Heart Valve Disease, Mitral Valve Prolapse and Congestive Heart Failure
Posted: Saturday, May 03, 2008
by Dr. Suzanne Skinner
Thousands of patients are scared senseless by their cardiologist with a diagnosis of mitral valve prolapse. After all, the mitral valve allows oxygenated blood into the heart's main chamber. If the valve doesn't work, that must be bad, right?
When it comes to the mitral valve, in 1999 the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) reported what we have known all along. That all those dire diagnoses of MVP have horrified patients for no reason. According to Health Alert and the NEJM, MVP is a non-disease. And many other cases of "valvular disease" are also non-diseases.
If you are diagnosed with one of these conditions, you will be placed at extreme risk by medical treatments that involve surgery and powerful drugs for life. And today a new danger is being discovered. Metal heart valves (like the St. Jude valve) can destroy red blood cells, producing an anemia that is incurable without still more surgery. Left untreated, this metallic heart valve-induced anemia will kill you. All this for a condition that most of the time is simply a symptom of a severe nutritional deficiency or imbalance! This deficiency leads to leaking heart valves, heart murmurs, heart arrhythmias, and angina. Here's what you need to know.
What You Will Be Told
The pronouncement will be made that your heart valves are leaking and you will need open-heart valve-replacement surgery. Your original valve will be replaced by a mechanical valve. Thereafter you will be subjected to a lifetime of powerful, toxic drugs which include warfarin (rat poison) brand name Coumadin to water down your blood in an effort to protect you from blood clots thrown off by your new valve or valves.
Or you may be told you have unstable angina most likely caused by a blocked coronary artery, or often with an unknown cause. You will be subjected to angiography, usually followed by angioplasty or stent surgery, followed by a lifetime of powerful, toxic drugs.
Or if your heart murmurs, skips beats, beats too fast, beats too slowly, or beats abnormally, you will subjected to angiography, often followed by shock therapy or ablation to burn nerve endings in your heart. The same prescription for lifelong powerful and toxic drugs generally ensues.
What You Will Not Be Told
You will never be told the following facts.
Most heart disease is unnecessary and is caused by nutritional deficiencies and imbalances. Much of today's current heart disease and valve problems are a modern form of the B-vitamin deficiency disease called beriberi of the heart.
Without adequate vitamin B in the diet, your heart muscle will weaken, lose tone, enlarge, sag, and stretch. This also stretches the heart valves out of their normal shape, allowing for leaks and murmurs. Supplying the necessary phytonutrients strengthens your heart muscle, causing your heart to regain tone, lose excess water, shrink in size, and rise higher in your chest cavity where it belongs, It also allows your heart valves to reassume their normal shape and position, often alleviating leaking and murmuring.
Once this all happens your heart can once again pump oxygenated blood more properly, alleviating chronic fatigue and cardiac invalidism.
Much of angina is nothing more than a "charlie- horse of the heart." This can be caused by insufficient blood flow, oxygenation, and flow of nutrients to the heart. Most often when the deficient nutrients are replaced, heart cramps stop. A specific type of the vitamin F complex called E2 and an omega-3 nutrient (vitamin F) are critical in these cases.
Sclerosing of the heart valves is frequently caused by a deficiency of vitamin F, which is needed to deliver calcium out of the bloodstream into the muscles. Without adequate vitamin F, calcium precipitates out of the blood into areas of stress like heart valves, essentially slowly calcifying them the definition of sclerosis.
This same kind of vitamin F deficiency also can cause calcium to precipitate out of the blood into the kidneys (kidney stones), eyes (cataracts), and joints (arthritis).
The heart valves and coronary arteries are susceptible to viral and bacterial attacks, leading to clogged valves and arteries. Most of these can be prevented and controlled with a phytonutrient product made from buckwheat. When these inflammations and infections are cleared naturally, blood flow is normalized, blood tests once again become normal, and blood vessels slowly become naturally unclogged.
Heart valve replacement is often symptom treatment followed by powerful drugs that can have life-threatening side effects. You are much more susceptible to stroke, your body will be compromised by a lifetime of poison (Coumadin), and the valves themselves can cause a cancer in the form of incurable anemia.
