Dr.

Crandalls

Heart Health Report

For a Symptom, Drug & Stress Free Life

By Chauncey Crandall, M.D.

May 2010 / Vol. 1, Issue 3

Seven Keys to Reversing

Heart Disease for Life

n last months newsletter, I provided an overview

of heart disease how excess fat in the blood
drives it and results in arterial inflammation. I
showed how the bodys attempts to cope with
this inflammation can go awry and result in heart
attacks and strokes.
We also talked about how appropriate
medications and lifestyle changes can turn off
the heart disease engine while improving blood
flow. The good news is that heart disease can
be reversed. Making lifestyle changes not only
reverses heart disease but also improves ones
quality of life. Many of my patients testify that
they feel years younger after taking action.
There are seven key actions you must take in
order to flip that switch.
I invite you to enter this battle with me and learn
to walk in victory. It can be done. Im living proof.
My motto is simple: A minor reversal in heart
disease results in a major improvement in health.
The first step, then, is reeducation. Anyone who
visits a cardiologist already has a baseline concern.
Either the person has had a cardiac event a
heart attack, stroke, an episode of angina or the
person has been referred by a personal physician
because of risk factors.

exam. I interview my patient about his or her

work environment, trying to determine how much
stress the person may be under.
Then I order a full lab work-up: Cholesterol
counts, triglycerides, markers related to renal and
thyroid function, homocysteine, C-reactive protein
the works.
Patients generally take a stress test, either a
regular EKG stress test (walking on a treadmill)
or a nuclear stress test, in which radioisotopes are
introduced into their bloodstream. A nuclear test
allows us to see the blood flow as well as track the
hearts rhythm.
The amount of time a patient can spend on a
treadmill is remarkably predictive of their nearterm prognosis. If a patient can spend 10 minutes
on a treadmill thats being gradually elevated, the
incidence of a fatal myocardial infarction (heart
attack) over the next year is likely close to zero.
We do an echocardiogram to establish the size
of the heart and check for murmurs. We perform a

In This Issue...
Hitting Initial Targets.............................................. 2

You need to be absolutely honest with your

doctor about what brings you to him or her. In
every case, I recommend that the patient come in
with his or her spouse or family member the
person who knows you best. A spouse, I find, often
remembers symptoms that the patient forgets
because of the stress of the situation.

Diet and Exercise, Avoiding Drugs.......................... 3

I work up a full family history and do a physical

Ask Dr. Crandall..................................................... 8

Case Study: Eternal Vigilance ................................. 4

Can You Change Your Life?.................................... 5
Better Sex, Better Heart Health . ............................ 6
The Ultimate Change.............................................. 7

carotid ultrasound to look at the thickness of the

artery and specifically the intima the lining of
the artery. The carotid artery is often a window to
what is happening in the heart and the rest of the
circulatory system; the thicker the carotid artery,
the greater the underlying disease.
Why am I telling you all this? Because its the
start of the reeducation process, the first and most
important step in the battle against heart disease.
You will be far more prone to listen to the doctors
advice if the tests he cites are meaningful to you.
Your doctor should guide you along this path
by seeing you regularly. I want to see my patients
once a month for the first six months, then once
every two months for the next six months, then
three times the following year.
If your doctor thinks such a schedule is overkill,
consider changing physicians. See me in six
months doesnt work in the battle against heart
disease. Believe me.
Counseling is imperative because a cardiac
patient goes through an often predictable cycle. At
first, he is willing to do just about anything. Over
time, though, the patients resistance to change
inevitably increases. Unless your doctor is in front
of you on a regular basis, your odds of beating
heart disease are poor.

