Researchers have come up with the latest cure-all drug for heart disease--a six-in-one pill that they claim would reduce heart attacks and strokes by 80 percent. The authors even go so far as to conclude "that there is much to gain and little to lose by the widespread use of these drugs. No other preventive method would have so great an impact on public health in the Western world."
Quite a claim considering there is no evidence showing that the pill, known as the Polypill, does in fact reduce heart disease as trials have not yet been conducted, and the idea is based on a review of other studies. They are also assuming that since each component of the pill appears to have a beneficial effect on heart disease independently, combining them will have a similar but amplified effect.
The pill contains six components--aspirin, folic acid, a cholesterol-lowering drug and three drugs to lower blood pressure at half doses--and each part of the pill is supposed to reduce one of four cardiovascular risk factors (LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, homocysteine, and platelet function). The authors recommend the pill for everyone above 55 years of age and younger people with a clinical history of occlusive arterial disease.
A pill for an entire population above a certain age? This sounds like the drug companies’ dream come true. It also sounds like an accident in the making. To recommend a wonder pill to "cure" a huge group of people from a disease that is largely caused by diet and lifestyle factors is irresponsible at best and just plain dangerous at worst. It is also like sending out a "carte blanche" encouraging people to eat all the junk food they want and not bother exercising because the Polypill will save them from their impending heart disease.
There is also no telling what effect a six-in-one pill will have on your body. To recommend such a pill for this large group of people disregards the complexity of the human body and assumes that the pill will work in all types of people.
Blatantly overlooked in the ludicrous proposition of a pill to prevent heart disease is the notion that diet, exercise and stress management can have profound effects on your risk of heart disease. If the money that will be spent developing this new Polypill would be spent instead on educating the public and encouraging them to adopt more heart healthy lifestyles, the majority of these conditions wouldn’t develop in the first place.
The truth is you can drastically cut back your risk of heart disease and you don’t need a pill to do it. Check out my nutrition plan for some advice on how to get started. Starting an exercise program is also important, as is managing your stress. I’ve found EFT to be remarkably effective in dealing with stress.
Adding omega-3 fats in fish oil and cod liver oil to your diet is another way to reduce your risk of heart disease, because it is high in two fatty acids crucial to human health, DHA and EPA. These two fatty acids are pivotal in preventing not only heart disease but also cancer and many other diseases.
When choosing your fish oil or cod liver oil, it is important to remember that not all brands are the same. In my research--and in my clinical experience with my patients--I have found that:
It is likely not the only brand in the world of such high quality, but up to this point it is the only one of such quality that I can recommend, so I now offer the Carlson's fish oil and cod liver oil on Mercola.com; you can also check your local health food store to see if they carry it.
So before you decide to pop a pill, try out some of these basic suggestions. You’ll be amazed at how effective they truly are.
Fish Oil Reduces Heart Disease: The Evidence Increases More Evidence That Fish Oil Helps Heart Disease Dietary Fats and the Cause of Heart Disease Reconsider Taking Aspirin to Lower Your Heart Disease Risk Depression, Even if Treated, Increases Your Heart Disease Risk Low Grain and Carbohydrate Diets Treat Hypoglycemia, Heart Disease, Diabetes Cancer and Nearly ALL Chronic Illness
Fish Oil Reduces Heart Disease: The Evidence Increases
More Evidence That Fish Oil Helps Heart Disease
Dietary Fats and the Cause of Heart Disease
Reconsider Taking Aspirin to Lower Your Heart Disease Risk
Depression, Even if Treated, Increases Your Heart Disease Risk
Low Grain and Carbohydrate Diets Treat Hypoglycemia, Heart Disease, Diabetes Cancer and Nearly ALL Chronic Illness