Angioplasty, bypasses and stents are often symptom treatment with no lasting effects. If you are lucky after these procedures, you will have a few good years until your symptoms begin to return. At this point more surgery or different drugs are prescribed generally with the same prognosis. This continues until you are told that there is no more tissue with which to work.
Shock treatment rarely works long-term for heart arrhythmias. And the same can be said for ablation which is much more dangerous. When your heart is beating too fast because it is weakened from beriberi of the heart, burning the nerve endings cannot resolve the problem.
All heart drugs, usually prescribed for life, are debilitating and dangerous. They can cause kidney damage, induce sexual problems, cause heart arrhythmias, and all have one thing in common they sap your strength and energy.
As you can see, much of heart valve disease is simply a symptom. Except in destruction or severe damage of the valves, most medical treatment ignores the underlying cause of valve problems. Therefore, even after surgery or other medical treatments, in most cases, the real cause of the problem is still present fomenting and ready to put you right back to square one.
If you have leaky heart valves you must strengthen your heart. This requires the following phytonutrient products from Standard Process: Cardio-Plus (6- 12/day) and Cataplex B (6-9/day). With or without angina it is also best to utilize an omega-3 product. We use Cataplex F (vitamin F at a dose of 6/day). If you have angina you will need to add Cataplex E2 (the special form of vitamin F needed in these cases, at a dose of 6-9/day), along with Calcium Lactate (6-12/day).
If you have suffered a viral or bacterial attack of your coronary vessels and/or heart valves, you will also need to take Cyruta-Plus (made from buck- wheat, at a dose of 6-12/day). All of this may be necessary for two years or more-even though you will start to feel stronger within 60 days.
And remember that most blood pressure drugs by definition weaken your heart. As your phytonutrient protocol takes hold, you feel better, and your BP begins to normalize, you will need to return to your doctor. You both must work together on a prescription drug-weaning program to finalize your progress.
If you wish, you can have your heart reevaluated in 120 days. In most cases your BP will normalize, your heart will be strong and regular, your heart muscle will have strengthened and produced a better output, your murmurs will have disappeared, and your angina will have cleared up or diminished greatly. Upon x-ray your heart can be noted to have shrunk back to normal, raised more normally in your chest cavity, and cleared itself of edema and excess water.
There are times when heart valves are too damaged to be healed. If you receive a diagnosis of valvular disease and you are given a medical explanation as described under What You Will Be Told earlier in this article, remember one thing. Unless a dire medical emergency, you owe it to yourself to begin a phytonutrient protocol before submitting to surgery and a lifetime of drugs.
In 80% of the cases you and your doctor will find your heart and its valves so improved, you will no longer need drastic medical treatment. If you combine this type of protocol with proper diet and exercise, in a year or two you will find you no longer need any medical treatment for your heart at all.
When the Heart Starts to Fail
For many people, heart valve problems eventually lead to Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). And it is often difficult to determine just how "far along" you are with your heart problems. Luckily, the treatment for early heart failure is identical to the treatment for heart valve problems. Here's what you need to know about early CHF.
Everyone dies of something. And lots of people die of heart failure. Let's face it the heart can eventually wear out. Someone in their late 80s or into their 90s has to be thinking about this. When you start having difficulty breathing, can't climb stairs, always need to rest, or when your pulse starts to become erratic, it is time to treat for heart failure.
If you have some of these symptoms and your blood pressure yoyo's up and down, your legs feel heavy after walking to your mailbox, and your hands and feet are always cold, it is time to treat for heart failure. If you have some of these symptoms and you continue to come down with bronchitis and even pneumonia, it is time to treat for heart failure.
Treat for Heart Failure? Yes
Treat with Drugs or Surgery? No
But it may not be time to treat your heart with drugs. For starters, cholesterol has nothing to do with heart disease. And your blood pressure may have nothing to do with it either. So starting statins and/or blood pressure drugs is generally not the best way to treat early heart failure. Indeed these drugs have been implicated in the long-term in actually causing heart failure.
