Daily Walnuts to reduce LDL Cholesterol, Cardiovascular Disease

An August 2021 study by the Lipid Clinic at the Endocrinology and Nutrition Service of the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona in Spain said, 

• “Prior studies have shown that nuts in general, and walnuts in particular, are associated with lower rates of heart disease and stroke. One of the reasons is that they lower LDL-cholesterol levels, and now we have another reason: they improve the quality of LDL particles,” 

• “LDL particles come in various sizes. Research has shown that small, dense LDL particles are more often associated with atherosclerosis, the plaque or fatty deposits that build up in the arteries. Our study goes beyond LDL cholesterol levels to get a complete picture of all of the lipoproteins and the impact of eating walnuts daily on their potential to improve cardiovascular risk.”

• “While this is not a tremendous decrease in LDL cholesterol, it’s important to note that at the start of the study all our participants were quite healthy, free of major non-communicable diseases. However, as expected in an elderly population, close to 50% of participants were being treated for both high blood pressure and hypercholesterolemia. Thanks in part to statin treatment in 32%, the average cholesterol levels of all the people in our study were normal,” 

• “For individuals with high blood cholesterol levels, the LDL cholesterol reduction after a nut-enriched diet may be much greater.”

• “Eating a handful of walnuts every day is a simple way to promote cardiovascular health. Many people are worried about unwanted weight gain when they include nuts in their diet,” 

• “Our study found that the healthy fats in walnuts did not cause participants to gain weight.”

Plant-based dinners and heart disease

A May 2021 study by Harbin Medical University in Harbin, China said,

"Meal timing along with food quality are important factors to consider when looking for ways to lower your risk of heart disease. Our study found people who eat a plant-based dinner with more whole carbs and unsaturated fats reduced their risk of heart disease by ten percent," 

"It's always recommended to eat a healthy diet, especially for those at high risk for heart disease, but we found that eating meat and refined carbs for breakfast instead of dinner was associated with a lower risk."

Exercise, depression, heart health

A June 2021 study by RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences said,

• "Depression is common in patients with coronary artery disease. Having both conditions can have a significant impact on the quality of life for patients so it is vital that they access to the most effective treatments,”

• "Our study indicates that exercise is likely to be the best treatment for depression following coronary artery disease. Our findings further highlight the clinical importance of exercise as a treatment as we see that it improves not only depression, but also other important aspects of heart disease, such as lowering blood pressure and cholesterol, in these patients."

• "We continue to see emerging evidence of the importance of lifestyle to treat disease - in comparison to other treatments - but further high-quality research is needed. People with coronary heart disease who have symptoms of depression should talk to their doctor about treatments that are most suitable for their personal needs, and clinicians can be confident of recommending exercise to their patients."

Heart Health: Stair climbing

A May 2021 study by McMaster University found that, 

• "Brief, vigorous stair-climbing and traditional moderate intensity exercise both changed fitness, which is a key predictor of mortality after a cardiac event,"

• "We've shown stair-climbing is a safe, efficient and feasible option for cardiac rehabilitation, which is particularly relevant during the pandemic when many people don't have the option to exercise in a gym,"

• "These patients who had undergone a coronary bypass or stent procedure had muscle that was compromised, compared to age-matched healthy controls," 

• "Even in just a short period, whether it was moderate intensity, continuous training or high-intensity stair climbing, there were beneficial adaptations in muscles after a cardiac procedure," Phillips says. "The improvements were clear."

Omega-3 fatty acids and heart health

A July 2021 study from Brigham and Women's Hospital and elsewhere said

"This meta-analysis provides reassurance about the role of omega-3 fatty acids, specifically prescription EPA”

It should encourage investigators to explore further the cardiovascular effects of EPA across different clinical settings."

Physical activity, cardiovascular health, rheumatism

An April 2021 article by University of São Paulo's Medical School said,

"Our analysis of the results showed that exercise improved small and large vessel endothelial function to a clinically significant extent. Accordingly, we suggested that exercise can be considered 'medication' for these patients because of its potential to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events,”

"Treatment doesn't prevent patients from developing certain co-morbidities. Cardiovascular disease is the most worrisome,”

"The risk of heart attack is twice as high for people with rheumatoid arthritis as for healthy people. For people with lupus or psoriatic arthritis, the incidence of ischemic events [heart attack, angina and stroke] is between twice and five times as high." 