Hitting Initial
Heart-Healthy Targets
In consultation with your doctor, you should
establish and understand the following targets for
shooting down heart disease. The numbers are
important, but they will be much more useful if
you understand the reasoning behind them. (If you
dont, talk with your doctor, and keep reading my
newsletter.) My general targets are:
Blood pressure of 120/80

Total cholesterol count under 150

HDL cholesterol should be greater than 45
LDL cholesterol should be less than 70
The particle number for LDL should be less
than 1,000
LDL should be described as Pattern A,
meaning your LDL cholesterol particles are
large and buoyant
Triglyceride count less than 150
A fasting glucose, serum (sugar) count
between 65 and 99
Body mass index (BMI), the percentage of
body weight that comes from fat, should be
under 25
Thyroid, C-reactive protein, and homocysteine
all within the normal range
I try as soon as possible to start using natural
substances. Niacin (vitamin B3) is terrific
at lowering LDL and boosting HDL. Most
significantly, it changes dense, small LDL particles
into larger, more buoyant particles that do not
embed as easily in arterial lining.
Niacin has the unhappy side effect of causing
flushing an uncomfortable rush of blood to
the face. This feels like breaking out in a sudden
heat rash: hot and prickly. For this reason, the
patient needs to start with a low dose of niacin,
250 milligrams, and build up the amount slowly.
The dosage should be increased by 250 milligrams
every three months. Its best to take the dose at
night with aspirin, which mitigates the flushing. If
you are asleep and experience minor flushing you
probably wont even wake up.
It usually takes a patient one to two years
to arrive at the maximum dosage that can be
tolerated. Ideally, Id like to see a patient take
between 1,500 and 3,000 milligrams daily, but
few can reach this level. Any dosage the patient
tolerates is a plus.

Dr. Crandalls Heart Health Report is a publication of Newsmax Media, Inc., and Newsmax.com. It is published monthly at a charge of $54.00 per year and is offered online and in print
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CEO Christopher Ruddy Health Publisher Travis Davis Author Chauncey Crandall, M.D. Contributing Editor Harold Fickett Production/Art Director Elizabeth Dole
To contact Dr. Crandalls Heart Health Report send e-mail to: askdrcrandall@newsmax.com. Subscription/Customer Service contact 1-800-485-4350 or heartreport@newsmax.com. Send
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2010 Newsmax Media, all rights reserved. Please note that this advice is generic and not specific to any individual. You should consult with your doctor before undertaking any medical
or nutritional course of action.

May 2010

Fish oils (omega- 3 and 6 fatty acids) can

provide exceptional benefits to patients who have
trouble controlling their triglycerides (another
form of fat in the blood). Fish such as salmon,
trout, mackerel, and sardines contain large
amounts of these fatty acids. For those who want
to make sure they get enough fish oil by taking
supplements, I recommend 2 grams daily. Some
doctors recommend as much as 4 grams.
Fish oils are commonly sold in IU units, so
youll have to consult the label or ask your
provider how many IU units translate into 2
grams. (IU units are based on effect, not weight,
and so the number of units in a substance varies
with the substance.)
Then there are common foods and substances
that help reduce cholesterol. Its important to
realize, though, that each of these has only a
marginal effect. They have nothing like the
potency of, say, statin drugs. They should be used
only once the patients cholesterol is well under
control.
Oat bran and oatmeal are good. I start each day
with a bowl of cooked oat bran with blueberries. I
put a little maple syrup, nutmeg, and cinnamon on
top. I prefer this concoction cold and will boil up
a batch and save it in the refrigerator for the next
two to three days. (If you find this peculiar, so does
my wife.)
Oat bran and oatmeal work like this: They both
bind cholesterol in the small intestine, causing
the system to eliminate it rather than reabsorb it
into the liver. Red rice yeast has effects similar to
statins. Its hard to know, though, whether you
are getting the real thing or a counterfeit. Some
Chinese producers were found to be heightening
its statin-like effects by adding a statin into the
mix. Be sure you are buying from a reliable
provider.
Garlic and vitamin C supplementation also can
provide some minor benefit.
When first treating my patients for heart disease,
however, Im most concerned with getting their
cholesterol and blood pressure to target as fast as
possible.
Although my goal is to get a patient to
supplements soon, and eventually off of even
May 2010

