STATINS AND THEIR NASTY LITTLE SECRET

I was particularly irked the other day to discover that my mother was taking statin drugs to reduce her cholesterol.

It wasn't so much that she was taking them, that annoyed me, but the fact that her doctor had not told her that taking statins could reduce her Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) uptake by as much as 40%

In 1994 drug companies introduced a new class of cholesterol lowering drugs known as statins.  To date statins are the most profitable drugs in history! and studies have found that these drugs not only lowered blood cholesterol levels but also produced a slightly lowered risk of heart attack.

So why all the fuss about CoQ10 - well it is an essential co factor your body uses to derive energy, without it you simply could not exist and it is a powerful anti-oxidant present in every cell of your body.  Because of its ubiquitous presence (it's everywhere) you may see it referred to as ubiquinone.

CoQ10 is especially important to your energy hungry organs such as your heart, liver, brain and kidneys.

Consider this:

• CoQ10 deficiencies are more common in people in their forties and beyond
• Long duration endurance exercisers tend to have lower levels of CoQ10
• Deficiencies in CoQ10 are very common in patients with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and low HDL levels of cholesterol
• CoQ10 levels are often low in those people who avoid eating meat and extremely low in vegans

If you fit into any of the above categories then you may want to consider supplementing your diet with CoQ10 as it may have a dramatic effect on your energy levels and cardiovascular health.

If you exercise moderately and eat a well balanced diet yet feel you need some additional help in maintaining healthy blood pressure then you'll be interested to know that supplementing with CoQ10 has been demonstrated to lower blood pressure in several human clinical trials. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, was conducted in 2001 by researchers at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Boise, Idaho, who succinctly concluded that ". . . CoQ10 may be safely offered to hypertensive patients as an alternative treatment option."

CoQ10 can either be made in the body or obtained from food.  The best sources of CoQ10 are animal foods which contain fat! and as heart patients are often advised to reduce their fat intake in an effort to reduce cholesterol levels; no CoQ10 being made in the body and a reduced CoQ10 intake from food equals a recipe for disaster!

As studies have found (of which there are many) CoQ10 actually protects and strengthens the heart, I therefore find it ironic that the world's most profitable drug should actively suppress it.

It's a mad world!

To your health

Margaret x

P.S. if you suffer with joint problems and arthritic complaints read this article:  The Hidden (and painful) Cost of Statins

EXCERCISE LESS... REALLY IS MORE!

Calling all gym junkies! read and weep!

If you lead a busy life, finding the time to exercise can be difficult or if you’re like me and you simply don’t like exercising then you’ll love this recent research into fitness that suggests that exercising just a few minutes each week can be just as beneficial as jogging round the park for an hour or so.

More gain for less pain! Sounds too good to be true? ....read on!

Professor Julian Baker from the University of the West of Scotland is at the forefront of this startling new research into fitness. His fitness regime involves short bursts with high intensity activity. For example you can run or step (anything that involves high intensity exercise) flat out for 30 seconds and then rest for 30 seconds. You then repeat this cycle 4 times over. Professor Baker’s research has found that pushing muscles to their absolute limit can improve your fitness. But what’s incredible about this fitness regime is that it lasts for only 4 minutes with 2 of them spent resting! Or put another way with only 2 minutes spent exercising!

Professor Baker recommends that you would need to do the exercises about 3 times a week and your initial fitness level will depend on how quickly you improve your overall fitness.

Current UK government guidelines recommend that we exercise 30 minutes to an hour a day of moderate exercise 5 times a week!

The data compiled by the University of the West of Scotland suggests that this type of training improves above and beyond the benefits gained from exercising for 30 – 60 minutes.

So how can a man or woman who is effectively only exercising for 2 minutes get the same or better fitness benefits as someone who exercises for longer.

One line of reasoning is that if you do short burst exercising you’re working 250% harder in terms of the intensity of the exercise than say a jogger. The exercise for the jogger is much more gentles on the muscles where as the short burst exercises is pushing your muscles to the max, which has the maximum benefit on your fitness.

Scientists are still trying to find out why this type of exercise should work but they do know that exercising to the absolute limit is more effective in reducing blood pressure and widening blood vessels and strengthening muscles.

Depending on your initial level of fitness over a 5 week fitness period of exercising in short burst high intensity could result in a significant loss of body fat and loss of weight but could up your overall level of fitness by as much as 50%.

If you haven’t exercised in a while don’t start running, stepping or any high intensity exercising straight off. You will need to build up from a gentle pace and see your doctor before you start any exercise regime if you have any concerns.

I think everyone no matter how busy and hectic a life they lead can find 12 minutes a week to exercise!

To your health

Margaret x