"It all begins with changes in blood vessel structure and function," 

"The arteries gradually harden and stop being able to dilate when necessary. Changes occur above all in the endothelium [the layer of cells lining the interior surface of blood vessels]. Alterations in vascular function, especially endothelial function, are considered initial markers of atherosclerosis for this reason."

"This area [physical activity in rheumatology] is still new, so more research is needed to identify the best exercise protocols and investigate such aspects as safety and adherence," 

"In any event, the data in our study underlines the importance of regular exercise to prevent and treat cardiovascular disease in these patients."

Heart Attack Diagnosis

An April 2021 study by First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, said, 

"We analyzed circulating metabolites in blood plasma samples from cardiac chest pain patients, including heart attack cases and other cardiac chest pain cases, to identify potential markers for heart attack diagnosis and early warning," 

"Such markers could be helpful in confirming heart attack in a timely manner when angiography is unavailable."

"Even after accounting for other cardiac risk factors such as hypertension, smoking and diabetes history, the metabolites deoxyuridine, homoserine and methionine scored highly as potential diagnostic and risk markers of heart attack.” 

Shift working and Heart Health

An April 2021 study by the University of Lisbon said,

"Our study found that for each hour the work schedule was out of sync with an employee's body clock, the risk of heart disease got worse," 

"We all have an internal biological clock which ranges from morning types (larks), who feel alert and productive in the early morning and sleepy in the evening, to late types (owls), for whom the opposite is true - with most of the population falling in between. Circadian misalignment occurs when there is a mismatch between what your body wants (e.g. to fall asleep at 10pm) and what your social obligations impose on you (e.g. work until midnight)."

"These results add to the growing evidence that circadian misalignment may explain, at least in part, the association found between shift work and detrimental health outcomes. The findings suggest that staff with atypical work schedules may need closer monitoring for heart health. Longitudinal studies are needed to investigate whether late chronotypes cope better with late/night shifts and earlier chronotypes to early morning schedules, both psychologically and physiologically."

Heart patients: Mobility is key to reducing risks

An April 2021 study by Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands said, 

"Previous research showed that improvements in physical activity are beneficial to health. However, those studies were performed in the general population. In our study, we were interested to see if there were similar effects in individuals with cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes.”

"Our study suggests that to prevent heart attacks and strokes and boost longevity, healthy individuals should maintain their physical activity levels, while those with risk factors need to become more active. The associations we found were even more pronounced in people who were relatively sedentary at the start of the study, indicating that inactive people have the most to gain.”

"If you are currently sedentary, walking is a good activity to start with. If you are already hitting the recommended amount, try doing 10 minutes more each day or increasing the intensity."

Cocoa, heart health, stress

A March 2021 study by University of Birmingham said, 

"We found that drinking flavanol-rich cocoa can be an effective dietary strategy to reduce temporary impairments in endothelial function following mental stress and also improve blood flow during stressful episodes”.

"Flavanols are extremely common in a wide range of fruit and vegetables. By utilizing the known cardiovascular benefits of these compounds during periods of acute vascular vulnerability (such as stress) we can offer improved guidance to people about how to make the most of their dietary choices during stressful periods."

"Our findings are significant for everyday diet, given that the daily dosage administered could be achieved by consuming a variety of foods rich in flavanols - particularly apples, black grapes, blackberries, cherries, raspberries, pears, pulses, green tea and unprocessed cocoa. This has important implications for measures to protect the blood vessels of those individuals who are more vulnerable to the effects of mental stress,"

Exercise and Peripheral Artery Disease

An April 2021 study by Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine said, 

"We've shown you have to walk to elicit ischemic leg pain to reap the benefits,"  

"It will lessen over time, and most people eventually will be able to walk further without discomfort."

