Outstanding summary, Erling. This one is definitely a keeper to help direct new readers. Great job. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Murray - while we are on this thread and the topic of statins... here's one more to add to your collection This article by Alan R. Gaby, MD, is an editorial comment June 2010 Townsend Letters for Doctors & Patients where he reviewed literature that indicates statins significantly increase the risk of developing diabetes. I published his comments here in the BB and GeorgeN pointed outby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Josiah - No. The enteric coating is not needed with the newer forms of NK. Erling - I realize the $$ concerns are real for all of us, especially these days, but among the supplements I'll never run out of, nattokinase is right up there with the Essential Trio plus Ubiquinol because as we age, risk of stroke from overly viscous blood does come into play and I can't use aspirin. I taby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks John! I'm doing very well. Definitely, try a digestive enzyme with meals and one that contains some betaine HCl with protein-containing meals. I use two. I get them both from Hans' iherb weblink. NOW brand... Super enzymes (with the HCl) and Source Naturals Essential Enzymes Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Laura - I don't think your choosing not to do the scans makes you a non-compliant patient... on the contrary, more of an "aware" patient about the radiation dose. Additionally, if the MRI requires a contrast dye (gadolinium) that can also cause problems. In hindsight, if I were to do it over again, I'd wait to see if I had any symptoms and worry then. At the time when we aby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Murray - I asked about the statins (Lipitor etc) because long term, they can certainly cause mitochondrial dysfunction - key to muscle function... and your heart is certainly a muscle. While I can't tell you to stop the statin or any other drug you take, I do think that you should spend the time to understand the long-term consequences of taking statin drugs .... and there are many...and then mby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Liz - Dr. West has been around for a long time with flyers promoting a cure for afib... certainly for some individuals, adding iodine to help thyroid function may have an impact on afib, just as you experienced. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Laura - Seven years ago, the post ablation CT heart scan was done routinely to rule out stenosis and I was a compliant patient; had it done about 3 months post ablation. In one regard, it was useful because it disclosed a clot in the LAA as a result of cardioversion the week prior, but in hindsight, if I had to do it again, I'd not go for that scan unless I was having symptoms of stenosisby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Murray - how long have you been taking a statin drug? Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Here's a concise nattokinase article written by one of the 'believers' in the good that NK can offer....complete with abundant references. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Gordon - you probably know the same studies that I do including the following.... that are not by Dr. Holsworth. Jackie J Agric Food Chem. 2009 Jan 28;57(2):503-8. Amyloid-degrading ability of nattokinase from Bacillus subtilis natto. Hsu RL, Lee KT, Wang JH, Lee LY, Chen RP. Institute of Biological Chemistry, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan. More than 20 unrelated proteins can form amylby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi John! I've always felt your gut issues were related to a food sensitivity. It's known that when pulse increases 20-30 minutes or sooner after a meal that there is a food culprit at work. Once the body becomes sensitive to one or more types of food, it reacts quickly thereafter. A good starting point would be to eliminate all grains and dairy from your diet completely and see whatby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Monty - It's the holiday season. By any chance did you eat a lot of gluten-containing foods...or more than you typically do? Sugar? Maybe alcohol? Gut reactions to these and the subsequent gas buildup in the stomach stretches the vagus which then can bring about a tendency toward ectopy and afib. I hope by now all is calm again. But for warding off similar future events, I'd thby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Scanning down in the blog responses.... Anonymous said... " VERY TELLING how Dr. Davis has disappeared, stopped replying when confronted with the double-blind studies that show he's wrong." I just scanned down through several years of blog entries - many of which are personal testimonials on the efficacy of NK. It's worth reading for reassurance about using NK...not that Iby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Josiah - I've read other misinformation by this doctor. It's unfortunate he is not experienced with the actual use of NK and benefits because he does a disservice to his followers....who may also be mislead on other information he is dishing out. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Allan - those products you mention and the sugar content are indeed counterproductive. Adding electrolytes is both easy and important.... especially potassium. Some people need a small amount of sodium as well. For everyday use, you can definitely add to your water the potassium gluconate powder (NOW brand) that most of us use... purchased here through Han's iherb web connection, and tby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Nice touch, Hans. It will make for easy reference not only to other health issues but also those that can be a link or potential cause of AF as a handy cross-reference. Happy New Year! Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Well said, Erling. You certainly are living proof. Long may you live in NSR. Happy New Year! Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Matt - A multi is not apt to help you much in this case. Check the label to see if they list the form of magnesium. Most are Oxide and that's worthless. Check also for the amount of calcium in the multi as Ca competes with Mg. If you're already low in Mg, then you aren't making any progress. Check also to be sure it is iron free. Men don't need supplemental iron after tby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Lisa - you need to be seen by an MD who is an opthmologist and if needed, he can refer you to an MD who is a retinal specialist. Do not rely on optometrists for something that involves ruling out vascular problems. Good luck. I hope it is just a case of benign floaters. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Lisa - Many years ago when I experienced my first 'floater shower,' I called the opthmalogist who said it was important to be seen immediately to rule out detatched retina and that the light flashes were a key symptomf for that. Fortunately, it was just floaters. Some people think the floaters occur because of dehydration. I had only 2 in one eye and one in the other. I now only havby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Gregg- I'd say - 'where there's smoke, there's fire'.... it would appear that something in that drug isn't compatible with your body. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Jim - regardless of what medication you're using, if you are low in the essential/critical nutrients (minerals/electrolytes) that help maintain NSR by prolonging the refractory period, you'll probably find that each medication loses efficacy...simply because they don't replace what's missing in the first place. Lifestyle habits and various food intakes including alcohol helpby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Allan - any time there is long-lasting exertion and/or sweating involved, you should hydrate well before, during and after plus adding electrolytes is always smart.... even critical if you are an afibber. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Gregg - you can tell him that you know what to do with it and please order the test... ask to speak to the lab he uses so you know the cost or call around to some of the labs in your area. Lab Corp and Quest Diagnostics are common in most areas. Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Murray - I would want to consult with the EP in Canada who trained under Dr. Natale... Don't know if this would be convenient for you or not, but he's an excellent reference. Atul Verma, MD, FRCPC Affiliation : Cardiologist & Electrophysiologist, Southlake Regional Health Centre, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada If you type his name in a Google search, he has published a large number oby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Barb - do you know your current serum potassium level? If not, why not get tested? I just wrote the following to another afibber concerned about taking too much potassium.... The current experts such as Richard Moore, MD, PhD that we reference indicates "a serum potassium level should be between 4.0 and 5.0 m/Eq/L, and to check it at monthly intervals...when trying to increase potassium-to sby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
.... Magnesium deficiency linked to scaring or fibrosis formation...More reading: <; Jackieby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM
Barb - Your goal should be to use sodium sparingly and eat abundant potassium-containing foods along with supplementing if you don't eat enough in a day. I use 3 teaspoons a day of the potassium gluconate powder just to be sure I don't dip low in potassium as that definitely will cause a problem even though I've had a successful ablation. You can try adding another teaspoon withby Jackie - AFIBBERS FORUM