DR. BARBARA O'NEILL: People with high cholesterol don't get Alzheimer's. Do you need a moment of silence to digest that one?

OMG they lied to us about cholesterol levels too? pic.twitter.com/6nmxEIFCRT

— Bruce Porter Jr.  (@NetworksManager) August 2, 2024

The brain is the fattiest organ in the body.  If you start taking anti-cholesterol medicines, like statins, you're risking dementia.  Good luck with that one, sparky. 

According to the authors of The Great Cholesterol Myth, men on statins have between a 250-700% increase of impotence from the statins.

If you see him again, you might mention that according to the authors of The Great Cholesterol Myth, men on statins have between a 250-700% increase of impotence from the statins.

If that doesn't scare any man off statins, I don't know what will. pic.twitter.com/O0yEVHuPpH

— Sparrow (@jeanpartington3) May 18, 2024

The Great Cholesterol Myth, Revised and Expanded: Why Lowering Your Cholesterol Won't Prevent Heart Disease--and the Statin-Free Plan that Will, Johnny Bowden and Stephen T. Sinatra, 2020.

Bears hibernate for around 6 months and live on their own body fat for those 6 months. Their cholesterol during that period of time goes up over 400 mg per decimeter, but they never get cardiovascular disease . . .

Why is our glucose demand high in the context of exercise?  We see that our cells need a lot of energy.  We're running from a bear or something like that we're not sitting there going,  "Oh, I better slow down because my glucose is high."  No.  We are running for our lives so there is a reason for glucose to be high so that we have that immediate fuel available to us for that particular situation.  --Dr. Shawn Baker

WHY you have high cholesterol may be very important!!! pic.twitter.com/I7MrBC5vED

— Dr Shawn Baker 🥩 (@SBakerMD) March 24, 2024

Blood glucose from the last week, March 18th to 24, 2024.  Throughout most of the day, it's running high 70s, low 80s and there is this period of time when it gets up slightly over a hundred.  Again this is an average over 7 days.  

Can anyone guess what time of day I have been working out? #carnivore #cgm pic.twitter.com/be5lTv00LK

— Dr Shawn Baker 🥩 (@SBakerMD) March 24, 2024

Why is it up over 100?  What's going on there?  I will tell you that's when I exercise, and when I exercise my blood glucose goes up.  Is that a bad thing, right, because we have often been told that we want to keep our blood glucose relatively low, and if it goes up during exercise is that problematic or is there a reason for that.  In fact, we know that, for instance, world class athletes will see, and this has been recorded now is CGM data, that world class athletes during intense competition will sometimes see their blood glucose reach in excess of 400 milligrams per deciliter, astronomically high glucose levels.  And yet they tend to be very healthy right they tend to not be diseased or have diabetes or anything like that so there is a reason for blood glucose to be elevated. For example, when you're sick, when you have stress, your blood glucose will elevate.  There's a flight or fight response: there is a reason for your blood glucose to be elevated.  When we're sick, the elevation of blood glucose actually can have a beneficial role in that it simulates certain immune cell that are more efficient in that high glucose environment at least temporarily. 

Why is our glucose demand high in the context of exercise?  We see that our cells need a lot of energy.  We're running from a bear or something like that we're not sitting there going.  "Oh, I better slow down because my glucose is high."  No.  We are running for our lives so there is a reason for glucose to be high so that we have that immediate fuel available to us for that particular situation.  There are good reasons now for situationally higher blood glucose levels.

So let's look at lipids, blood lipids, things like free fatty acids.  One thing that we notice is that when lipids are high that cholesterol will be high.  Very often they run together because they traffic in often the same molecules or the same lipoproteins.  Again let's use the bear as an example.  Bears hibernate for around 6 months, five to seven months on average.  What are bears eating during hibernation?  Well, they're sleeping, so they're not eating anything; well they're eating their own body fat.  What do they do before hibernation?  They eat a bunch of food.  They eat a lot of fruit and fish.  They get big and fat, then they live on their own body fat for the next 6 months.  And what happens to their cholesterol during that period of time well it goes up high it goes up over 400 mg per decimeter.  Believe it or not, they went into a bear's den and tested hibernating bears and they found that they have super high cholesterol the entire 6 months.  Why is that?  They break down body fat that is then recycled through the liver and sent back to the other tissues that need it--the muscles, the brain, the heart, the lungs, the intestines, and so forth.  So they're transferring high amounts of energy but it's coming from the peripheral fat and then being processed through the liver and with this high cholesterol guess what, do bears develop cardiovascular disease?  No, there's never been a case of bears developing cardiovascular disease.  They just don't get heart disease.  