supplements, in most cases I start off by

prescribing a statin drug, starting with a low
dose and increasing it as needed as we track the
results of subsequent blood tests. Statins are the
most effective means of reducing LDL cholesterol.
Some, such as Crestor, also elevate the good HDL
cholesterol. They are also vasodilators, meaning
they expand the arteries and improve blood flow.
Statins, like every medication, carry risks. Im
concerned most immediately that my patients
dont experience any muscle breakdown from the
CPK enzyme and accompanying muscle and joint
pain. Usually, these negative side effects can be
remedied by switching to another statin. Theres
good evidence that a supplement called CoQ10,
taken along with a statin, helps alleviate cramping.
The biggest worry with statins, however, is that
they can impair liver function. Thats unusual,
though. (Next months issue will be about statins,
and we will get into this in much more detail
then.) Standard tests for liver function are needed,
of course.

Diet and Exercise

Can Help Avoid Drugs
Then, I consider medications to treat high
Continued on page 5

About Chauncey Crandall

Chauncey W. Crandall, M.D.,
F.A.C.C., is chief of the cardiac
transplant program at the
world-renowned Palm Beach
Cardiovascular Clinic in Palm
Beach Gardens, Fla., where
he practices interventional,
vascular, and transplant
cardiology. Dr. Crandall
received his post-graduate training at Yale University
School of Medicine, where he also completed three
years of research in the cardiovascular surgery
division. He lectures nationally and internationally on
preventive cardiology, cardiological healthcare of the
elderly, healing, interventional cardiology, and heart
transplants. Known as the Christian physician, Dr.
Crandall has been heralded for his values and message
of hope to all his heart patients.

Heart Health Case History of the Month

Living Heart-Disease Free Demands Eternal Vigilance

Coronary artery disease and its contributing habits
are a stealthy and lethal enemy. Even when we think
we have them squarely on our radar, we can fail to
recognize the old ways creeping back in and the danger
growing.
I had a patient come to me at the age of 56. He
was an engineer, a scientist, one of the chief officers
in a biometrics company. His company made facialrecognition devices for security screening and was busy
placing state-of-the-art machines in airports and other
locations around the world.
The patient came in with acute risk factors. His blood
pressure was high very high at 170/95. Blood
tests revealed that his cholesterol was a whopping 280,
with an LDL count of 140. His triglycerides were off the
charts. He drank a six pack of beer every night and had
the pot belly to prove it.
The engineer and his wife were a delightful couple,
and they accepted my counsel readily, more quickly, in
fact, than any other couple I can recall.
The mans scientific bent led him to study the causes
of heart disease, much in the way we are doing through
this newsletter. He worked out his pathway to health
as if it were an engineering problem. He could see that
if he changed his caloric intake, eliminated fats from
his diet, and began exercising daily, the heart disease
equation would begin working in his favor and hed hit
our target goals.
Also, his wife was a huge advocate on behalf of his
health. Although the couple still had children at home,
she implemented the plant-based diet I recommended
and abided by it as strictly as her husband did.
The engineer and his wife became my poster couple.
It can be done! I would say to my other patients. Then
Id tell them the story of the engineer and his wife.
In six months the engineer lost 45 pounds. His blood
pressure dropped from 170/95 to 112/73. He reduced
his total cholesterol from 280 to 136, with his LDL
cholesterol dropping from 140 to 55. His triglycerides
were back within the normal range.
The engineer was proof positive of the benefits of
exercise and a heart healthy diet. Exercise is such a
powerful force, in fact, that I often wait for two months
before prescribing medication for high blood pressure
to see what effect exercise alone will have. Dropping 10
pounds provides the same benefit as a standard dosage
of a blood pressure medication.
As the engineer progressed, I was able to take
4

him off statins and substitute natural supplements,

including niacin and fish oil.
His plant-based diet gave his body the chance to
cleanse itself of extra fat, not only around the patients
waist but within his arteries as well. His improved blood
flow allowed him to exercise more actively, which kept
improving his blood flow.
The engineer even became more mentally sharp and
better able to contribute to his increasingly successful
business. The fact is, a lot of the mental drop-off that we
often attribute to growing older is actually the effect of
growing heavier and more sedentary.
Both the engineer and his wife looked like they were
25 years younger. They kept to their new way of living for
four years.

