How To Keep Your Heart in Love with Life

Although it is the number one killer in America, heart disease is also one of the most easily prevented. Heart attacks, strokes, coronary artery disease, hypertension, and arrhythmias are all caused by the cumulative effects of poor lifestyle choices. The Standard American Diet (SAD) is deficient in nutrients, highly acidic and inflammatory, and laden with toxins. Our increasingly stressful, isolated, and sedentary lives compound the problem. Fortunately, all of these factors are completely under your control. The heart is an amazingly well designed and efficient pump. It will beat over 2.8 billion times during an average person’s lifetime. It cannot take breaks, go on vacation, or go offline for periodic maintenance—it is always on duty. It is self-repairing, so it knows how to maintain itself while it is working. However, to extend its reliability decade after decade, it requires nutritional support and other favorable conditions that only you can supply. The kind of support your heart and circulatory system need is the same as I have been describing for over a decade as the Beyond Health Lifestyle. Since there is only one disease (malfunctioning cells) and two causes (deficiency and toxicity), the prescription to prevent or reverse almost any of the thousands of so-called diseases is roughly the same: Eat a nutrient-rich diet; avoid harmful foods; protect yourself from toxins; get plenty of movement, rest, and sunshine; keep your mind and emotions in balance; and avoid radiation and medications. Got it? Good. While it is basically that simple, we can take a closer look at some specific things you can do to assure optimum health of your heart and circulatory system. Let’s start with a big misconception about what kinds of foods are good for your heart. The truth about cholesterol It is astounding how much misinformation there is about what constitutes a heart-healthy diet. Even widely respected sources like the American Heart Association and the Mayo Clinic are still singing the praises of the low-fat, high fiber diet. This is an example of the dangers of herd mentality. The lowfat diet is an information cascade that began with scientific studies in the late 40s that correlated high-fat diets with high cholesterol levels. The first leap over the cliff (cascade) was the conclusion that a low-fat diet would prevent heart disease among high-risk patients. The second leap, in the 60s, was the idea that a low-fat diet would be good for everyone. By the 80s, the entire nation had leapt over the low-fat cliff, following the major government and health institutions that were leading the cause. Somehow, the herd failed to recognize that the incidence of obesity became widespread in direct proportion to the adoption of the low-fat diet. And of course, with obesity being a major risk factor for heart disease, the dominance of the low-fat mantra did not bring any improvement in heart health. Approximately 36 percent of all deaths are attributable to cardiovascular disease. What has been conventional medicine’s response? Prescribe cholesterol-lowering statin drugs. Lipitor was, until the beginning of 2012, the best-selling prescription drug in the U.S. Well, guess what? The human body is incapable of having a Lipitor deficiency! This illustrates what is wrong with allopathic medicine. After a study shows that patients with heart disease have high levels of cholesterol, conventional medicine jumps to the conclusion that administering a drug that lowers cholesterol will lower the risk of heart disease. But correlation is not causation. I guess it would have been too much trouble to probe more deeply to find the root cause of both the heart disease and the high cholesterol. Especially if what you find can be reversed by dietary and lifestyle changes—and not by a commercially viable prescription drug. Cholesterol is one of the most important substances in the body. It builds the outer layer of cell membranes, deciding which molecules can enter the cell. It is a major component in the synthesis of hormones, converts sunshine to vitamin D, and metabolizes fatsoluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. Cholesterol is not a bad thing, and indeed, it is quite risky to have low levels of cholesterol. Cholesterol is carried in the blood by lipoproteins (compounds containing both fat and protein). There are three types of lipoproteins: LDL (low density lipoprotein) – Often called “bad cholesterol,” LDL carries cholesterol from the liver to the cells. HDL (high density lipoprotein) – Often called “good cholesterol,” HDL carries cholesterol from the cells back to the liver. Triglycerides – The body converts calories it is not going to use right away to this type of fat. Sugars and