We see similar things going on in humans.  A good example would be when I'm not consuming carbohydrates, but I am storing body fat and then transiently using it right away on a low-carb diet where I'm relatively lean, my cells require energy so we're just trafficking more fat.  These are examples where high blood glucose levels may not be pathologic.

04:18. Where this may not be pathologic you know less contrast let's contrast that to another situation where I'm full my cells are stuffed full of glycogen their stuff full of triglycerides fatty acids they're stuffed to the brim and then when I eat there's literally no more room to show anymore it hangs out in the blood.  So we have high energy in the blood glucose, perhaps fats and cholesterol.  In that situation, then we start to see pathology.  Again somewhat speculative in this but I think it makes sense it matches the observations remember we see in the low carb cohort population there is a meta-analysis of randomized control trials 41 randomized control trials showing that lean people on low-carb diets traffic more fat in their blood.  Now, again the real question is going to be is this going to be pathological?  My suspicion is that it will be found to not be.  

Cholesterol is required everywhere in the brain as an antioxidant, an electrical insulator (in order to prevent ion leakage)

Cholesterol is required everywhere in the brain as an antioxidant, an electrical insulator (in order to prevent ion leakage), --Marion Holman

3/3 in the brain. If your Doctor wants to prescribe Statins to you or anyone you care about, then I recommend you change your doctor! If you believe that Nature would create a natural substance for humans called 'bad cholesterol' then with the greatest of respect you are deluded. pic.twitter.com/zhh9WWLrKg

— Marion Holman (@holmanm) November 26, 2023

Eat a tablespoon butter, you may absorb 15 mg (tiny measure). Our bodies require 1200-1800 mg daily. Butter everything!

“Absorption of cholesterol is slower, less complete than that of other lipids; about ½ of the cholesterol is lost…” -- Michael Gurr, PhD, lipid biochemist
[Eat a tablespoon butter, you may absorb 15 mg (tiny measure). Our bodies require 1200-1800 mg daily. Butter everything! pic.twitter.com/POaX6TFVE4

— Alan Watson (@DietHeartNews) August 13, 2023

"Women with cholesterol between 190 and 300, outlive women with lower cholesterol"

Woman with cholesterol between 190 and 300, outlive woman with lower cholesterol

I recognized the cholesterol lie in 1971. Why would God put cholesterol in every cell in the body and it would be bad for us??

Answer. It makes no sense, another Pharma fallacy!! https://t.co/ScsMeNBNBi

— Dr. Urso (@richardursomd) April 30, 2023

CHOLESTEROL REPAIRS BRAIN TISSUE

I don't know all the details involved in why damaged tissue responds so well to cholesterol, but the findings so far are extremely interesting.  My one concern is that if someone begins consuming large amounts or larger amounts of certain kinds of cholesterol, will that produce kidney stones or gallstones? Therein lies at least one caveat.  But it does seem to be the case that a high intake of cholesterol foods is excellent for repairing the brain and other tissue. When we think of the brain, it's important to remember the layers of tissue, the substructure so to speak of the net of neurons and dendrites.  For these to have a place to implant themselves, the brain tissue not only has to be intact but it has to have the necessary building blocks for the nerves, brain tissue, dendrites, myelin sheath, and so forth.  One report on Alzheimer's brain repair says

Cholesterol acts to interlock 'lipid molecules,' which stabilize cell membranes," writes Shane Ellison, M.S., in his book Health Myths Exposed.  "Cholesterol is a vital building block for all bodily tissues.  Lowering such a vital molecule is absurdity.  To illustrate, imagine that your house represents your body and the nails holding it together cholesterol.  Now start pulling each and every nail out of  the houes.  What happens?  The house turns to a pile of rubble.  The same is true for the human body." 