Dangerous Times
The next year, though, they didnt come in for their
follow-up appointments. Even I tended to dismiss
this as not being terribly significant, as I did not want
to imagine my best patient ceasing to be a shining
example.
The following year the engineer and his wife did find
their way back to my office, and the engineer was back in
sorry shape.
What had happened to them? Oddly enough, success
happened. Let me explain: The troubled times of the
last decade, with global terrorism on the upswing, were
driving the engineers business to ever greater heights.
Meanwhile, the couples children had grown up and
left the house. As empty nesters, the couple felt less
need to be accountable.
His achievements had tricked the engineer into
believing that he was immune to heart disease. He fell
back into his old ways, drinking a six-pack a night.
He was honest about it, though. The engineer
simply said he had failed and needed to get back on the
program.
I didnt let him off that lightly, though. I pointed out
that he was in the business of helping governments
recognize terrorism in every far-flung corner of the
world. Why couldnt he have recognized the terror that
was as close as his next can of beer?
It is said that the price of freedom is eternal vigilance.
The price of freedom from heart disease is no less. Once
you begin the program, stay on track!
May 2010

Continued from page 3

blood pressure. I often wait three months, until

a patients hypertension is no longer acute, to see
how much improvement can be brought about
through diet and exercise. Losing 10 pounds
works as well as or better than a typical dose of a
blood pressure medication, for instance.
If the patients blood pressure demands it,
though, I usually begin slowly with a once-aday medication, typically an ACE inhibitor such
as Lisinopril. Over time I may add two more, a
beta blocker and a medication from the class of
drugs called ARBs. There are other types of blood
pressure medications to consider as well.

walk, swim, or cycle for one hour a day. Ballroom

dancing and tennis are excellent, too.
I stress walking more than anything else because
beyond age 50 men and women can have trouble
maintaining their balance on a bicycle, and jogging
or running is hard on the knees, spine, and back.
Walking is something most can do for a lifetime.

Along with these prescriptions, I ask the patient

to cut out stimulants such as caffeine and alcohol,
and to reduce salt intake drastically. Cutting the
amount of salt consumed demands more than
putting down the shaker. Processed foods are
loaded with salt. Freshly cooked meals from a diet
thats plant-based are a must.

The walking can be varied according to what

I call the God formula. Think of how we lived
before the industrial era before four wheels
came to replace our two feet. Men went out
hunting, which was mostly walking. During
the hunt, they ran in bursts to close on their
prey or jogged at a steady pace while tracking a
wounded animal. Then they walked home. We
were not created to run hard mile after mile like
marathoners. We were created to walk and then
run and then walk. I dont want to deny you the
exhilaration of running or jogging if you are able;
Id just advise you to do this during stretches of a
good long walk.

For patients who have had cardiac events

or have been diagnosed with underlying heart
disease, I prescribe a radical six-month, plantbased, oil-free diet. This diet concentrates on
eating whole grains, potatoes and other starches,
legumes (beans) vegetables, and fruit. Ill expand
on the ideal diet in future newsletters.

When you think about it, the God formula

applies equally to my plant-based diet:
Throughout human history, most of our ancestors
ate a diet that was plant-based. The consumption
of meat would have been reserved for times of
feasting and it would have been part of a life that
was active from sunup to sundown.

