Turn Up the Ratio
Health Sciences Institute e-Alert
September 21, 2004
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Dear Reader,
Your relative risk of heart attack may be lowered by as much as 80
percent by doing just three things: eating plenty of fruits and
vegetables, getting regular exercise, and avoiding smoking.
That simple bit of information has to be one of the most valuable
results of the new research I told you about in yesterday's e-Alert,
"Waking Up is Hard to Do" (9/20/04). Over the course of a 10-
year study, researchers matched about 15,000 heart attack patients
with approximately the same number of heart-healthy subjects to
examine heart attack risk factors. This was a worldwide study that
included male and female subjects with a wide range of ages,
cultural backgrounds and dietary habits.
The results showed that across the board, the number one heart
attack risk factor is an unacceptable apo ratio. That information
was hailed as ground-breaking by some media outlets. And while it
is significant, it's not really news to us, because long-time HSI
members and e-Alert readers have known about the value of the
apo ratio for nearly three years. And more importantly, they've
known how to address that ratio when it moves into the danger
zone.
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Tipping the balance
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Apolipoprotein is cholesterol's protein component.
ApolipoproteinB (apoB) is the protein found in LDL, and
apolipoproteinA1 (apoA1) is found in HDL. The ideal apoB to
apoA1 ratio is 1 to 2.
In the e-Alert "Learn Your Real Risk of Heart Attack with One
Simple Test" (12/27/01), I told you about a Swedish study in
which researchers tracked more than 175,000 men and women for
about five and a half years. The average age of the subjects was 48.
Researchers measured each participant's total cholesterol, LDL and
HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and concentrations of apoB and
apoA1.
Over the course of the study, 864 men and 359 women died from
heart attacks. When researchers compared the blood profiles of
these heart attack victims to the remainder of the participants, they
found that an unacceptable apo ratio was the strongest predictor of
heart attack death among all of the markers studied, and they were
the ONLY markers that remained consistent over all age groups.
Men with the highest levels of apoB AND the lowest levels of
apoA-1 were nearly FOUR TIMES as likely to have a fatal heart
attack than those with opposite values. Women with similar ratios
had three times the risk.
Most importantly, the predictive power of the apo ratio was seen
even when total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides
were within normal ranges.
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The best defense
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Shortly after I sent you that 2001 e-Alert, I asked HSI Panelist and
medical advisor Martin Milner, M.D., for his advice on improving
apo ratio. In the e-Alert "Three Simple Steps to Reduce Your Risk
of Heart Attack" (1/28/02), Dr. Milner told us about the health
factors he feels are most important for bringing apo ratio into line:
diet, lifestyle and supplement intake.
Dr. Milner recommends these dietary guidelines:
* Add more vegetables to your diet � a minimum of three to five
servings per day
* Avoid all refined carbohydrates, as well as carbs with a high
glycemic index
* Add more fiber to your diet (such as organic ground flax seeds or
psyllium)
* Garlic, onions, shallots and ginger can help manage
inflammation, as well as cholesterol
* Overall, aim for a diet of 30 percent protein, 50 percent
carbohydrate and 20 percent fat
As for lifestyle changes, Dr. Milner recommends daily exercise
that includes 30 minutes of aerobic exercise every other day.
Exercise also relieves stress, which is another heart health risk
factor. Dr. Milner notes that if you need more help managing
stress, "try meditation, deep breathing, hiking in the woods, taking
a bath by candlelight - anything that helps you relax and unwind."
And this is the list of supplements that Dr. Milner recommends to
help achieve an ideal apo ratio:
* 200 mcg of chromium daily
* 1 to 5 mcg of vanadium, three times daily
* 50 to 200 mg of alpha lipoic acid, three times daily
* 2 to 6 grams of fish oil daily
* 300 mg l-carnitine two to three times a day
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Revealing the ratio
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In the 2001 e-Alert, I told you about a comprehensive blood test
that Dr. Milner uses in his practice to measure heart attack risk
factors, including C-reactive protein, fibrinogen (a globulin that
affects blood coagulation), homocysteine, total cholesterol, HDL,
LDL and, of course, apo ratio. The test is called the
Comprehensive Cardiovascular Report (CCR), and it's available
from Great Smokies Diagnostic Laboratories (GSDL).
Talk to your doctor about requesting the CCR test from Great
Smokies. Physicians can find out more by calling GSDL at 1-800-
522-4762, or by visiting the web site at gsdl.com. You can also
contact the lab directly and ask for a referral to a registered
provider in your area. After the test is completed and returned to
GSDL, you'll receive a full report that provides your score on each
important marker and a clear explanation of what your scores
reveal about your risk of heart disease.
>From there, you and your health care provider will be able to plan
a realistic course of action to keep your heart as healthy as
possible.
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Is Your Cholesterol High Enough?
That�s right�get your cholesterol way over 200� Take naps instead
of running laps� Refuse to eat 5 to 10 servings of vegetables
everyday!
Surprised? That�s just a taste of how shockingly satisfying real
health can be. Next time anyone nags you to give up your favorite
things, turn the tables and ask:
Are you getting enough sun to prevent the world�s most dreaded
cancers?
Are you exercising so hard that it�s hardening your arteries?
Are you drinking so much water that it�s watering down your memory?
Are you eating enough eggs & bacon to ward off macular degeneration?
Got Arthritis? Guess what! This animal fat reversed the damage in 24
hours.
Believe it or not, you can live long and love it! Find out why Dr.
William Campbell Douglass �take back your life� crusade is raising
a rebellion in the halls of medicine - and claim your 5 free gifts!
http://www.youreletters.com/t/60202/3786805/644887/0/
(if you can't open here use the HTML links listed below)
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...and another thing
I've got a brain-teaser for you.
Bayer Aspirin is running an advertisement that claims no other
aspirin brand has prevented more heart attacks than Bayer.
Now here's the brain-teaser: Just how do you measure heart attacks
that have been prevented? That's like estimating the number of
earthquakes California HASN'T had.
This riddle is really a trick question. I'm guessing the logic goes
like this: In 1900, Bayer became the first aspirin available in tablet
form. Since then, Bayer has sold more aspirin than any other drug
company. So theoretically, no other aspirin has done more of
anything than Bayer Aspirin has.
Based on that logic, Bayer might also claim that no other aspirin
has prevented more terrorist attacks, or sold more cars, or won
more Olympic medals than Bayer has.
Sadly, using even that logic, I can't say I've won more Olympic
medals than any other Jenny Thompson.
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute
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(if you can't open here use the HTML links listed below)
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To start receiving your own copy of the HSI e-Alert, visit:
http://www.hsibaltimore.com/ealert/freecopya.html
Or forward this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to
receive their own copy of the HSI e-Alert.
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Sources:
"High Apolipoprotein B, Low Apolipoprotein A-I, and
Improvement in the Prediction of Fatal Myocardial Infarction
(AMORIS Study): A Prospective Study" The Lancet, Vol. 358,
No. 9298, 12/15/01, thelancet.com
"Effect of Potentially Modifiable Risk Factors Associated with
Myocardial Infarction in 52 Countries (the INTERHEART Study)"
The Lancet, Vol. 364, No. 9438, 9/11/04, thelancet.com
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<a href="http://www.youreletters.com/t/60202/3786805/644887/0/";>Is Your Cholesterol
High Enough?</a>
<a href="http://www.youreletters.com/t/60202/3786805/641924/0/";>"JUST ONE DROP DID
IT"</a>
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