Les Proctor, Author at Cardia 7

Purified Omega 7 is an Inflammation and Cholesterol Breakthrough!

The “new” good fat: You’ve already heard plenty about DHA, the great-for-you omega-3 fatty acid in fatty fish and algal- or fish-oil supplements.

'Dr. Mike takes 420mg of omega 7 daily'

Now, research from Harvard Medical School, the Cleveland Clinic (where Dr. Mike is chief wellness officer), and universities in Hawaii and Japan suggest that omega-7s are a healthy fat with amazing powers, too. Omega-7s squelched heart-threatening LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, boosted ticker-friendly HDL, decreased fatty liver, and improved cells’ ability to take in blood sugar in several well-designed studies.

Our take? Four studies are better than one, but we need more human trials before recommending omega-7s unconditionally. Still, we’re intrigued — enough so that Dr. Mike takes 420 mg [sic] of omega-7 in capsule form along with 900 mg of DHA, which we each take daily. (Always tell your doc about any supplements you take.)

Source: Drs. Oz & Roizen, the YOU Docs. Used with permission of Dr. Michael Roizen.

C-reactive protein (CRP): And the simple blood test that could save your life

You probably know your blood pressure, and whether your cholesterol is high, low, or normal. But what about your C-reactive protein (CRP)?

Inflammation is the new enemy.

Short for C-reactive protein, CRP is a general indicator of inflammation within the body—a condition that can contribute to a host of serious ailments.

“Chronic inflammation can do serious damage to the arterial walls”

“Chronic inflammation can do serious damage to the arterial walls,” says Michael Roizen, MD, YOU Doc and best-selling author. ”Chronic inflammation causes swelling and reduction in the diameter of the arteries that can lead to blood clots and accelerate the buildup of plaque and subsequent atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.”

According to the American Heart Association, people with high CRP are twice as likely to suffer cardiac arrest as those with low levels. “This makes C-reactive Protein the most important cardiovascular risk factor we have for men and women over age 50—a more important factor than age, family history, blood pressure, cholesterol, and whether you smoke,” says Roizen.

Understanding your CRP levels is good for a lot of things…

Everyone should get tested to measure their CRP levels. And don’t just get your CRP test to protect your heart. There’s new research that shows that elevated levels of C-reactive protein are linked to heart disease, stroke, memory loss, impotence, wrinkling, even Alzheimer’s.

Knowing your CRP levels—and bringing them down if they’re high—is one of the best things you can do for your health.

“What’s your CRP?” – Take the CRP Challenge

In studies involving large numbers of patients, CRP levels seem to be correlated with levels of heart disease risk. In fact, CRP seems to predict cardiovascular risk at least as well as cholesterol levels do. Data from the Physicians Health Study, a clinical trial involving 18,000 apparently healthy doctors, found that elevated levels of CRP were associated with a threefold increase in the risk of heart attack.

Purified Omega 7 helps cool the fire

“We have seen significant reduction in CRP across the board–an average of 67% in one month”

Purified Omega 7 has been clinically shown to reduce C-reactive protein (CRP), which measures chronic inflammation — the best predictor of heart disease. As Luis Martinez, MD, a Board Certified Clinical Lipidologist who has been using Purified Omega 7 in his practice says: “We have seen significant reduction in CRP across the board–an average of 67% in one month. Purified Omega 7 has become a staple in my practice.”

Take the CRP Challenge today

1) Get an hsCRP test (a high sensitivity C-reactive protein test that measures inflammation). You can get along with a standard blood test. Ask your doctor, or a local lab to get your blood tested. You could try LabCorp, Quest Diagnostics, or Walk-in Lab.

2) Try Cardia 7 for $1. Purified Omega 7 has been clinically shown to lower CRP. Sign up below to join the “Campaign for Heart Health” and get a promotion code for a box of Cardia 7 for $1 plus $8.95 shipping and handling.

3) Get your hsCRP test again. After 30 days, get tested again. Just let us know how it works for you, and be sure to tell a friend! Everyone should know about CRP!