"Perhaps for people with Peripheral Artery Disease, the exercise promotes growth of new small blood vessels to their muscles," 

"Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease should be advised to walk for exercise at a pace that induces ischemic leg symptoms in order to get a benefit,”

"Exercise is the most effective non-invasive therapy to improve walking in people with Peripheral Artery Disease."

Heart Disease and Diabetes

An April 2021 study by Bichat-Claude Bernard Hospital, France, said, 

"Obesity and lack of exercise are common risk factors for both diabetes and heart disease and our results highlight the urgent need to improve nutrition and raise activity levels globally," 

"Countries worst affected by diabetes are also at the epicentre of the obesity epidemic, which can be in part attributed to urbanisation and associated changes in physical activity and food intake."

"Diabetes was linked with worse outcomes even in areas with the lowest prevalence. In Europe, for instance, diabetes was linked with a 29% greater risk of the combined outcome of heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death. This indicates that management of these very high-risk patients with heart disease and diabetes should be improved. Each country needs to identify these patients and provide tailored educational and prevention programmes."

"The importance of healthy eating and living cannot be overemphasised. Everyone can lower their chances of developing diabetes with weight control and exercise, and early detection is needed so that blood sugar can be controlled. Those with heart disease and diabetes also need an active lifestyle and a good diet to protect their health. Avoiding smoking is crucial, as is controlling blood pressure and cholesterol levels."

Gum disease and blood pressure

A March 2021 study at University College London Eastman Dental Institute found, 

"Patients with gum disease often present with elevated blood pressure, especially when there is active gingival inflammation, or bleeding of the gums," 

"Elevated blood pressure is usually asymptomatic, and many individuals may be unaware that they are at increased risk of cardiovascular complications. We aimed to investigate the association between severe periodontitis and high blood pressure in healthy adults without a confirmed diagnosis of hypertension."

“[The] evidence indicates that periodontal bacteria cause damage to the gums and also triggers inflammatory responses that can impact the development of systemic diseases including hypertension," 

"This would mean that the link between gum disease and elevated blood pressure occurs well before a patient develops high blood pressure. Our study also confirms that a worryingly high number of individuals are unaware of a possible diagnosis of hypertension."

"Integration of hypertension screening by dental professionals with referrals to primary care professionals and periodontal disease screening by medical professionals with referrals to periodontists could improve detection and treatment of both conditions to improve oral health and reduce the burden of hypertension and its complications. Oral health strategies such as brushing teeth twice daily are proven to be very effective in managing and preventing the most common oral conditions, and our study's results indicate they can also be a powerful and affordable tool to help prevent hypertension."

Exercise and blood pressure

A March 2021 study by the University of Basel said, 

• "The goal of the recommendations … is primarily to lower blood pressure," 

• "Ultimately, through blood pressure reduction, we can reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and death from cardiovascular disease - thereby spending more years of life in good health."

• "In people with hypertension, the blood pressure reduction that can be achieved with aerobic exercise is the same, or even slightly more, than taking a single antihypertensive medication," 

• "People with normal blood pressure, but who are at raised risk of developing hypertension, may be particularly motivated to keep their levels down," 

• "Obese individuals are very likely to develop high blood pressure if obesity persists over the years. Healthy individuals with a hypertensive parent are also at risk of developing high blood pressure, as are women who had high blood pressure during pregnancy (gestational hypertension). People in these groups can postpone or even prevent hypertension by exercising."

• "For most exercises, the blood pressure lowering effect lasts for about 24 hours, similar to medication, so it's best to be active every day if possible."

Tea and weight loss

Another study on the benefits of tea. This time, a March 2021 publication by the University of Tsukuba said, 

• "Like all teas, oolong contains caffeine, which impacts energy metabolism by increasing our heart rate. However, studies suggest that tea consumption may also increase the breakdown of fat, independent of the effects of caffeine," 

• "The stimulatory effects of oolong tea on fat breakdown during sleep could have real clinical relevance for controlling body weight. However, we need to determine whether the effects we observed in the 2-week study translate into actual body fat loss over a prolonged period. In addition, we want to trial a decaffeinated oolong tea to better distinguish the effects of caffeine from other components of tea, which will help us understand exactly how oolong helps with fat breakdown."

