Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a disease of the heart (cardio) and blood vessels (vascular) most often caused by a narrowing inside the lining of blood vessels due to deposits of plaque or fatty substances on the artery wall. CVD, or heart disease, is still the leading cause of disability and death in the United States.

Coronary artery disease is the build up of plaque in the arteries which causes a decrease in blood supply (ischemia) to the heart. This condition can lead to serious problems such as angina (chest pain) or myocardial infarction (heart attack). Coronary artery disease is the most common form of cardiovascular disease afflicting over 7 million people.

According to the American Heart Association, approximately 50% of the people who die from heart disease experience no previous symptoms. The # 1 symptom of a heart attack is sudden death. Symptoms of disease may be different and more subtle in women and therefore easier to ignore. More women die of heart disease than of all cancers combined.

The standard, conventional treatment for cardiovascular disease focuses on the key risk factors of family history, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia (high levels of fat substances such as cholesterol and triglycerides) smoking, obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle. Conventional treatment options include prescription blood thinners or other pharmaceuticals, bypass surgery, angioplasty, heart transplant, and general recommendations for lifestyle changes.

NIHA'S Integrative, Holistic Approach to Cardiovascular Disease and Risk Factors

National Integrated Health Associates places great emphasis on educating the patient in their prevention and treatment options for cardiovascular disease. The physicians at NIHA think that by integrating both conventional medicine with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM ), the patient can make educated choices that best reflect their needs as an individual.

The NIHA Cardiovascular Disease program includes: state-of-the-art cardiovascular screening, a comprehensive patient education program, assessment, nutrition, detoxification, psychological support, and an individualized integrative treatment plan including, but not limited to, chelation therapy*, supplementation, and other beneficial treatments based on the patient's risk factors and needs. NIHA also works in collaboration with the patient’s primary care physician and/or cardiologist to keep them informed of the patient’s progress and to refer the patient for additional medical tests and assessments.

WHAT TO EXPECT

This Integrative medical approach complements all the traditional assessments and uses other assessment tools to gain information in order to plan the best treatments based on the individual’s needs.

1.The comprehensive program identifies and treats traditional risk factors and looks at other risk factors that may play a role in preventing, treating, and reversing atherosclerosis such as:

Inflammation, infection, vasodilatation, homocysteine, hormones, lipids, platelet aggregation, antioxidants, stress, insulin resistance, toxicity, deficiencies of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, dysautonomia

PLUS uses 3-D Heart Scan for early detection of heart disease
PLUS treats the whole person through education, nutrition, detoxification and lifestyle changes
PLUS offers comprehensive and alternative treatment options

2. Testing of additional integrative risk factors considered by an integrative physician, and therefore more amenable to treatment:

Elevated Homocystien
Elevated Lipoprotein a (Lp[a])
Hormone excesses (estrogen) & Hormone deficiencies (cortisol, testosterone)
Elevated C-Reactive Protein
Elevated Fibrinogen
Depressed Apolipoprotein A-1 (HDL)
Elevated Apolipoprotein B (LDL)
B Vitamin Deficiencies
Mineral deficiencies & Mineral excesses (Iron, copper)
Heavy Metal Toxicity (Mercury, lead etc.)
Hyperinsulinemia (insulin resistance)
Antioxidant deficiency (vitamin C, E)
Amino Acid deficiency
Essential Fatty Acid deficiency
Metastatic Calcium

3. Integrative treatment options:

Early detection: non-invasive tests to detect heart disease

Comprehensive treatment options offering safe, effective, non-invasive therapies.

Chelation Therapy*

The Pillars to a Healthy Heart and Blood Vessels:

I. Education:
Lifestyle change and understanding the cause and effect. You assume your risks and become empowered to correct it. NIHA has on-going classes on Nutrition and Cardiovascular Disease and Complementary Treatment.

II. Detoxification:
Evaluation followed by treatment of bowel, heavy metals, chronic infections.

III. Nutrition:
Bowel detoxification and rehabilitation (Essential to all Healing)

Diet: The right diet for you, nutrient rich

Fat (membrane) rehabilitation—by increasing the good fats and reducing the bad fats

Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs, Enzymes– Optimizing nutrition for Healing and Maintenance

IV. CVD Treatment: Blood Vessel Rehabilitation:
A: Reduce Inflammation
    Reduce Infection
    Reduce Calcium and other Mineral Clogging Deposits
    Reduce Fatty Clogging Accumulations

B: Exercise—Use it or Lose it

C: Stress Reduction—Essential to Health

Additional integrative treatments focus on looking for, containing, and reversing the underlying cause of cardiovascular disease. These same principles also guide prevention of disease.

* While chelation therapy is well-established for heavy metal toxicity and has been used for over 40 years to reduce the vascular plaque that may cause cardiovascular disease, its effectiveness is still under study by the National Intstitutes of Health. While a number of physicians provide chelation and its safety is well-known, the role of heavy metal toxicity in cardiovascular disease is not widely accepted and the medical community does not accept that chelaton has a role to play in cardiovascular treatment.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Suggested Reading:
-Bypassing Bypass Surgery , Elmer M. Cranton, M.D.
-Forty-Something Forever, A Consumer’s Guide to Chelation Therapy and other HEART SAVERS, Harold and Arline Brecher
-The Cardiovascular Cure , John P. Cooke, M.D., Ph.D. and Judith Zimmer
-Questions from the Heart , Terry Chappell, M.D.