NORTH FORK, CA – Problems with the heart and blood supply were relatively rare in 1900, and are now the number one killer worldwide.  Heart attacks account for 15% of total deaths per year in the US.  About 10% of people who have a heart attack will die from it.

Why are our hearts failing?  The big factors are dietary changes and a less natural life.  We are indoors, sedentary, and stressed.  To cope, we smoke, drink, and take recreational drugs.  We are also exposed to many chemical and electromagnetic toxins that did not previously exist.

What Causes a Heart Attack?

The medical system teaches that a myocardial infarction (medical lingo for heart attack) happens when blood flow to part of the heart muscle suddenly becomes blocked.  This theory has been championed since the 1940’s and 1950’s.  It has been repeated so often that everyone is sure that this is what causes heart attacks, even the average person on the street.  But when this theory was first proposed, most cardiologists did not agree with it.  Many at that time considered the clot found in the arteries to be a consequence of acute myocardial infarction, not its cause.

The current popular theory goes that atherosclerosis (plaque on the artery walls) builds up over many years.  This plaque becomes unstable and ruptures, and the body forms a blood clot.  This clot blocks the artery and stops the blood flow to that part of the heart, causing the heart attack.

For many years dietary cholesterol and saturated fat were blamed for the plaque build-up in the arteries.  How and why this theory got adopted is another story for a later time.  Suffice it to say this has been fully discredited, and the current food guidelines reflect this.  The plaque is formed due to damage to the artery lining.  Many things may cause this damage.  Currently popular possibilities include toxin exposures (smoking, air pollution, and other chemicals), high blood sugar, high blood pressure, chronic inflammation, and high blood levels of LDL.  Then there is further debate over what causes these things.  Does LDL damage the artery, or is it there to repair it?  It is thought that inflammation can come from obesity, smoking, poor sleep, stress, and diabetes.   But then, what causes these?  Your primary care doctor is more likely to give you a drug or procedure than truly help you unravel your personal risks and what to do about them.

But I digress.  The purpose of this article is to question the theory of what causes an acute heart attack.  I do not agree with the current explanation that a blockage causes the heart attack.

 Questioning the sacred cow

The fact that heart disease kills so many people today is a testament to the failure of modern medicine and the quality of our modern lives.  First, drugs, stents and coronary artery bypass surgery are not “curing” heart disease.  These procedures have never even been shown to prevent future heart attacks or lengthen people’s lives.  The only thing they do is stop the chest pain, and even this benefit is short-lived.  In a study called the ORBITA trial, half the people with chest pain got a stent, and the other half did not.  Chest pain was equal in the two groups after 6-12 weeks.

Next, have you ever wondered why we only get heart attacks and brain attacks (stroke)?  Atherosclerosis occurs in many arteries of the body.  Why don’t we get liver attacks, or spleen attacks?  After all, the blood and the arteries are the same throughout the body.

Here is another perspective that argues against the blocked artery theory as the cause of heart attacks.  Cardiac catheterization is a procedure used to perform an angiogram.  A dye is injected, and images are taken as it flows through the coronary arteries.  These images are famous for showing the severe blockages in the main coronary arteries.  What it does not show are the small, collateral vessels.  However, with careful observation during the live procedure one can see that the coronary arteries are filling beyond the blockage.  This is indicating that the blood supply is provided by the collateral circulation, and does not depend on going through the stenosis.  Complete blockage of this stenosis will not cause a heart attack.  This helps explain why stents and coronary artery bypass surgery are not helpful to prevent future heart attacks.

Next, the work of Italian cardiovascular pathologist Giorgio Beroldi is also very enlightening.  He did autopsies on thousands of people who died of a heart attack, and found that only 41% had a blockage of any significance leading to the part of the heart that had the heart attack.  Furthermore, he stated he was sure at least half of those blockages came after the heart attack, and not before.  And a blockage has still not been proven to be the cause of death for the other 20%, only that they had one.  He wrote a book about his findings in 2004, “The Etiopathogenesis of Coronary Heart Disease”.  He also confirmed the role of collateral circulation as protection.