Again, my biggest problem with popular health and nutrition literature is its literacy and wording to the point of absurdity and meaninglessness.  When the above writer offers the analogy of "imagine that your house represents your body and the nails holding it together cholesterol," that is such a terrible analogy because nails don't contain any biological chemistry that interacts with the cells, fluids, or hormones.  It only seems to have the effect of reducing the importance of cholesterol.  It doesn't inspire; it only redirects and diverts meaningful results and conclusions.  It's only when he ends his point by saying "The same is true for the human body" that leaves me only shaking my head.  I've never read such a bad analogy.  I mean that was absolutely bush league, 3rd-grade stuff.  Terrible.  "The same is true for the human body"?  Aside from the appalling lack of high school vocabulary, the logic is missing.  Disappointing.  

Lots of questions.  One, which food that is high in cholesterol should one consume?  Any food high in cholesterol?  Doubtful about that.  Shrimp is high in cholesterol.  Seafood in general has a fortifying effect.  Is this why?  Perhaps.  A nice halibut or salmon fillet will fix people right up.  But is this all?  Or does a person need another supplement with it, say, like Vitamin C or Vitamin B? Do these nutrients exist in some small quantity in a piece of fish, say, from the plankton?  Anyway, cholesterol is necessary, perhaps even vital for tissue repair.  So if you're into contact sports or your son is, be sure to feed him fish.  Regularly.  So that his muscles and organs repair in good fashion.  

So, we know that cholesterol is important for health and strength. Knowing this, how can anyone be on a steady prescription of statins that breaks down cholesterol and the tissues that it supports? 

What this all means for statin drugs, which mainstream medicine has ridiculously dubbed 'miracle drugs,' is that their cholesterol inhibiting properties can cause serious health problems down the road.  By interfering with the liver's natural function of producing cholesterol, statin drugs can actually strip the body of much-needed cholesterol, and cause serious nervous system and cognitive damage.  

CHOLESTEROL & STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY

You would expect the folks at Weston A. Price to defend the use of cholesterol in the repair of the brain or any other tissue in the body. And so they do; in this case, Natasha Campbell-McBride points to the role of structural integrity that cholesterol plays in your body,

First of all, saturated fats and cholesterol make the membranes of the cells firm—without them the cells would become flabby and fluid. If we humans didn’t have cholesterol and saturated fats in the membranes of our cells, we would look like giant worms or slugs. And we are not talking about a few molecules of cholesterol here and there. In many cells, almost half of the cell membrane is made from cholesterol. Different kinds of cells in the body need different amounts of cholesterol, depending on their function and purpose. If the cell is part of a protective barrier, it will have a lot of cholesterol in it to make it strong, sturdy and resistant to any invasion. If a cell or an organelle inside the cell needs to be soft and fluid, it will have less cholesterol in its structure.

This ability of cholesterol and saturated fats to firm up and reinforce the tissues in the body is used by our blood vessels, particularly those that have to withstand the high pressure and turbulence of the blood flow. These are usually large or medium arteries in places where they divide or bend. The flow of blood pounding through these arteries forces them to incorporate a layer of cholesterol and saturated fat in the membranes, which makes it stronger, tougher and more rigid. These layers of cholesterol and fat are called fatty streaks. They are completely normal and form in all of us, starting from birth and sometimes even before we are born. Various indigenous populations around the world, who never suffer from heart disease, have plenty of fatty streaks in their blood vessels in old and young, including children. Fatty streaks are not indicative of the disease called atherosclerosis.  

A couple of good points here.  One, "Different kinds of cells in the body need different amounts of cholesterol, depending on their function and purpose."  That's important.  It's an important defense against the more sweeping "cholesterol is bad for you arguments" that we are used to hearing.  Two, it makes us aware that different organs and tissues in our body use cholesterol differently and in different amounts.  So don't worry about cholesterol.  In fact, cholesterol should be thought of as your friend.  The other point I liked was that cholesterol and saturated fats . . . firm up and reinforce . . . tissues in the body."  That bodes well for repair, don't you think? 

MYELIN: VITAL BRAIN MATTER?

Fascinating stuff. 