Join “The Campaign for Heart Health” and help spread the word about CRP!

What’s your CRP number?

CRP is measured with a simple blood test, which can be done at the same time your cholesterol is checked. One such test is the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP, also called ultra-sensitive CRP or us-CRP) test.

It’s important to note that inflammation due to other conditions, such as an infection, illness, or a serious flare-up of arthritis, can raise CRP levels. Before getting the CRP test, tell your doctor what other medical conditions you have.

How inflammation and bad cholesterol lead to coronary heart disease

With so much focus on cholesterol, it’s easy to forget that atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease, a silent killer, that strikes young and old, male, and female, fit and unfit, in the prime of life and peak of health.

To better understand your heart health, you need more than a simple stress test, EKG, or lipid profile…. it’s important to look at the inflammatory markers as well, specifically C-Rreactive Proteins (CRPs are a measure of inflammation in the body).

Bad cholesterol can build up “inside” your arterial walls

When many people think of atherosclerosis, they think of bad cholesterol accumulating to form plaque on the walls of the arteries themselves. But your arteries are a porous membrane, and if there is inflammation (which can be caused by saturated fats, particularly palmitic acid, which is a favorite of the food industry because it’s inexpensive, tasty, and stable), the low-density lipoproteins (LDL or “bad” cholesterol) are able to enter inside the arterial membranes themselves, and build up inside the arterial walls.

“ Low-density lipoproteins (LDL or “bad” cholesterol) build up inside the arterial walls. ”

Many people think of plaque building on walls of the arteries themselves. Yet your arteries are a porous membrane, and this video shows how Low-density lipoproteins (LDL or “bad” cholesterol) build up inside the arterial walls.

Thrombosis or “Hardening of the Arteries”

If plaque builds up long enough you start to get blockage, and then thrombosis. When a hardened artery wall ruptures, you get bleeding, resulting in blood clots, and a heart attack or stroke. Without a doubt, it’s inflammation, not just cholesterol, that is one of the major contributing factors of coronary heart disease.

“If you have the perfect storm of high LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, low HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and high inflammatory markers, it should set off alarm bells.”

With all the baby boomers walking around with their ‘ticking time bombs’, unless we do something fast, it’s a very real possibility we could start to have an increasing number of strokes and heart attacks, and it could bankrupt our country, as well as deprive us of people who could otherwise lead long, healthy lives.

You need more of the good and less of the bad

Eat less fast food and more real food: fruits and vegetables, lots of them in every color. Preferably from your own garden. Avoid foods that are high in saturated fats, like red meat, and replace them with real foods that are high in monounsaturated fats, like avocadoes. Drink plenty of water. I for one, am a big fan of the Mediterranean diet.

It’s important that we come to an understanding about the direct link between diet and nutrition, because heart disease is the #1 killer in the US. It is also one of the biggest contributors to the meteoric rise in health care costs.

Learn more!

CRP may be a better predictor of heart attack risk than cholesterol.Take the CRP Challenge, and sign up to get a promotion code to get your first box of Cardia 7 for $1.00, plus great tips from thought leaders in the fields of nutrition and heart health.

Purified Omega 7: “Just a little does a whole lot”

In this 4-minute video, Dr. Michael F. Roizen, Chairman of the Wellness Institute of The Cleveland Clinic, talks about atherosclerosis and heart disease, its causes and consequences: heart attack, stroke, memory loss, impotence, and wrinkling.

Join “The Campaign for Heart Health” and help spread the word about CRP!

Dr. Roizen shares how purified Omega 7 (palmitoleic acid) can potentially help in the fight against diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and atherosclerosis. This is exciting news because Purified Omega 7 “antagonizes” all three because it has been shown to decrease insulin resistance, decrease hepatic fat accumulation, and decrease acute and chronic inflammation - with no side effects.

“This could have a huge benefit for our populations as a whole”

To conclude, Dr. Roizen puts purified Omega 7 into perspective: “This could have a huge benefit for our populations as a whole because metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and diabetes are big things we need to tackle for us to be more competitive for jobs, and the United States to be more competitive as a society.”