The patient and his or her spouse must prepare

to implement it by studying what you can eat,
clearing the house of junk food, and restocking the
larder with plenty of good food. Its important that
you not become too hungry, that you eat good but
modest meals three times a day, and choose only
healthy snacks.
Most patients find my plant-based diet the
toughest part to accept of the seven-step plan to
reverse heart disease. It works, though. And you
have to adhere to it strictly for only six months.
Isnt your life worth a six-month change in your
eating pattern?
Ideally, Id like my patients to restrict themselves
to 1,800 calories per day. A plant-based diet makes
this easy, as you can eat a lot of food if you cut
out dairy, sugar, and oils, which have high calorie
counts. As for exercise, I want my patients to

May 2010

Can You Change Your

Life? Youd Better ...
Then comes stress. The first key to stress
reduction is to realize where you are in life. Most
people who are concerned about heart disease are
over 50. Women start to go through menopause,
and men go through their own version of the
Continued on page 7

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Quick Takes
Better Sex May
Mean a Better Heart
Men who have sex at least twice a
week are up to 45 percent less likely
to have heart disease than men who
have sex once a month or less. So
says a study conducted on 1,000
men since 1987 by the New England
Research Institute.
The study tracked the sexual
activity of men between ages 40 and
70, checking them at regular points
over a 16-year period for both sexual
activity and signs of heart disease.
Taking into account risk factors
such as age, weight, blood pressure
and cholesterol levels, the results
showed that the benefits of sex
could be due to its physical as well
as emotional effects. It seems that
men with the desire for frequent
sexual activity and who are able to
engage in it are likely to be healthier.
One reason for this might be that
men who have frequent sex are
more likely to be in a supportive
relationship, which improves health
through stress reduction. Sex also
has a physical activity component
that might improve heart health.
An earlier study at the National
Cancer Institute also showed that
men who had sex at least five times
a week were much less likely to
get prostate cancer. And a study at
Wilkes University in Pennsylvania
showed that sex once or twice a week
in winter can boost the immune
system, reducing the chances of
catching colds and flu.

Womens Heart Health

Begins at 30
Women should begin to take
steps while in their 30s if they want
to prevent heart disease later in life.
Risk factors like smoking, elevated
cholesterol, and obesity are usually
well-established by that age. Obesity,
for instance, triples the odds of a
heart attack.
Taking care now will leave you
6

plenty of time to get healthy before

you get into the high-risk years. In
other words, stopping smoking,
eating right, losing weight, and
exercising now can prevent heart
disease as you age.
Early screening, including blood
pressure, pulse, waist circumference,
and body mass index (BMI) the
amount of weight attributable to
fat should be checked every two
years.
Some other factors to
consider: Women over 35 who use
contraceptive birth control should
consider stopping if they have
high cholesterol, uncontrolled
high blood pressure, a BMI over
30, or a smoking habit. Older oral
contraceptives with high doses of
estrogen have been shown to create
risk factors for heart disease and to
increase the chance of blood clots.
Women with histories of irregular
menstrual cycles at age 35 have a 50
percent greater chance of eventually
having a heart attack, possibly
because erratic cycles are frequently
linked with obesity. Medication and
weight loss can get symptoms under
control and should reduce heart risk
later in life.

Good for the Heart,

Good for the Head
A widely prescribed drug for
controlling high blood pressure
and heart disease also appears to
reduce the risk of Alzheimers and
other forms of dementia. Around 36
million people worldwide suffer from
some form of dementia, a number
that is expected to double over the
next two decades.
Study patients taking angiotensin
receptor blockers (ARBs) were
shown to be 19 percent to 24 percent
less likely to develop dementia
compared with patients taking other
drugs. Alzheimers patients who took
ARBs were shown to be nearly half as
likely to need admission to nursing
homes at the end of the study.

It is believed that the correlation

between ARB use and decreases
in dementia stems from increased
blood flow to the brain. The
effectiveness of these drugs was
even greater among men who used
them in conjunction with another
blood-pressure treatment called
angiotensin converting enzyme
(ACE) inhibitors.