One of the most abundant materials in the brain and the rest of our nervous system is a fatty substance called myelin. Myelin coats every nerve cell and every nerve fiber like the insulating cover around electric wires. Apart from insulation, it provides nourishment and protection for every tiny structure in our brain and the rest of the nervous system. People who start losing their myelin develop a condition called multiple sclerosis. Well, 20 percent of myelin is cholesterol. If you start interfering with the body’s ability to produce cholesterol, you put the very structure of the brain and the rest of the nervous system under threat.

The synthesis of myelin in the brain is tightly connected with the synthesis of cholesterol. In my clinical experience, foods with high cholesterol and high animal fat content are an essential medicine for a person with multiple sclerosis. One of the most wonderful abilities we humans are blessed with is the ability to remember things—our human memory. How do we form memories? By our brain cells establishing connections with each other, called synapses. The more healthy synapses a person’s brain can make, the more mentally able and intelligent that person is. Scientists have discovered that synapse formation is almost entirely dependent on cholesterol, which is produced by the brain cells in a form called apolipoprotein E. Without the presence of this factor we cannot form synapses, and hence we would not be able to learn or remember anything. Memory loss is one of the side effects of cholesterol-lowering drugs.

In my clinic, I see growing numbers of people with memory loss who have been taking cholesterol- lowering pills. Dr Duane Graveline, MD, former NASA scientist and astronaut, suffered such memory loss while taking his cholesterol pill. He managed to save his memory by stopping the pill and eating lots of cholesterol-rich foods. Since then he has described his experience in his book, Lipitor: Thief of Memory, Statin Drugs and the Misguided War on Cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol in fresh eggs and other cholesterol-rich foods has been shown in scientific trials to improve memory in the elderly. In my clinical experience, any person with memory loss or learning problems needs to have plenty of these foods every single day in order to recover.

Finding the right foods, and by right I mean healthy foods, that are also high in cholesterol can be a challenge.  I just searched online and the sites that show up early in a Google search were mixed, combining all foods that are high in cholesterol whether good or bad.  For example, I saw chocolate chip cookies and baked muffins in the same article on foods high in cholesterol with beef liver and shellfish, both of which are good for you if your goal is tissue repair.  Not all high-cholesterol foods are created equal.  It also had hamburgers, macaroni and cheese, and fried chicken.  Well, there are benefits and detriments to each food.  I would stay away from the fried chicken, especially commercially fried chicken like Kentucky, Church's, Popeye's, and others.  Chicken fried at home not so bad.  Chicken is good.  You get meat that comes with its own bones.  The nutrients in the bones are good.  Think homemade chicken soup.  

FOODS HIGH IN CHOLESTEROL
1.  Eggs.
2.  Shrimp.
3.  Raw Cow's Butter.
4. 

Functions of Cholesterol

Cholesterol is the mortar used to fortify cell membranes. It provides the stiffness and stability they need to work.

Our hormones are made from cholesterol. Estrogen, testosterone and a host of other hormones necessary for function are produced from cholesterol. Corticosteroids, the hormones that protect the body from stress and protect the functioning of the immune system, are made from cholesterol.

The brain and nervous system depend upon cholesterol for both the creation of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine and their ability to attach to receptors.

Cholesterol is necessary to produce vitamin D–low levels of which have been linked to depression and heart disease.

Bile salts, necessary for the breakdown of carbohydrates, fats, and protein, are created with cholesterol.

Cholesterol helps maintain the intestinal wall, protecting the body from inflammation and exaggerated immune response.

Mother’s breast milk is 60% cholesterol. It is necessary for the development of the infant’s brain and nervous system. Recommendations to limit fat and cholesterol in the diets of young children resulted in increased infant mortality.

Cholesterol is the cavalry of the immune system. When damage and inflammation occur in blood vessels, cholesterol rushes to the site to make repairs and protect membranes. Cholesterol acts as an antioxidant to protect cells and tissue from free radical damage.

"Sleep . . . organiz[es] . . . and keep[s] permanent newly learned skills and memories."

Thanks to Robert Wenzel

This was a terrific presentation.  His steps for learning new material was pretty good.  So was his 6 Steps to a Better Memory.