“A medical breakthrough you should know about”

By Drs. Oz & Roizen, the “You Docs” (Excerpted from “Four Medical Breakthroughs you should know about”)

Recently, we were totally blown away by four medical breakthroughs we think you should know about.

Purified Omega 7

“Omega-7 fatty acids found in purified palmitoleic acid have amazing powers too!”

The “new” good fat: You’ve already heard plenty about DHA, the great-for-you omega-3 fatty acid in fatty fish and algae or fish-oil capsules. Now, research from Harvard Medical School, the Cleveland Clinic (where Dr. Mike is Chief Wellness Officer) and universities in Hawaii and Japan revealed that Omega-7 fatty acids found in purified palmitoleic acid have amazing powers too!

Our take: Take 200 milligrams of purified omega-7 in capsule form along with 900 milligrams of DHA daily. [Read more...]

The Napalm Connection to the Inflammation in Your Body

If you only knew what’s lurking inside the foods you’re eating (you probably wouldn’t eat them). Or at the very least, you’d be equally mindful of what you leave out of your diet as what you put in it.

What to leave in, what to leave out

Many experts now recognize inflammation as a key factor in many human ailments, especially those associated with the metabolic syndrome, which consists of the triad of insulin resistance, obesity, and cardiovascular disease.

The word “napalm” is derived from the words naphthenic acid and palmitic acid

One of the biggest culprits we unwittingly consume whenever we eat foods with saturated fats is a fatty acid called “Palmitic Acid”.

“ First, do no harm”

While there have been many treatments designed to lessen the harmful effects of inflammation in the body, perhaps the best advice to follow is that of Hippocrates that says: First, do no harm, and avoid or consume in moderation the foods that contribute to inflammation.

Palmitic Acid (or Sodium Palmitate)

Palmitic acid is a gooey, sticky substance you ingest when you eat foods that contain saturated fats (meats, cheeses, dairy, particularly ice cream). Because it is inexpensive and adds texture, taste, and stability to processed and enriched foods, palmitic acid and its sodium salt find wide use in foodstuffs most especially in fast food.

It is little wonder then, that consuming fast foods leads to weight gain and insulin resistance, and the increased risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes¹.

Palmitic acid has been shown to: (1) kill the beta cells in the pancreas that are responsible for the secretion of insulin, and (2) suppress the body’s natural appetite-suppressing signals from leptin and insulin — the key hormones involved in weight regulation (See “Ice cream may target the brain before your hips“).

The “napalm connection”

Many people are familiar with the chemical “Napalm”, a thickening/gelling agent mixed with petroleum that was widely used as an “anti-personnel weapon” in World War II and Vietnam.

What they are probably not aware of however how Napalm is made. The substance “Napalm” is named for the two key ingredients in the gel: naphthenic acid , and palmitic acid, which causes a tremendous “inflamed” outburst as seen above.

Join “The Campaign for Heart Health” and help spread the word about CRP!

Surprise, surprise, surprise…

Even more surprising to virtually everyone is that many popular dietary supplements, including many that claim health benefits, contain large amounts of Palmitic Acid, most notably sea buckthorn and krill oil. Many of these nutritional supplements contain upwards of 32-44% Palmitic Acid content; which far outweighs the beneficial effects of the active ingredients (for example: often the Palmitic Acid content is greater than the EPA/DHA in Omega 3 gel caps).

Therefore, it’s always a good idea to the “do no harm” approach.

If you’re trying to reduce the inflammation in your body, avoid or consume in moderation saturated fats from meats, cheeses, and dairy, and limit your exposure to nutritional supplements that contain palmitic acid.

Sources:

(1) Fast-food habits, weight gain, and insulin resistance (the CARDIA study): 15-year prospective analysis. Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.

Your turn…

What do you think? Was this something you were aware of? Kind of makes you wonder about the palmitic acid content of “pink slime” that’s been in the news. What are you doing to cut down on saturated fats in your diet?