Work the Heart

For a Stronger Brain
Older people should keep their
hearts pumping with physical
activity in order to protect and
even reverse memory problems,
according to two recent studies.
One study, done by the Mayo
Clinic with 1,324 people between
50 and 65, showed that those who
reported engaging in moderate
physical activity, such as playing
golf, swimming, or walking, showed
a 39 percent reduction in the
odds of developing mild cognitive
impairment, and that similar exercise
in later life showed a 32 percent
reduction in risk.
A second study found that
moderate physical activity can
treat mild cognitive impairment.
Researchers at the University of
Washington looked at patients
with an average age of 70 who
were already experiencing cognitive
decline. A group of 23 patients was
randomly assigned to an aggressive
aerobic exercise program, while
another 10 did stretching exercises,
keeping their heart rates low.
A series of tests performed on
each group showed improved
cognitive function in the highintensity group compared with the
stretching group.
The tests showed that six months
of behavioral intervention involving
regular increased heart rate was
enough to improve cognitive
performance without the risks that
come with drug therapies. Keep
moving for life!
May 2010

Continued from page 5

change, often called male menopause.

In both cases, hormones decline: estrogen in
women and testosterone in men. (Testosterone
also declines in women, and the declines have an
impact on libido in both sexes.)
As a result of these hormonal changes, the fuel
that drives the engine of cholesterol control runs
low. Muscle mass decreases. These changes often
lead to weight gain. Additional pounds and our
sedentary lifestyle exacerbate muscle loss a
vicious cycle sets in. And, people over 50 simply
cannot bounce back from overwork or stressful
situations as well as younger folks. You have to
begin to adjust your schedule because you cannot
go at the same pace you once did.
When I played middle linebacker, for instance, I
could pick up the front end of a Volkswagen. At 55, I
cannot, and I dont expect to for the rest of my life.
Its likely youll feel nervous and anxious more.
Think of a 14-year-old standing over a three-foot
putt to make par. Now imagine yourself in the
same situation. Who would you bet on?
Even if you are ready to admit you dont suffer
from the delusion of invincibility you once had,
you might find it hard to think of the ways your
schedule might be changed to cut stress. Recently,
President Clinton had two stents inserted. His
staff spoke of trimming his schedule around the
edges. Hed better do more than that.
Once again, I find spouses are my greatest allies
in helping their mates implement stress reduction.
I often ask couples to go away for a long weekend
together and make a list of the ways the patient
can alter his (or her) lifestyle. A spouse can usually
point out how late the patient stays at work, for
example. Spouses can also be more candid about a
patients drinking and smoking habits.
In my own case, I had to give up working
until 11:30 p.m. every day. I had to come home
at dinnertime in order to have a decent, modest
meal, instead of waiting until I was famished
then vacuuming up cafeteria food. Working
shorter hours decreased my income, but that was
a necessary adjustment as part of my recovery
program.
You must realize that you need a balance in
May 2010

your life between work and recreation. You need

to draw closer to your family members and spend
more time talking to them. Talking to ones spouse
is my No. 1 stress reducer and, for most, the
easiest to implement.
Take time dedicated time to pray.
Concentrate on all the things for which you are
grateful. It is impossible to feel stressed when you
are feeling grateful. I mean literally impossible:
The two emotions are polar opposites.
Stressful events inevitably will come to every
person and household. But if you modify your
schedule, youll be able to handle it better.
I find, for instance, that I need to start the day
with exercise. The rest of the day is beyond my
control and once it starts exercise time seems to go
out the window. Some people are at a place in life
where they can take a long lunch break. Instead of
going out to eat, I recommend that they walk.