Mitral valve prolapse, some moderate stenosis of heart valves, or even leaky heart valves often have nothing to do with heart failure. Yet heart valve problems are often a direct result of early heart failure. As the heart muscle weakens, the heart enlarges and stretches. It often becomes water- logged, and sinks lower in the chest. As this takes place the heart valves become stretched and can even leak. In these cases, open-heart surgery to replace a valve will not solve the problem since the leaking valve is only a symptom.
A Few More Good Years
The average person in his or her 80s, 90s, or older only wishes for a few more good years to spend with family. Drugs that force blood pressure down, interfere with the liver's production of cholesterol, and mandate a regular heartbeat are too often debilitating, numbing, and even more exhausting the opposite of what you want for your last years.
How do you get those few more good years? By re-nourishing your heart and providing it with all the necessary nutrients to nurture a strong heart muscle. When provided the necessary nutrients, the heart is the most responsive organ in the body. In other words, it will almost always surprise you with its ability to regenerate and get stronger. You can't turn a 90-year-old heart into a 20-year-old heart. But in most cases, if there has not already been severely debilitating medical intervention, you can get what you are looking for a few more great years to enjoy with your family.
A wise professor of mine used to say, "It is best to go out like a candle. You burn brightly, and in the end you flicker once or twice and go out." I agree. When you see the first signs of flickering, treat your heart properly to keep the light burning brightly to the end. That won't be the picture if a long list of cardiac meds and drugs are used. Save these as the absolute last resort if you wish. But in the meantime, keep your heart strong and treat for heart failure smartly, properly, easily, inexpensively, and safely.
Use Phytonutrient Nutrition
Unfortunately (or fortunately), standard vitamins and minerals will not get the job done. It is almost impossible for most oldsters to absorb and utilize these chemicals. Rather get your therapy from nature. Use phytonutrients that contain not only vitamin E, vitamin C, bioflavonoids, omega-3 fatty acids, the B vitamins and more, but that also contain all the ancillary nutrition that accompanies these nutrients in plants and nutritious foods.
Your body does know the difference. It will digest, absorb, and utilize these kinds of nutrients because they also contain enzymes, coenzymes, trace mineral activators, plant sterols, accompanying vitamins and minerals, and literally thousands of other nutritional molecules that we may or may not even know about.
Making these kinds of products is an art. It takes nutrient-rich soil, organic plants, and highly specialized and patented processing procedures. These procedures take the plant nutrition and transform it live without heat or chemicals to preserve the life force of the nutrients-into phytonutrient supplements. These are the kinds of products your heart will take up like a sponge. And these are the products that will produce measurable responses-like an improved cardiac output, increased cardiac ejection fraction, enhanced oxygenation of the blood, a smoother heartbeat and pulse, and a shrinking of the enlarged heart as seen on an x-ray or scan.
As soon as your heart muscle strengthens its output, it will more easily ventilate your lungs, easing breathing and increasing stamina. More oxygen-rich blood will reach your hands and feet, increasing circulation. And remarkably, as all this happens, the medical "causes" of your heart problem like leaky heart valves, an enlarged heart, or even a mitral valve prolapse will begin to disappear.
So treat for heart failure to enjoy your golden years. Begin with a basic protocol that will help you accomplish this goal. We use the following with great success: Cardio-Plus (6-9/day), Catap/ex B (6-9/day), Cataplex F (4-6/day), Calcium Lactate (6-12/day), Organically Bound Minerals (3-4/day) and a tablespoon of flax or cod liver oil daily. If you are allergic to iodine (which is very rare), you cannot use Cataplex F.
If Your Case is Stubborn
These products are made the way they are supposed to be by Standard Process. Once on the protocol, you should begin to experience results in Often non-responding, stubborn heart failure problems are caused by drugs, damage from other medical cardiac treatments, synthetic vitamins, or the need for a more specialized protocol. Of course there is the rare instance where it is simply too late.
So start now. You owe it to yourself, your loved ones, and your family to enjoy your golden years. This is a formula to help you accomplish that goal.
Why You Are Not Told
Your doctor does not know about the field of clinical biochemistry. That is the application of phytonutrients (plant and animal extracts and concentrates). Instead he or she relates all nutritional therapy for the heart under the heading of "vitamins and minerals."
