Guest guest Posted August 10, 2004 Report Share Posted August 10, 2004 > " HSI - Jenny Thompson " > <HSIResearch > Heart Luck Story > Tue, 10 Aug 2004 18:26:18 -0400 > > Heart Luck Story > > Health Sciences Institute e-Alert > > August 10, 2004 > > ************************************************************ > > Dear Reader, > > Are you getting enough folate? > > In yesterday's e-Alert ( " Laughing Matter " 8/9/04), I > told you about a > study that jumped to the dubious conclusion that > folate may create > problems for patients who have undergone angioplasty > to open a > narrowed artery for a stent implant. But any > implication that folate > is somehow bad for you couldn't be further off the > mark. > > The fact is, if you are getting enough folate, > you're fortunate > because it's doing your overall health a world of > good. But if you're > not, then I'll tell you how to increase folate > intake, and why your > heart will likely be in much better shape if you do. > > > --------------------------- > > Kuopio contradictions > --------------------------- > > > First we'll go to Kuopio, Finland, where researchers > examined data > from the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor > Study. > > As reported in this month's issue of the American > Journal of Clinical > Nutrition, the Kuopio team analyzed nearly eight > years of general > health and dietary data collected on more than 1,000 > men during the > 1990s. The men ranged in age from 46 to 64. None of > the men had > coronary artery disease when the data collection > started in 1991. > > Two striking results were noted. 1) When subjects > who had the highest > blood serum folate concentrations were compared to > subjects with the > lowest folate levels, the men with the highest were > found to have 65 > percent lower risk of an acute coronary event, such > as heart attack or > stroke. And 2) Elevated homocysteine levels were not > associated with > increased risk of acute coronary event. > > The second result is somewhat surprising because it > contradicts a > number of studies that have shown high homocysteine > to be an > independent risk factor for heart disease and > coronary events. For > instance, just last year, researchers in Israel > reported in the > journal Stroke on an eight-year study of more than > 3,000 patients who > were at high risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). > They concluded that > total serum homocysteine concentration is, " a strong > predictor for > incident ischemic stroke among patients at increased > risk because of > chronic CHD. " > > But while the Kuopio study seems to challenge the > Israel conclusion > (as well as other reliable research) there was one > subgroup for which > homocysteine was an important factor: Cigarette > smokers with high > homocysteine had almost twice the risk of coronary > events compared to > smokers who had low homocysteine levels. > > --------------------------- > > Folate shopping list > --------------------------- > > > As I noted in yesterday's e-Alert, homocysteine > levels may be > effectively lowered when folate is taken with > vitamins B-6 and B- 12; > a combination referred to as " folate therapy. " The > idea behind this > therapy is simple. This set of nutrients prompts the > metabolism of > homocysteine (an amino acid), which brings the level > down. > > That's the idea anyway. It doesn't work quite that > easily for > everyone. Nevertheless, it's obviously a good idea > to try to > incorporate folate-rich foods into your diet, > especially because this > important nutrient has also been shown to reduce the > risk of colon > cancer, hip fracture, and birth defects (when folate > levels are > sufficient in women of childbearing age). > > According to the FDA, these foods deliver high > folate concentrations: > > Chicken Liver: 3.5 oz. contains 770 micrograms (mcg) > Braised Beef > Liver: 3.5 oz. contains 217 mcg Lentils: ½ cup > (cooked) contains 180 > mcg Asparagus: ½ cup contains 132 mcg Spinach: ½ cup > (cooked) contains > 131 mcg Kidney Beans: ½ cup contains 115 mcg Orange: > A medium size > contains 47 mcg > > My favorite item on the FDA list: " Fast-Food French > Fries. " A large > order apparently contains 38 mcg of folate. So > somewhere out there, > someone may be super-sizing their order of fries, > recalling that the > FDA singled it out as a good source of folate. > > You can't make this stuff up. > > --------------------------- > > Mixing up a folate cocktail > --------------------------- > > > In the e-Alert " The B List " (2/2/04), HSI Panelist > Allan Spreen, M.D., > told us that low doses of folic acid (the synthetic > form of folate) > aren't effective except in a small percentage of > cases. He recommends > 1.6 mg per day, although he believes that a dosage > closer to 5 mg is > better for those who want to address cardiovascular > problems. > > Unfortunately, folic acid is only available in very > low doses of 0.8 > mg (800 mcg), as mandated by the FDA. Dr. Spreen > explains: " That's all > from the conventional medical dogma that folate can > mask a vitamin > B-12 deficiency if you take too much folate and zero > B-12. " So... take > more B-12. Problem solved! Dr. Spreen recommends 1 > mg of B-12 per day > in sublingual form. > He also suggests that to get the most out of folate, > 100 mg per day of > B-6 is necessary, as well as 400-500 mg of magnesium > per day to make > the B-6 more effective. > > ************************************************************ > ...and another thing > > If you dash out the door and into the street to meet > the ice cream > truck, but there's no truck in sight... then you > just might have > tinnitus. > > I don't mean to make light of this condition > (characterized by a > constant ringing in the ears), because we receive > frequent questions > about tinnitus, like this one from an HSI member > named Carol: > > " I wondered if you could tell me some help for > tinnitus? " > > Sure can, Carol. I'll start with a 2002 study in > which German > researchers tested ginkgo biloba against a drug > called pentoxifylline, > which improves blood flow and sometimes improves > hearing. Seventy-two > patients who had recently experienced sudden hearing > loss were > randomly assigned to receive either 200 mg of ginkgo > biloba or 300 mg > of pentoxifylline each day for 10 days, both via > infusion. Forty-one > percent of the ginkgo group and 39 percent of the > drug group reported > tinnitus at the outset of the study. > > After 10 days, both groups showed similar gains in > hearing. (The > gingko group's hearing improved an average of 13.4 > decibels, while the > pentoxifylline group improved an average of 12.4 > decibels.) But the > gingko group reported marked improvement against > tinnitus. On average, > patients taking gingko reported greater decreases in > the severity of > their tinnitus symptoms compared to the > pentoxifylline subjects. And > overall, patients gave gingko higher efficacy scores > than the > medication on a five-point rating scale. > > In addition to ginkgo biloba, an HSI member named > Hoggman posted a > comment about tinnitus on the HSI Forum. Hoggman > says that his > " extreme case " was helped enormously by the > combination of a > low-carbohydrate diet, along with supplements of > CoQ10. > > Tinnitus is a topic that pops up frequently on the > HSI Forum. To read > what other members have to say about treating this > annoying condition, > just go to our web site at www.hsibaltimore.com, > choose " Forum " from > the menu, and then search with the key word > " tinnitus. " > > And, Carol, please let us know if you have success > with any of these > suggestions. > > To Your Good Health, > > Jenny Thompson > Health Sciences Institute > > > > Sources: > > " Serum Folate and Homocysteine and the Incidence of > Acute Coronary > Events: The Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk > Factor Study " American > Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 80, No. 2, > August 2004, > ncbi.nlm.nih.gov > " High Serum Folate Levels Associated with Greatly > Reduced Acute > Coronary Event Incidence " Life Extension Foundation, > 7/30/04, lef.org > " Prospective Study of Serum Homocysteine and Risk of > Ischemic Stroke > Among Patients With Preexisting Coronary Heart > Disease " Stroke, Vol. > 34, No. 3, 3/1/03, stroke.ahajournals.org > " How Folate Can Help Prevent Birth Defects " FDA > Consumer, July 1996, > fda.gov > > Copyright ©1997-2004 by www.hsibaltimore.com, > L.L.C. The e-Alert may > not be posted on commercial sites without written > permission. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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