The Ultimate Change

Is Finding New Purpose
Leisure cannot be an end in itself. Its better
understood as re-creation, a time of putting
yourself back together in order to return to work.
That doesnt necessarily mean slaving away at a
stressful, high-powered job. It means working at
an appropriate pace for where you are in life.
I tell my patients that I dont want them to retire
ever. You sit down in that recliner and you
start to rot and decay. Get up and move! Youve
probably acquired tremendous skills over your
lifetime, and these should be employed for others
benefit. Dont waste your life and your talents by
being sick.
As you do this, youll discover that life
and human history are not a competition but
something of far greater gravity. Life is a war, with
a good side and an evil side.
Take action on behalf of the good side and
youll quickly see where the lines are drawn. And
God, whatever you might have thought previously,
will become real to you. I guarantee it.
Thats the ultimate reversal of heart disease
re-making that stony organ inside into flesh again
so that it can start pumping.
7

Ask Dr. Crandall

Dear Readers,
I will try to answer as many questions as I can.
However, because of the volume of questions, I
cannot answer each letter personally. Please include
your full name, city, and state when submitting.
If you have a question for me, please e-mail it to:
askdrcrandall@newsmax.com.
As part of my heart-healthy regimen, Im trying to
limit my calories to about 1,800 a day. Sometimes
I get so hungry that this becomes very difficult. Do
you have any tips for curbing ones appetite?
Tom N., Lincoln, Neb.
Your appetite is affected by hunger, thirst,
and satiety (feeling full). To avoid overeating, its
important to address all three aspects.
A successful eating plan should leave you feeling
hungry for your next meal but not starving.
You can best curb your appetite by not overly
stimulating it in the first place. Its important to
realize that certain foods increase your appetite and
spur cravings. Foods with lots of sugar or highfructose corn syrup briefly satisfy the appetite only
to make you hungrier later.
Its a good idea, too, to eat healthy, small meals
and snacks more frequently every 3 to 4 hours, in
fact, so that you wont get famished and then binge.
Sometimes we mistake thirst for hunger. Whenever
I feel my appetite coming on, I drink a glass of water
first. Take a bottle of water with you wherever you
go. Go to the grocery store and stock up on healthy
snacks like carrots, snap peas, grapes, Clementine
oranges, and whole almonds. Then, when you feel
hungry, youll have an alternative to unhealthy
snacks that will only increase your appetite.

exercise actually increases the brains capacity to

experience pleasure.
Finally, get to bed on time. Those who do not get
enough sleep are much more likely to be overweight.
Research has shown that good shut-eye prevents
the disruption of some of the hormones that control
appetite.

A friend told me he takes resveratrol as part of

keeping his heart healthy. I understand it has
antioxidants, like in red wine. Is resveratrol, or red
wine for that matter, helpful in preventing heart
disease, as my friend claims?
Max S., Decatur, Illinois
A glass of red wine per day is recommended by
the American Heart Association. It helps boost the
levels of good cholesterol (HDL). It also helps
reduce blood clot formation and helps prevent
artery damage caused by high levels of low-density
lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL). Red wine also
contains antioxidants called polyphenols that help
protect the lining of blood vessels in your heart.
Resveratrol is an antioxidant found in red wine
as well as in other foods, including grapes, peanuts,
blueberries, and cranberries. Research on resveratrol
indicates that it could be linked to a reduced risk
of inflammation and blood clotting, both of which
could lead to heart disease.
If you presently drink red wine in moderation, you
may be receiving some health benefits, but remember
that alcohol intake also has a lot of drawbacks,
including increased cancer risk.

To your heart health,

Research suggests that those who overeat may

have fewer pleasure receptors than those who
dont. Research also suggests that this deficit can
be compensated for through exercise. Thats right,
Please note: All information presented in Dr. Crandalls Heart Health Report is for informational purposes only. It is not specific medical advice
for any individual. All answers to reader questions are provided for informational purposes only. All information presented in Dr. Crandalls Heart
Health Report should not be construed as medical consultation or instruction. You should take no action solely on the basis of this publications
contents. Readers are advised to consult a health professional about any issue regarding their health and well-being. While the information found
in Dr. Crandalls Heart Health Report is believed to be sensible and accurate based on the authors best judgment, readers who fail to seek counsel
from appropriate health professionals assume risk of any potential ill effects. The opinions expressed in Dr. Crandalls Heart Health Report do not
necessarily reflect those of Newsmax Media.
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May 2010