What follows are my notes from the presentation:

Cortisol stops all neurons from developing.  Coritsol is that hormone that we produce when we're stressed out, injured, or cannot sleep.  If your work situation is producing any of these and your coworkers enjoy watching you being stressed out, it's probably not a good idea to remain at that foul and fetid place.  Stress decreases the hippocampus.  Wow.  So it literally shrinks your brain. That was interesting and horrible.  

Be aware of how you react to stress.  Avoid counterproductive stress. Good advice but I wonder how much of this is a constant in everybody's work week.  Exercise and sleep both combat sleep.  True that, true that.  

Why is sleep so important?  Sleep is where the brain reviews and organizes things that happened to your in your day.  It's where the excess and unessential things gets discarded.  Part of a dialogue between your hippocampus and cerebral cortex and the rest of the brain where all of the new information and skills are stored.  If you don't sleep, then all of the new things you learn will be gone tomorrow.  Consolidate new information with good sleep.  Helps to keep your memories permanent. Sleep disruptions are common in aging and disease.  It's why we see memory impairments.  Even a short afternoon naps can improve memory retention. Stabilizing, organizing, optimizing, and keeping permanent newly learned skills and memories.  be helpful for beginning to consolidate new information.  

Socializing is important.  Friends help fill in gaps in memory.  They can also reassure us that we are young at heart.

Living alone doubles the risk for dementia markers.  Why are other people good for us?  Be with people who don't cause us stress.  Talking, interacting, having a conversation, all of this keeps us healthy and alive.

Friends are part of what keeps our memories young.

Eat light and healthy.  Ah, yes.  Food remedies.  Eat light and healthy.  Couldn't be more accurate!

1.  Exercise regularly.

2.  Keep mentally active.  

3.  Avoid unproductive stress.

4.  Get a good night's sleep.

5.  Socialize with others.  For those people who cause you stress, either keep interaction with them to a minimum, remove yourself completely, or give it back to them good and hard.

6.  Eat light and healthy.

His point about avoiding saturated fats and high cholesterol foods is flat out wrong.  This is part of the standard American commercial diet.  Truth is that saturated fats and high cholesterol foods are not only healthy for you but essential in fighting disease and aging, the two factors he mentions earlier that impair sleep.  Cholesterol fights inflammation.  It is vital for life.  Coconut oil and coconut butter, a saturated fat, is awesome for health.  See Dr. Mary Enig for thorough reviews on its benefits. One heart surgeon told me that he takes 2 teaspoons of coconut oil every morning for heart health. Not only does coconut oil fortify the heart, it also helps your kidneys function better.  What is not to like!!

CHOLESTEROL COMBATS INFLAMMATION & WORKS TO QUELL IT

Supplements for Coronary Artery Disease

By Donald W. Miller, Jr., MD

April 25, 2015

"Cholesterol combats inflammation and works to quell it."

My wife recently went to see her doctor for a checkup. A blood test showed that her cholesterol, the calculated low-density lipoprotein one, was elevated. Though feeling well, her doctor ordered a coronary calcium scan, taking into account the fact that she has a family history of heart disease (her father died from a heart attack when she was 12 years old).  Quite unexpectedly her calcium score was quite high. The score one wants to have on a CT (computed tomography) coronary calcium scan is 0, which indicates no evidence of coronary artery disease (CAD). A score of 1-10 gives minimal evidence of CAD, 11-100 is mild evidence, 101-400 moderate evidence, and a score over 400 is extensive evidence indicating the presence of coronary artery disease. My wife’s coronary calcium score was over 400.

Her doctor recommended that she start taking a statin right away (along with an 81 mg baby aspirin). This all happened right after I had submitted a paper titled “Fallacies in Modern Medicine: Statins and the Cholesterol-Heart hypothesis” for publication in the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons. (It has undergone peer review, been accepted for publication, and will be in the Summer 2015—Volume 20, Number 2—issue of this journal.)

My research into this subject and many years spent performing and teaching heart surgery has convinced me that the cholesterol theory of heart disease is wrong, and statins do more harm than good.

Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease. My colleague, the late Russell Ross, a professor of pathology at the University of Washington, showed that dysfunction of endothelium, the inner lining of arteries, brought on with or without some form of injury (e.g., from smoking), starts what is called atherosclerosis. Immune cells—macrophages and T lymphocytes—mediate the ensuing inflammatory response to this dysfunction. An integral part of their response is to promote the proliferation and migration of smooth muscle cells. Russell demonstrated that atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory and fibroproliferative process that is fundamentally no different than that seen in cirrhosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic pancreatitis.

Cholesterol does not cause it. Heart surgeon Michael DeBakey and his team 52 years ago found no correlation between blood cholesterol levels and severity of atherosclerosis in 1,700 patients undergoing surgical treatment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. I have observed the same thing with my heart surgery patients.

Heart-healthy food: steak and eggs,

Cholesterol combats inflammation and works to quell it. (Blaming cholesterol for atherosclerosis is like blaming firemen for the fire they have come to put out.) Statins are very effective at lowering cholesterol, but whatever benefits they may have, however small, in dealing with atherosclerosis comes from their anti-inflammatory effects.

This is in my (soon-to-be-published) article on statins and cholesterol:

“Lovastatin (Mevacor), the first statin, is a naturally occurring molecule isolated from a fungus named Aspergillus terreus. Newer statins are synthetic variations of these mycotoxins that fungi produce. Fungi make statins, as a “secondary metabolite,” to kill predatory microbes. They also kill human cells. In a review of [the book, published in 2012] How Statin Drugs Really Lower Cholesterol and Kill You One Cell at a Time by James and Hannah Yoseph, Peter Langsjoen writes:

Many practicing physicians have a healthy understanding of the current level of corruption and collusion among big pharmaceutical companies, governmental agencies such as the NIH and FDA, and major medical associations such as the American Heart Association, but the reader of this book will come away with the disturbing conclusion that it is even worse than imagined. Statins may be the perfect and most insidious human toxin in that adverse effects are often delayed by years and come about gradually. Further, statins frequently impair mental function to such a degree that by the time patients are in real trouble, they may lack the mental facilities to recognize the cause.

The last thing I want my wife to do is to take a statin. Fortunately, there are a number of nutritional supplements that also have anti-inflammatory effect like that of statins—and without their adverse effects. Other supplements, like vitamin D and vitamin K2 spawn (vitamin D) and activate (vitamin K2) a protein that sucks calcium out of blood vessels. Others, like omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E (the natural d-alpha tocopherol, not the synthetic dl-alpha form), and gingko biloba decrease platelet adhesiveness (makes them less sticky), thin the blood, and improve blood flow.

These are the supplements I have my wife taking for her newly diagnosed coronary artery disease (along with a multivitamin supplement which has vitamins B6, B9-folic acid, B12, and vitamin A):

Supplements (all obtainable through Amazon):	How many a Day
Omega-3 fatty acids: 425mg EPA, 270 mg DHA in Super EPA (Thorne)…….	2
Vitamin C: 1000 mg, Lyco-Spheric Vitamin C packets (LivOn Labs)……….	2
Vitamin E:
Ultimate E—mixed tocopherols (Thorne)………………………	2
Unique E Tocotrienol (A.C. Grace)……………………………	1
Alpha lipoic acid: 100 mg, as R-Lipoic Acid (Thorne)………..……………	3
Coenzyme Q10: 100 mg, Q Best (Thorne)…………………….……	2
Magnesium: 135 mg, Magnesium Citramate (Thorne)………………	3
Selenium: 100 mcg in Pic Mins +
Zinc: 15 mg in Pic Mins (Thorne)……..…………………………….	2
Curcumin: 500 mg in Meriva 500 (Thorne)………………………….	4
Quercetin: 250 mg, Quercetin Phytosome (Thorne)…………..……..	3
Gingko Biloba: 120 mg (Natrol)……………………………………………..	2
Vitamin D: 10,000 IU (Thorne)……..……………………………….	1
Vitamin K2 (Menaquinone-7): 90 mcg (Jarrow Formulas)…….……..	2
Resveratrol: 100 mg as Poly-Resveratrol-SR (Thorne)……..……….	2
.

Their Physiologic Mechanisms of action:

Omega-3 fatty acids: Among other things, the Omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA prevent heart disease (and cancer). EPA thins the blood. Both EPA and DHA regulate the expression of many genes involving antioxidant capacity, oxidative stress response, and ones that produce chemicals which reduce inflammation and improve blood flow through the coronary arteries.