Physicians will tell you that only drugs and surgery can help you and that standard "vitamin and mineral" nutrition is a bunch of bunk and also won't help. For the most part they are correct. Their own literature and research proves that synthetic or fractionated portions of whole vitamins (standard vitamins) are not utilized by your body. Hence they do you no good. In this field potency does not relate to effectiveness. And that is even more true when it comes to heart disease.
As confusing as this can be, they are giving you good information when they tell you vitamins will not help. Unfortunately most physicians group the clinical application of therapeutic foods, extracts, concentrates, and phytonutrients in with the ineffectual, synthetic vitamin therapies. In reality they are not even related.
So don't blame your doctor. For the most part all the miracle vitamin cures you read about do not work. And when it comes to heart disease, there is no substitute for whole foods and concentrates. These are the only nutrients that are in their raw, natural, and energized state. That are digested and metabolized by your body in their natural form. And that are delivered directly to your heart where they are needed. There simply are no substitutes.
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Top-level comments on this article: (5 total)is it normal to have leaking heart valves? my Dr. did an eco on my heart and said that I had some leaking valves and this was normalno its not normal.my grandma was told she had that years ago and said it was to bad to do sugery.That was BS,now years later shes on hospice care dying because the doctor did not want to take a chance doing surgery because my grandma is a jehovia witness.go to another doctor get this taken care of,there are to many treatments out there to be told its normal or there is nothing you can do.my grandma now wishes she went to another doctor back in "86" and got surgery done,cause she is still here,but now dying.yes she is 76,but if she would have known then what she knows now,she wouldnt be suffering and may have lived well into her 90's,i would have her with me another 15 or more years,heck,even another few years if not 15.please take care of yourself,see another doctor who will do something about your heart.
Thank you for your artical on Heart Valve Disease, Mitral Valve Prolapse and Congestive Heart Failure.I am currently seeing a Naturopathic Physician and started taking Cyruta Plus. I recently found out that I had rheumatic fever as a child and that damaged my heart. I have been trying to get my blood pressure under control since January. My dr had been trying to control the blood pressure without sucess, but then when I discovered the rheumatic fever, he tested me in another way and found the virus was still in my heart causing the damage. He started me on the Cyruta Plus. I trust my dr, but it's nice to understand what the buckwheat will do for me and the time frame I should start to expect some results. The virus has had several years to do the damage and 60 days is nothing to start seeing some improvement. I have only been on this suppliment for a week now.
This was extremely helpful but you did leave us hanging a little. You stated that people allergic to iodine (which is very rare), you cannot use Cataplex F. Is there anything they could do in place of Cataplex F or anything they could take to do the same as Cataplex?
Hello!
I found the Art. very helpful, my mother who is 65' is currently going through this issue. She was put in rehab after a short stint in the hospital where she was put on 6 wks. of antibiotics to clear an infection up in her heart. She was since told she needs surgery for her leaking heart valve which she declined. My question is how do go about following your Phytonutrient Nutrition formula. Who or where can I fill the prescription.
I am relived just by reading it./ Iam 62 and just lost almost 20 kg after being told all that above by my Cardiologis. I am looking fitter but all of a sudden started feeling chest tightness which I di not have even when I was diagonzed with leaking valve, hypkinenzia a etc.
My heart rate is usually around 67 BPM and my blood pressure can go between 125/80 and 107/80.
I walk, run, and swim and don't eat any bread or pasta or, Godforbid, cakes and crackers, no cheese and no milk for 7 months now. However I get these hours of tightness and feeling that lack good oxigen,(panic) especially when watching TV in the evening. sometimes it feels like spinal problem but I am flexible.
I also developed tinnitus and urinate huge amounts during the night since 10 months ago when I was coughing like mad, which has stopped after 6 weeks with Olive Leaf extract and $%&*@$%&ake mix (KI formula)
Can you advise where I can get the protocol materials to fix my leaking valve and prevent angina or heart attack?
Hope you can advise! though my email Rgds.
David Zuric
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