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Heart Health and Homocysteine

Heart Health and Homocysteine

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the US - a disheartening fact considering all the technology and money we have collectively used to improve our heart function. Our own culture, with its fast food and increasingly sedentary lifestyle, plays a major role in the prevalence of heart diseases. One of the problems we face is the degeneration and clogging of our artieries caused by abnormal levels of homocysteine.

Homocysteine is an amino acid created in your body necessary to create cysteine, which can function has an antioxidant. However, elevated levels of homocysteine are very dangerous for your arteries. When your body contains too much homocysteine, this amino acid can do a couple things with grave ramifications to your health. For instance, it can damage the inner lining of the arteries, weakening them and sometimes making them more brittle. The real danger of elevated homocysteine is clogged arteries. Homocysteine can cause this in two ways - first through damaging the arteries resulting in a clot, and secondly by causing plaque or fat to build up in the arteries.

When the arteries become damaged and rough, especially with smaller ones, blood cells and platelets - or worse, fats, begin sticking to the damaged area. Not only is the blood vessel weakened, but blood flow is constricted. Alternatively, homocysteine can itself attract deposits of fats and plaque. We all have some fats and plaque flowing through our blood. The problem occurs when there is a build-up of these materials that impedes our life-giving blood. Once clogging begins, our heart has to work much harder to pump blood throughout our body. If a full clog occurs in the heart, it usually results in a heart-attack. If this occurs in the brain, then a stroke can be the symptom. Either way, homocysteine and the problems it leads to are dangerous.

How do you know if you have high homocyteine, and how do you combat it? Blood tests can easily tell you how much of the amino acid you have. If abnormally high, then medicine like the Nutri-West Homocysteine Redux must be taken. This contains a mixture of herbs and vitamins that break down the homocysteine into innoculous compounds and also helps dissolve any clogs already in your vessels. Though treatment for high homocysteine is simple, going without it may seriously put a damper on your day.