Does "Snaking" The Heart Really Save Lives?

PCI, also known as angioplasty, is a surgery in which a catheter is snaked into the blood vessels of the heart, usually through an artery in the leg. A small balloon is then inflated to open the artery and a mesh tube called a stent is inserted to help keep the artery open. After evaluating seven years of results, the researchers found that both groups of patients had practically the same number of heart attacks and strokes. The surgery was also no more effective at preventing future cardiovascular events or at reducing the death rate. The only benefit of the surgery over the medication therapies was that it reduced the amount of angina or chest pains. (American College of Cardiology 56th Annual Scientific Session 2007)

One of the best therapies for cardiovascular disease is to change one’s lifestyle. This means quit smoking, increase exercise, improve the diet, and use proper supplements. Bromelain, garlic, vitamins E and C, and omega-3 fatty acids all reduce platelet clotting activity. And a recent study found that tomatoes do so as well. A tomato extract equivalent to six tomatoes was given to 23 healthy volunteers. Platelet aggregation was reduced significantly in just three hours and the effect persisted for 12 hours. It unlikely that you will eat six tomatoes a day, but including tomatoes in your diet along with products like low-sodium V8 juice, tomato paste, and supplements like the tomato extract Lycomato plus other foods and supplements that decrease platelet activity is a good way to accomplish the injestion of more of this nutrient. Remember that one of the biggest culprits that increases platelet activity and contributes to cardiovascular disease is sugar. We know that, in the long run, lifestyle changes and proper nutrition are more effective than the use of drugs and, more importantly, they address the root cause of the problems instead of just the symptoms. By correcting the cause, the opportunity exists, particularly in cardiovascular disease, to actually reverse the damage that has occurred. It is estimated that more than one million PCIs are performed each year in this country.