starches are the major dietary sources of calories that get converted to triglycerides. The big problem with the low-fat version of any food product is that it is higher in carbohydrates than its natural counterpart. So in an ironic twist, misinformed consumers who are trying to lose weight, lower cholesterol, and reduce heart risk, chooses low-fat products that are high in sugars and starches, which get converted to triglycerides that are stored in the body as fat. Even worse, low-fat items do not produce a feeling of satiety, and often create cravings that lead to overeating. Thus, the well-meaning consumers end up gaining weight and increasing their risk of heart disease. This unfortunate vicious cycle is based on the original false premise that dietary intake of fat is directly correlated to blood lipid levels and coronary risk factors. Avoiding fat will not protect your heart, but avoiding empty carbohydrates will. The agricultural industry illustrates this fact perfectly: to fatten a calf, pig, or steer, they feed it grains. The extreme example is making foie gras by fattening the livers of geese to the point of cirrhosis by forcefeeding them corn. Nevertheless, the USDA’s 2005 “MyPyramid” and 2011 “MyPlate” both recommend grains as the largest portion of a healthy diet. And the new plate is accompanied by a glass of milk! Pay no attention to bad advice that is commercially or politically motivated and not based on science. The real culprit is chronic inflammation Dr. Dwight Lundell, a heart surgeon who performed over 5,000 open-heart surgeries over a 25-year period, says that high cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease. Rather, the presence of high levels of cholesterol is an indication of chronic inflammation, which is the real cause of heart disease. He says, “a diseased artery looks as if someone took a brush and scrubbed repeatedly against its wall.” What causes this damage? An overload of simple carbohydrates (sugar and flour) and an excess of highly processed vegetable oils. The pervasive advice to follow a diet that is low in saturated fats and high in polyunsaturated fats and carbohydrates has put millions of Americans in increased risk of heart disease. “The injury and inflammation in our blood vessels is caused by the low-fat diet recommended for years by mainstream medicine,” Dr. Lundell says. When we eat simple sugars and starches, our pancreas secretes insulin to get the sugar out of the bloodstream and into the cells. If the cells reject the glucose because they already have enough, the sugar molecules attach to proteins that injure the artery walls, causing inflammation. The move away from animal-based saturated fats to vegetable oils like margarine, corn oil, and soybean oil, supposedly for health reasons, has been a disaster. The widespread use of these highly processed omega-6 oils has upset the average person’s balance of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids. Ideally, the ratio would be 1:1 or no more than 1:3. The average American today has a ratio of 1:15. When the balance shifts to an excess of omega-6, cell membranes produce cytokines that cause inflammation. So the best way to improve your diet for heart health is to cut way back on sweets and starches—anything with a high glycemic load—and avoid as much as possible all supermarket oils, margarine, and vegetable shortening. Avoid commercially baked goods and other processed foods, as they are usually high in sugar, flour, and omega-6 oils. Increase your intake of omega-3 oils (flaxseed and fish oil) and fresh fruits and vegetables. Supplements and other nutrients that are especially good for heart health include Co-enzyme Q10, garlic, vitamin B3 (niacin), vitamin C, vitamin D, magnesium, selenium, iodine, cayenne, and hawthorn. Give your heart a workout Even though it’s always working, your heart gets stronger when it occasionally has brief periods of intense demand. Recent research reveals that sustained high-demand exercises like long-distance running actually weaken the heart. So get your heart rate up, but only for a few minutes at a time, followed by longer periods of less intense demand. Mind your heart. Love your mind. The heart has always been considered the center of the emotions. A troubled heart leads very quickly to a troubled body. Every emotion has a biological consequence. Do whatever you need to do, including seeking professional help, to better handle anger, depression, or grief. The more often you are able to feel better, the healthier you will be. Don’t let stress build up and take over your life. Make time in your life to do things that you love. The more you experience love in your life—including loving yourself—the happier you will be, and the happier your heart will be, too.