1 post tagged “herbal treatments for cardiovascular disease”

A heart attack is really a muscular spasm in the heart muscle itself, much like a cramp in the calf muscle, which is due to a combination of insufficient oxygen being supplied to the heart muscle and a sudden increase in the muscular tension in surrounding tissue as above. This spasm produces a huge shock to the nervous system as well as the body knows how critical it is to restore normal heart function as soon as possible.

Herbs have been used as medical treatments since the beginning of civilization and some derivatives (eg, aspirin, reserpine, and digitalis) have become mainstays of human pharmacotherapy. For cardiovascular diseases, herbal treatments have been used in patients with congestive heart failure, systolic hypertension, angina pectoris, atherosclerosis, cerebral insufficiency, venous insufficiency, and arrhythmia. However, many herbal remedies used today have not undergone careful scientific assessment, and some have the potential to cause serious toxic effects and major drug-to-drug interactions. With the high prevalence of herbal use in the United States today, clinicians must inquire about such health practices for cardiac disease and be informed about the potential for benefit and harm.

Nutritional supplements such as L-carnitine and taurine have been found to be beneficial in dogs and cats with certain cardiac diseases. However, not all animals with cardiac disease respond to nutritional supplementation, which means that further work must be done to identify causes of cardiac disease. Herbal therapies have been used in dogs and cats based on information available from their use in humans. This paper reviews the possible benefits and side effects of L-carnitine, taurine, and herbal supplements.

The General Clinical Symptoms include shortness of breath (must sit leaning forward to catch breath), enlarged tender liver, engorged neck veins, pulmonary rales in various combinations, radiating squeezing pain, pain aggravated with any exertion or stress, palpitations, sweating. ankle edema, pitting edema and cough with fluid or sputum that is pink in color.

The most important role of Ayurvedic medicines is in preventing or reducing atherosclerosis and thereby controlling coronary artery disease. Ayurvedic formulations like Triphala Guggulu, Medohar Guggulu, Chandraprabha, and herbal medicines like Amalaki (Emblica officinalis), Garlic (Allium sativum), Arjuna, Kutki (Picrorrhiza kurroa), Punarnava (Boerhaavia diffusa) and Triphala are very useful in reducing blood cholesterol, fatty deposits in the blood vessels, atherosclerosis, blood pressure, excess fat deposition in the body and also prevent diabetes. Currently, it is believed that we are just as old (or young) as our arteries!

Folic Acid- Folic acid, found in green leafy vegetables and many enriched food products, reduces homocysteine levels in the blood. Homocysteine is a risk factor for heart disease and higher levels leave you at higher risk for heart problems. By consuming 400 micrograms a day, you can reduce your chance of high blood pressure by 40%.

Vitamin C- A 500-milligram supplement of vitamin C was found to reduce blood pressure by about nine percent. That's much higher than the recommended daily amount of 60 milligrams a day, but it is safe to take vitamin C in high doses.

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