NETWORK ANTI-OXIDANTS:

Vitamin C: Along with its role as an antioxidant, vitamin C reduces the level of the inflammation-causing C-reactive protein (CRP) and thus helps prevent/quell inflammatory atherosclerosis. Vitamin C is an essential cofactor for protein synthesis, notably collagen, which makes up 25 percent of the proteins in the body and is the structural component of connective tissue in blood vessels, bone, teeth, cartilage, ligaments, and skin. (In its role as an electron donor, vitamin C transfers electrons to iron. The iron in enzymes that make collagen transfers its vitamin C-supplied electron to oxygen, thereby enabling it to combine with hydrogen as a hydroxyl [-OH] group. Hydroxyl groups attach to the amino acids in collagen, forming cross links that give this protein its tensile strength.)  Vitamin C in the form selected here, packed in lyposomal nano-spheres, is very highly absorbable.

Vitamin E: As an antioxidant vitamin E protects cell membranes by extinguishing various singlet oxygen and polyunsaturated fatty acid radicals. Vitamin E helps reduce high levels of the inflammation-causing proteins, CRP and interleukin-6 (IL-6), which play a role in causing atherosclerosis. The Ultimate E supplement contains all four tocopherols—d-alpha, gamma, beta, and delta (gamma tocopherol neutralizes free radicals that the alpha form cannot douse). It contains natural d-alpha tocopherol, which works better than synthetic dl-alpha-tocopherol, the most common form of vitamin E  found in multivitamin supplements. The d-alpha form makes platelets less sticky, whereas platelets cannot absorb the dl-alpha synthetic kind. The Unique E Tocotrienol supplement contains the delta and gamma forms of tocotrienol.

Alpha Lipoic Acid: Reduces the risk of atherosclerosis. It is soluble in both fat and water and is one of the most powerful antioxidants in the body. In addition, it restores the other network antioxidants when oxidized (vitamin C, vitamin E, coenzyme Q10, and glutathione) back to their functional, reduced antioxidant state. ALA aids glucose entry into cells, improves insulin sensitivity, and reduces the risk of diabetes. It also plays an integral role in producing the energy molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP), feeding pyruvate from the glycolytic cycle into the Krebs cycle.

Coenzyme Q10: A strong antioxidant that removes oxidized low-density lipoproteins (LDL), a leading culprit in atherosclerosis. The body synthesizes it but in insufficient quantities, especially in people who take statins to lower cholesterol. CoQ10 also plays a critical role in mitochondrial energy production and is a required ingredient in the electron transport chain that produces ATP through oxidative phosphorylation.

MINERALS:

Magnesium: A deficiency in magnesium can cause angina, from spasm of the coronary arteries; high blood pressure; and heart rhythm disturbances, including sudden death. Some 80 percent of the enzymes in the body require magnesium in order to function.

Selenium: Bound to cysteine in place of sulfur and called the “21st amino acid,” selenocysteine is the active site in some 35 proteins. Glutathione peroxidase, which plays a major role in free radical defense and combating inflammation contains four selenium atoms. Plasma selenoprotein P protects endothelial cells against damage, including those susceptible to injury lining the coronary arteries.

Zinc: A constituent of more than 3,000 different proteins in the body, studies show that a lack of zinc leads to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease by triggering inflammation and lowering levels of protective compounds that guard against atherosclerosis.

BOTANICALS:

Curcumin: An orange-yellow curry spice that comes from turmeric root, curcumin suppresses inflammation by down-regulating nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kB), a transcription factor concerned with intensifying the inflammatory response.  (The small benefit that statins offer with atherosclerotic CAD is derived from their anti-inflammatory effect, especially on their ability to downregulate NF-kB. Curcumin does the same thing without having any of the adverse effects that statins have.) Curcumin also blocks eicosanoid synthesis of inflammatory leukotrienes, prostaglandins, and thromboxanes derived from arachidonic acid. It is also an antioxidant. In the supplement used here, Meriva 500, curcumin is complexed with phosphatidylcholine for superior bioavailability.

