Scientist and Doctor Matthis Rath had a study published in 1996 which involved scanning fifty-five patients over a 12 month period to look at the growth in their arterial calcium deposits. This was done using an Ultrafast CT. Then the patients were asked to take a broad spectrum nutritional supplement for the next year with scans taken at six months and twelve months.
Six months after taking supplements the growth of deposits had slowed. At the one year scan they had slowed considerably. The average growth of deposits before taking nutritional supplements was 44%. One year after taking supplements, growth had virtually stopped. Deposits had even reversed and disappeared in some patients. This study demonstrated that heart disease could be reversed.
Supplementation had four objectives. To keep the artery wall stable, to decrease muscle tumors, to neutralise fat molecule stickiness and to proved protection with antioxidants.
Stabilize Artery Walls
Artery walls are given stability by the connective tissues. Vitamin C is vital in its production. The amino acids lysine and proline are also required. Supplementation should consist of about 600mg of vitamin C and at least 100mg of each amino acid per day.
Reduce muscle cell tumours
Artery muscle cells may form faulty connective tissue if they don't receive enough vitamin C and vitamin E.
Neutralise stickiness
Lipoprotein (a) is a dangerous fat transport molecule. Sticky molecules of protein can attach to them, be deposited and build up inside the artery walls. This stickiness can be neutralised with lysine and proline. Molecules already attached can be released, so reversing the disease process. To lower lipoprotein (a) requires high doses of vitamin B3 (nicotinic acid) and ascorbic acid.
Antioxidant protection
Free radicals damage lipoproteins in the bloodstream, as well as tissue in the artery walls. A large number of nutrients and food factors have antioxidant activity and are an important part of any supplement programme.
By focusing on these 4 objectives, the heart disease patient has a good chance of stabilising or even reversing his or her condition.
Absolutely.
Today, I'm going to introduce you to my friend and colleague, Dr. Dean Ornish. Thirty years ago, he bravely made the radical suggestion that heart disease, cancer, and other chronic illnesses can be reversed with diet and lifestyle changes.
That's reversed -- not just prevented or treated.
In his breakthrough book, Reversing Heart Disease, Dr. Ornish explained just how this is possible: Eat a high-quality diet, get regular exercise, manage stress, and connect to a community -- and you can actually unclog your arteries.
In fact, he proved that his program works better than conventional approaches like drugs or surgery -- and without dangerous side effects.
Now Dr. Ornish has published a new, even more compelling book, The Spectrum -- and it's filled with scientific details about why the program works and how to make it your own.
What's the secret?
Nutrigenomics.
That's the name for the way that food talks to your genes and controls your health. When your genes are expressed well, you're healthy. Disease occurs when your genes are expressed poorly.
And the quality of the food you eat has huge effects on your health.
It matters whether you eat whole, real food, or processed, high-sugar, and high-fat food, for example.
In The Spectrum, Dr. Ornish tells you how and why choices like these can make a difference in whether we're healthy or sick.
But it isn't a one-size-fits-all approach.
Dr. Ornish believes -- as I do -- that the future of medicine is personalized medicine. And in The Spectrum, he explains how to match your genes and your health needs by customizing your diet and lifestyle.
If you were a 25-year-old athlete with no family history of heart disease, your approach would be different from a 65-year-old man who has type-2 diabetes and has had two heart attacks.
He also shows us that there's a spectrum of choices for being healthy and feeling great. There are no "good" or "bad" foods -- it's the overall way that we eat and live that matters.
Dr. Ornish gets past all of the nutrition confusion out there and tells you the truth: that our genes were meant to be fed a diet of whole, unprocessed foods.
A Groundbreaking Pioneer
He didn't know it, but Dr. Ornish was the first researcher and practitioner of functional medicine, more than 30 years ago.
He was the first person to suggest that addressing the roots of illness not only helps prevent disease, but reverses it -- and more effectively than conventional treatment.
That's just what functional medicine is. It's a system that addresses the underlying causes of illness by understanding the interaction between your genes and your environment.
And it's what Dr. Ornish talks about in The Spectrum.
His roadmap for good health shows us how to increase energy, lose weight, improve mood, feel more connected to your own life's purpose and meaning, and even have better sex.
It's a recipe for feeling your best.
I have a lot of respect for Dr. Ornish. He wanted to make his program accessible for everyone, but for that to happen, it has to be reimbursed by insurance.
So he asked Medicare to fund a demonstration project based on the research in major medical he'd already published in major medical journals.
But it wasn't so easy.
They told him that, before they'd find the project, he needed approval that it was safe.
Of course, Dr. Ornish's lifestyle plan is much safer than heart surgery or angioplasty or medications with severe, damaging side effects -- and much less expensive.
Still, he needed a letter from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute saying it was safe to eat fruits and vegetables, walk, meditate, and quit smoking!
But he persevered and his program is now approved. Dr. Ornish is also creating an international research collaboration to grain even more understanding about why food is the best medicine.
And his book isn't just helpful, it's enjoyable.
He shares his story with wit and humor, keen intelligence, and lots of tools for successfully implementing his ideas.
These tools include clear nutrition guidance, guided meditations by his wife Anne (with an additional DVD included), an exercise prescription, and more than 100 wonderful, delicious life-giving recipes by a master chef.
So I urge you to get your hands on The Spectrum now and see what you think. It truly is life-changing.
Both Michael Sellar & Mark Hyman Md are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Michael Sellar has sinced written about articles on various topics from Health, Vitamin Supplements and Disease & illness. A longer version of this article can be found on the author's website which includes lot's of others on holistic medicine as well as practitioners including