Beta-blockers, depression and sleep disturbances

A March 2021 study by the American Heart Association concerning, “The possible mental health side effects of beta-blockers [which] have been the subject of discussion in the scientific community for many decades," 

“…our results showing beta-blockers are not the cause of so many of these negative side effects are quite consequential."

“Our results indicate that concerns about adverse mental health events, especially depression, should not affect the decision about beta blockers. Beta-blockers are mostly safe regarding psychological health," 

"We found no indication of an association between beta-blocker use and depression. The same was true for most of the other mental health symptoms, as reported in the studies that were included in our analyses. However, sleep-related symptoms such as unusual dreams or insomnia did emerge during beta?blocker therapy for some patients."

"Patients with a history of cardiovascular events such as a heart attack or stroke were prone to develop psychological complications. Though we found beta-blockers were not causally linked, these patients should be monitored."

Green Tea, Black Tea: reducing hypertension

A study published in March 2021 by the University of California found that, “simply by drinking tea we activate its beneficial, antihypertensive properties."

Exhaustion a risk factor for Heart Attack

A March 2021 study by the Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Novosibirsk, Russian Federation found that where there is vital exhaustion - “excessive fatigue, feelings of demoralisation and increased irritability," there is an increased risk of heart attack in men. The study said,

• "It is thought to be a response to intractable problems in people's lives, particularly when they are unable to adapt to prolonged exposure to psychological stressors."

• "Living alone indicates less social support, which we know from our prior studies is an independent risk factor for myocardial infarction and stroke."

• "The relationship of exhaustion with threatening cardiovascular events should be taken into account when assessing risk,”

• "Efforts to improve well-being and reduce stress at home and at work can help reduce vital exhaustion. Involvement in community groups is one way to increase social support and become less vulnerable to stress. Together with a healthy lifestyle, these measures should be beneficial for heart health."

Treatment for type-2 diabetic heart disease

In a very interesting March 2021 study by the University of Otago it was said,

• "Based on the results of laboratory testing, we identified the number of microRNAs that are impaired in stem cells of the diabetic heart”

• "Among several microRNAs we identified that one particular microRNA called miR-30c - which is crucial for the stem cells' survival, growth and new blood vessel formation - is reduced in the diabetic stem cells. All these functions are required for stem cell therapy to be successful in the heart.

• "Importantly, we also confirmed that this microRNA is decreased in the stem cells collected from the heart tissue of the patients undergoing heart surgery at Dunedin Hospital.”

• A "simple injection” “…resulted in significantly improving the survival and growth of stem cells in the diabetic heart,"

• "This fascinating discovery has newly identified that impairment in the microRNAs is the underlying reason for the stem cells being not functional in the diabetic heart. More importantly, the results have identified a novel therapy for activation of stem cells in the heart using microRNA, without the need to inject stem cells, which is a time and cost consuming process."

• "Apart from identifying the reasons for poor stem cells function in a patient with diabetes, the novel therapy of using microRNA could change the treatment method for heart disease in diabetic individuals."

• "Our initial analysis revealed that there might be another four potential candidate microRNAs. Therefore, it is essential to test the function of those microRNAs as well. It may be possible that combination therapy with more than one microRNA could further increase the beneficial effects."

Perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT) - Artery Fat, Useful

A February 2020 study by Michigan State University looked at the fat around the arteries - perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT). It was thought that the main purpose of artery fat was just to store lipids.

The researchers said, "For years, we ignored this layer - in the lab it was thrown out; in the clinic it wasn't imaged. But now we're discovering it may be integral to our blood vessels."  They found that it, “reduced the tension that blood vessels experience when stretched … And that's a good thing, because the vessel then expends less energy. It's not under as much stress."

"Our finding redefines what the functional blood vessels are and is part of what can be dysfunctional in diseases that afflict us, including hypertension. We need to pay attention to this layer of a blood vessel because it does far more than we originally thought."