Diet dramatically effects progression of heart failure, study finds

Sunday, September 29, 2013 by: L.J. Devon, Staff Writer
Tags: DASH diet, heart failure, beet juice

(NaturalNews) A new cardiovascular study from the University of Michigan is looking beyond modern western medicine. Pharmaceutical drugs for hypertension just aren't the long term answer, as many researchers look to dietary needs to solve heart health problems.

The new study looks in a more holistic direction, finding answers in dietary needs instead of symptom cover-ups.

The research, presented at the Heart Failure Society of America meeting in Orlando, Fla., shows how specific dietary measures can dramatically lower hypertension and improve heart function in people prone to a common type of heart failure.

DASH Diet plan shows promise by boosting potassium intake, reducing sodium

The low-sodium DASH eating plan (Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension) was implemented in patients for 21 days. In those three weeks, patients experienced a drop in blood pressure similar to current anti-hypertension medicines. Prompt and effective, the eating plan showed positive results without the side effects.

The patients, many in their 60s and 70s, agreed to stick to a specific meal plan set up for them at the metabolic kitchen at the University of Michigan Clinical Research Unit. They all shared a common disposition to a specific kind of heart failure. During their stay, they kept journals documenting their heart health improvements.

The diet plan allowed no more than 1150 milligrams of sodium a day, a 75 percent decrease from standard American diet sodium intakes which hover around 4,000 milligrams of sodium per day.

The DASH eating plan also included high intakes of potassium, magnesium, calcium and antioxidants.

After 21 days, all the elder patients saw improvement in left ventricular relaxation and a drastic reduction in diastolic chamber stiffness. There was a significant increase in efficient blood transfer between heart and arteries.

Studies like these make hypertension medications look like a scam

At drugs.com, there is list of over 200 hypertension medications marketed by pharmaceutical companies. Since diet plays such an important role in heart disease prevention, why do drugs like these even exist? Is the whole list a farce? Why are there so many? Are they just fall backs? Why aren't more people and doctors looking beyond these patchwork drugs and forward, toward real dietary solutions? How has the quest for profit on health destroyed real health care and blinded allopathic doctors from giving real dietary advice?

Simple adjustments in dietary habits can obviously change the entire course of quality living.

Has the general consensus become apathetic, allowing an industry to come in and spoon feed them pills?

These are the tough questions people must face if they want to go back to real affordable health care, for the future of health care does not lie in the hands of pharmaceutical "science." The future is rooted in the awakening to the powers of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, enzymes, probiotics etc. Unadulterated, nutrient-rich whole foods are positive powerhouses for human organs and body systems.

Beet juice - A super food for heart health and beyond

Another study, similar to the DASH diet study, shows how athletes who drink beet juice see significant increases in efficient blood transfer between heart and arteries. In the study, which is from the University of Exeter, regular consumption of beet juice increased athletes' exercise capacity by 16 percent.

Exeter Ph.D. student Katie Lansley says, "As you get older, or if you have conditions which affect your cardiovascular system, the amount of oxygen you can take in to use during exercise drops considerably. What we've seen in this study is that beetroot juice can actually reduce the amount of oxygen you need to perform even low-intensity exercise."

Going right along the lines of the DASH diet, beets provide a promising source of antioxidant phytonutrients called betalains. Exhibiting anti-inflammatory properties, betalains lessen the strain, helping relieve hypertension. Packed with folate, manganese, fiber, magnesium and potassium, beets are right up the alley of the DASH diet and are leading the way for people seeking real, natural heart health healing alternatives. The phytonutrients in beets take health to a whole new level, boosting the body's Phase 2 detoxification process, assisting the cells during metabolic processes to help the body remove unwanted toxins.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.uofmhealth.org

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.drugs.com

http://www.whfoods.com

http://science.naturalnews.com

http://science.naturalnews.com