comparing the effects of various substances present in red wine.

Diet is very important when it comes to our health. CoQ10 is a key enzyme for boosting heart health and health in general. Taking a quality CoQ10 supplement, alongside a healthy diet and the occasional glass of red wine could add years to your life. Read on for more information regarding these key elements for longevity and good health.

Components of red wine

Red wine is made from crushed and fermented dark grapes. These grapes contain many antioxidant substances such as resveratrol and proanthocyanidins. These antioxidants remove free oxygen radicals from the cellular environment in the body, where the are produced by regular cell metabolism. Excessive amounts of these free oxygen radicals can damage cell membranes, proteins and even DNA. This damage can then lead to inflammation, blood clotting, tissue aging, cancer and heart disease. However, the amount of resveratrol in one bottle of red wine is quite low.  Red wine also contains around 12 to 15% alcohol. Alcohol can have either good or bad effect on the body, depending on the amount that is consumed.

Beneficial effects of red wine

Based on its antioxidant properties, many studies have been conducted to determine the health effects of red wine. One study found that moderate consumption of red wine leads to a decreased risk of stroke in men. Another study found that alcohol-free red wine decreased blood pressure. A different study compared the risk of heart disease amongst different kinds of alcohol consumers and found that those who consumed red wine had much lower risk than beer or spirit drinkers. Moreover, a variety of studies associated the moderate consumption of red wine with reduced risk of cancer, depression and insulin resistance.

Negative effects of red wine

Alcohol is not often used for therapeutic reasons because the amount which is clinically useful is very close to the amount that causes toxic effects. Alcohol has been shown to increase the risk of depression and to cause liver cirrhosis. It is also possible to develop an alcohol dependence when alcohol is regularly consumed.

Red wine specifically also contains a large number of calories – double the amount than in beer or sugary soda. Excessive daily consumption of red wine could, therefore, lead to weight gain.

Conclusion

Just like any substance, too much red wine can outweigh the benefits that it provides. Many experts conclude that there is no major health reason to begin drinking red wine daily, as the antioxidants it contains are available in other foods and in supplements. However, if you enjoy drinking it, red wine can have long-term health benefits. The key to obtaining these benefits is to moderate your intake. 1-2 glasses a day is ideal for men and 1-1,5 glasses a day for women.

The Amazing Combination Of CoQ10 And Meditation

For a long time, meditation was only practiced in the West by gurus, hippies, and seekers of all kinds. Today, however, this ancient spiritual practice is popular among everyone from hedge fund managers to movie stars. Many of the world’s most successful companies offer meditation sessions to their employees, and at least one sports team trains its athletes to meditate as well as play.

The psychological benefits of meditation have been demonstrated in numerous studies, and it is well-known as a tool for stress reduction and increased concentration. However, meditation can improve not only your psychological health but your physical health.

CoQ10 has been clinically shown to boost cognitive energy and aid brain health. A quality CoQ10 supplement can work wonders when it comes to optimizing our minds. What would happen if you took a quality CoQ10 supplement alongside doing regular meditation practice? The results almost speak for themselves. If taking advantage of these two proven cognitive boosters we suggest that you do you homework when it comes to a quality supplement, make sure that you are investing in something that is going to get you great results. Then, add on meditation, the benefits really are great!

Here are 3 ways that meditation can change your body as well as your mind.

1) Pain Relief

Approximately 15 percent of American adults suffer from chronic pain, including arthritis, back pain, and migraines. In many cases, meditation has been proven to ease symptoms of these ailments, even for people who are completely new to the practice. Doctors identify it as a less expensive, less dangerous, and more sustainable alternative to narcotics or chemical pain relievers.

According to studies of meditation in chronic pain patients, meditation relaxes the sympathetic nervous system. When our bodies or minds are under stress, this system accelerates, leading to higher heart rate, increased blood pressure, constricted blood vessels, and eventually pain. Meditation prevents the nervous system from responding in this way, cutting off chronic pain at the root.

2) A Good Night’s Sleep

Meditation relaxes the body and mind, leading to more and better sleep. A recent study published in the New York Times demonstrated that meditation can be a powerful remedy for insomnia, especially in older adults. Meditation eases the mind and central nervous system; this helps you drift off to sleep because racing thoughts and physical or neurological stress are at the core of many sleep problems.

Lack of sleep isn’t only aggravating — it can contribute to further health problems, including diabetes and heart disease. By improving nightly sleep, meditation can be a powerful tool against these common and deadly illnesses.

3) A Stronger Brain

When practiced on a regular basis, meditation seems to have significant and long-term effects on the brain. Recent research has shown that meditation combats the negative impacts of aging on the brain, including Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and general memory loss. Many of these effects are caused by the erosion of telomeres, or protective caps on the ends of our chromosomes, and of gray matter in the brain. Meditation has been shown to slow this erosion, and in some cases even rebuild eroded telomeres and gray matter from scratch.

In addition, meditation can help treat depression, anxiety, and other disorders that affect both the brain and the body.

Conclusion

Meditation can have surprising benefits for your health. Try sitting for 10-15 minutes in a comfortable position, in a dimly lit and quiet room, and focusing on the sound of your breathing. This soothing practice could have a real impact on your body and mind.