Better Heart Health Naturally
Angina. Angina is a severe pain in the chest region that basically is caused by the heart muscles being starved for oxygen and nutrients. In 1994, 945,000 Americans died of heart disease, including 487,000 from the later stages of angina (called ischemic heart disease).[1] People who have been through serious angina describe it as a “knife stabbing me right in the heart” followed by the “weight of an elephant sitting on my chest”. These are serious signs of heart problems and must be treated with immediate medical attention. Patients who suffer from chronic angina get to experience the pinnacle of miracle drugs in nitroglycerin. Within seconds after placing the nitroglycerin under the tongue, the blood vessels in the heart region begin to dilate and allow some oxygen to reach the starved muscles on the other side of the blockage.
Cayenne can help. Capsaicin triggers the release of a substance called CGRP (calcitonin gene related peptide) which is a potent dilator of the blood vessels that surround the heart.[2] As you work with your doctor, add cayenne to your health regimen, preferably 1-2 capsules of cayenne powder with lunch and dinner. Cayenne will not reduce the effectiveness of any heart medications and may begin to change the underlying causes of the angina, which drugs never do.
Since the active ingredient in cayenne, capsaicin, is easily dissolved in an alcohol solution, you can prepare a special remedy for angina that has been used by many famous herbalists. In a glass jar with a tight fitting lid, mix one ounce of dried cayenne peppers in with a pint of vodka or gin. Shake several times daily for 2 weeks, then strain this mixture through cheesecloth. Twice daily in between meals, take 6 drops of this tincture either under the tongue or diluted in a glass of water.
Heart disease. There are at least two famous medical herbalists, Dr. Richard Schulze[21] and Dr. John Ray Christopher who have written about their lifesaving experiences using cayenne to reverse congenital heart disease. For a particularly potent heart-protective herbal combination, use cayenne, garlic and hawthorne mixed together. See other sections under: fat reduction, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and obesity.
Heart arrhythmia. Irregular heart beat can be somewhere between annoying, frightening and life threatening, depending on how often it happens and for how long. Scientists using capsaicin to treat animals with heart arrhythmias found that capsaicin seemed to work like the prescription drugs, calcium channel blockers, to help regulate the heart beat.[22]
[1] . U.S. Bureau of Census, STATISTICAL ABSTRACT OF THE UNITED STATES, p.94, 116th ed, Washington, DC 1996
[2] . Rubino, A., et al., Cardiovascular Research, vol.31, p.467, 1996
[21]. Biser, S., CURING WITH CAYENNE, Univ.Natural Healing, Charlottesville, VA, 1997
[22] . D’Alonzo, AJ, et al., European Journal Pharmacology, vol.272, p.269, Jan.1995