I have come to believe the coronary artery stenosis theory is wrong, as the above information indicates.  It is more likely that the blockages are a consequence, not the cause of a heart attack.  A proven alternative theory does not have to exist to disprove the current one.  We still don’t know for sure exactly what does cause acute heart attacks.  But let’s look at an alternative theory.

Alternative Theory

The “myogenic theory” offers another possibility for the cause of acute myocardial infarction.  This theory proposes that heart attacks begin with failure of the heart muscle itself.  This idea was introduced by Brazilian cardiologist, Quintiliano de Mesquita in 1972.    His book is “Myogenic Theory of Myocardial Infarction” (1979).  He also was aware of the issues raised above that question the thrombosis theory.  According to his theory:

• Physical or emotional stress overworks vulnerable areas of the heart muscle
• Those areas lose their ability to contract properly, reducing blood flow within the heart muscle.  The heart cannot stop as other muscles can.
• This can lead to build-up of metabolic waste products that damage the heart tissue, resulting in what we call a heart attack
• Blood clots and blocked arteries are often a consequence of the heart attack, and not the original cause

Again, an astute reader might ask, what causes areas of the heart muscle to be vulnerable?  This is an excellent question, and not the scope of this article.

Dr Mesquita had been in practice for thirty-one years and had found all treatments for unstable angina to be failures.  He learned that several doctors in the early 1900’s had used cardiotonics with remarkable results in the treatment of both stable angina and acute MI, and this treatment was still being used in Germany.  He began using the cardiotonic Strophanthus with amazing success.

Stress and the Heart

Many risk factors for heart disease are associated with autonomic nervous system dysfunction and an overactive sympathetic system (flight or fight response).  These risk factors include hypertension, obesity, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, heart failure, and chronic stress.  This stress response leads to elevated stress hormones, which studies show are connected to unstable angina and myocardial infarctions.

There are many things that can help people with heart problems, especially having better emotional regulation.  Other lifestyle choices that are very important include diet, sunshine, grounding to the earth, breathing clean air, restorative sleep, movement, and good relations.  All of these support your entire health, including your heart.

How Do Cardiotonics Help?

A cardiotonic is a substance that increases the strength of the heart’s contractions, helping the heart function more effectively.  Cardiac glycosides are cardiotonic, and examples include Digitalis and Strophanthus.  Different kinds of cardiac glycosides have been used for both their medicinal and toxic properties throughout history.

Strophanthus is a plant native to tropical Africa, Madagascar and Southeast Asia.  The seeds contain a cardiac glycoside compound called ouabain.  A traditional herbal remedy made from the whole seeds is called “the gift from paradise”.  This herb not only helps the heart to function better, it also helps balance the nervous system.  Both of these actions are specific to helping the heart function better.

With any substance you ingest – whether it’s food, an herb, or a drug – it is important to trust the source.  You want to make sure it is what you expect, that the correct part of the plant has been used, it has been properly prepared to preserve the benefit, and that you are taking it appropriately.  The only effective Strophanthus products that I know and trust in the United States are available through Dr. Tom Cowan.  It is always best to work with a qualified practitioner, especially when dealing with such a potentially life threatening issue as heart disease.

Most people who have used Strophanthus feel calmer, have less chest pain, have improved ejection fraction (heart function is better), report thinking more clearly, and are sick less often.  Real people are helped and are enjoying their life more, even if we don’t understand exactly how this herb helps.  There are several proposed mechanisms that are simply theories.  It is important to remember that we don’t understand how most drugs work either.  The mechanisms of action for almost all herbs and drugs are only theories, even though they are put forward as if fact.  In the end, it is what you experience that matters most.  And that you stay safe.

Read additional articles here:  Focus On Vibrant Health.

Dr. Veronica Tilden can be your ally in having vibrant health.  She uses traditional hands-on osteopathy and helps you take responsibility for your health, guiding you to make better choices in your life.  She brings her 30 years of experience to her hometown at her office in North Fork.  You can find out more and schedule an appointment at DrVeronicaTilden.com.