Quercetin: This bioflavonoid prevents oxidation of LDL cholesterol in blood vessel walls. Quercetin inhibits inflammation in a way different from that of curcumin, which makes it worthwhile taking both together. It inhibits the delta-5-lipooxygenase enzyme, which initiates the production of inflammatory eicosanoids. (Quercetin also inhibits tumor initiation and growth.)

Ginkgo Biloba: Extracted from the 200 million-year-old maidenhair tree (the oldest living tree species on earth), ginkgo biloba thins the blood and decreases platelet adhesiveness, like aspirin, without the side effects that aspirin has. Ginkgo biloba increases blood flow through the body, especially in the heart and brain. Like curcumin (and statins), it suppresses inflammation by inhibiting NF-kB. (Ginkgo biloba also improves mental functioning and memory in older people and may well exert a protective effect against developing Alzheimer’s dementia and Parkinson’s disease.)

Others:

Vitamin D: Controls the expression of more than 1,000 genes throughout the body, notably in endothelial cells making up the delicate inner layer of blood vessels. Vitamin D also expresses genes that blunt the immune system-mediated inflammatory response that propagates atherosclerosis and congestive heart failure.

Vitamin K2: Calcium deposits in the walls of blood vessels play an active role in the formation of atherosclerosis. K2 activates the protein called “matrix Gla (carboxyglutamic acid) protein ” by carboxylating the glutamate residues in matrix Gla protein, enabling it to bind and remove calcium from blood vessels and thus prevent the formation atherosclerotic calcific plaques. Vitamins D and K2 work together in this regard because vitamin D expresses the gene that makes matrix Gla protein. (Vitamin K comes in two forms, K1 and K2. K1 is a cofactor for blood coagulation; and K2, in addition to activating matrix Gla protein, activates osteocalcin, a protein secreted by osteoblasts that plays a role in bone mineralization and calcium ion hemostasis.) Menaquinone-7 is the natural form of vitamin K2, which is better than synthetic menaquinone-4, the more widely marketed form of vitamin K2.

Resveratrol: It controls the expression of more than 100 genes, including Sirtuin 1, the DNA-repair “survival” gene. Notable among its effects, resveratrol is a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent, suppressing transcription factor NF-kB, like statins. It also plays a role as a COX inhibitor and normalizes blood sugar. Resveratrol protects the endothelium of arteries from oxidative free radical damage, and it helps protect the production of nitric oxide, a critical chemical produced by endothelium that keeps blood vessels dilated.

The cost of these 15 supplements, produced by Thorne Research, LivOn Labs, AC Grace Company, Natrol, and Jarrow Formulas, comes to $14.65 a day. Purchasing lowest-cost alpha lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10, magnesium, curcumin, quercetin, vitamin D, and resveratrol on Amazon drops the price to $6.88 a day, which is not much different than the $5.98 cost of Crestor (rosuvastatin, 40 mg/day), the most widely prescribed statin.

There is no good substitute for lyco-spheric vitamin C, since it is by far the best-absorbed form of orally-administered vitamin C. Regarding vitamin E, the investment in Thorne’s Ultimate E mixed tocopherols, (or AC Grace’s equally good Unique E tocopherols), and AC Grace’s Unique E Tocotrienol is well worth it. In these preparations, the natural forms and relatively full spectrum of this vitamin brook no substitute. Thorne’s curcumin (in Meriva 500) and quercetin (as Quercetin Phytosome) also have added value in their being very well absorbed. An equally good (if not better) alternative to Thorne’s Resveratrol (as Poly-Resveratrol-SR) at the same price is the resveratrol Longevinex produces. It can be purchased online at www.longevinex.com (Amazon does not carry it).

Ideally, health care agencies would fund a long-term randomized trial comparing these 15 supplements (made by these manufacturers) with a statin, and aspirin, for people with atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. But with no patents in the offing such a study will never be done. Nevertheless, there is sufficient evidence to justify taking the supplements I have listed here and avoiding statins, with their negligible benefit and wide spectrum of adverse effects.

High-quality Thorne Research and LivOn vitamin C supplements are fairly expensive. I view them as an important investment in my wife’s health.

(The author has no relationship, financial or otherwise, with the supplement companies named here.)