A study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (November 6, 2022) came to the conclusion that people should No use dietary supplements for heart health. In particular, the researchers were referring to red yeast rice, fish oil, plant sterols, cinnamon, garlic, and turmeric. His exact words: “Patients should be informed of the lack of benefit of these supplements on important cardiovascular risk factors.” What about the things that people Really worry about: heart attacks, strokes, stents or sudden death? To the dismay of some cardiologists, dietary supplements might actually be beneficial.
Going deeper into SPORTS data:
This research was calledSPORT.” It means: The Study of supplements, placebo or rosuvastatin. The sponsor was AstraZeneca, the manufacturer of crestor (rosuvastatin). By sponsor, we mean the company that paid for this research.
First, let’s look at what the cardiologists at the Cleveland Clinic did in the latest supplement study for heart health.
The research was designed to compare low doses of rosuvastatin (Crestor) with a placebo and a variety of dietary supplements. With eight different groups, there were about two dozen volunteers randomly assigned to each group.
The study lasted only less than a month. The researchers performed “before” and “after” measurements of each participant’s blood fats, including triglycerides, as well as HDL, LDL, and total cholesterol. Compared to other research, this was a very small study that lasted a very short period of time.
To no one’s surprise, rosuvastatin lowered LDL cholesterol by an average of 38%. None of the dietary supplements significantly lowered LDL in this study.
Misleading headlines about heart health supplements:
Here are some of the headlines that summed up the SPORT study:
“Flunk’s Lipid-Lowering Trial of Cardiac Supplements” medscapeNovember 20, 2022
“Are Over-the-Counter Dietary Supplements Helpful or Harmful? New research examining six of the most popular over-the-counter dietary supplements found that they are ineffective compared to heart medications and may even be harmful.” CBS PhiladelphiaNovember 9, 2022
“Patients may want to think twice before relying on supplements to treat high cholesterol” WISHTV.com November 9, 2022
“Six ‘heart-healthy’ supplements fail in cholesterol study” KOAMNewsNow.com November 17, 2022
“Don’t bother with dietary supplements for heart health, study says” CNN HealthNovember 6, 2022
Cardiologists Stigmatize Heart Health Supplements:
By now you get the picture. The message to consumers was that rosuvastatin (Crestor) plays and dietary supplements No. Of course, it all depends on one’s definition of “works.”
The study was small and only lasted one month. He showed that rosuvastatin (Crestor) was quite good at lowering LDL cholesterol. There are no surprises there. That’s what statins were designed for.
Dietary supplements that were tested during that time period did not. The researchers do not appear to have consulted www.consumerlab.com to determine the most effective dietary supplements.
Supplement quality can be an issue:
consumerlab.com it actually tests dietary supplements like red yeast rice for active ingredients (lovastatin or monacolins K and KA) and contaminants (citrinin). When it comes to red yeast rice (RYR), this testing company recommends cholestene HPF and points out that it was the only RYR product that passed for quality.
Apparently, the Cleveland Clinic researchers didn’t bother to test the red yeast rice product they used in their SPORT (Arazo Nutrition) research project. ConsumerLab noted in its analysis of red yeast rice products that in its test of the Arazo Nutrition brand of red yeast rice that “lovastatin could not be detected.” As a result, ConsumerLab concluded that “DID NOT APPROVE”.
Not surprisingly, then, the red yeast rice used in this trial did not lower LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, triglycerides, or any other risk factors. It did not contain the active ingredient. In my opinion, that was a BIG ooops!
Other Heart Health Supplement Studies:
The results of the SPORT trial do not mean that the dietary supplements it “tested” are worthless. Larger studies that lasted longer have shown different results for some of these natural compounds.
First of all, this study focused mainly on blood lipids, especially LDL cholesterol. It did not attempt to measure any effect on heart health outcomes, such as heart attacks or strokes. It was too short and too small to do it.
VITAL:
Other studies have looked at some of these alternative compounds. A large randomized controlled trial of fish oil and vitamin D, the VITAL trial, followed nearly 26,000 Americans age 50 and older for more than five years (New England Journal of MedicineJanuary 3, 2019). The researchers concluded that fish oil did not reduce major cardiovascular events.
Separately, he concluded a meta-analysis of 38 randomized controlled trials of omega-3 fatty acids like those found in fish oil (eClinicalMedicineAugust 1, 2021):
“Omega-3 fatty acids reduced cardiovascular mortality and improved cardiovascular outcomes”
We must conclude that the benefits of fish oil are complicated, but dismissing them entirely may be a mistake.
Red yeast rice:
What about red yeast rice (RYR)? This medicinal food has been used for centuries in traditional Asian medical systems. The compounds produced by yeast that make red rice work in the same way as statins like rosuvastatin.
A review of multiple clinical trials found that RYR is safe and effective for people with high cholesterol (Journal of the American College of CardiologyFebruary 9, 2021). However, the focus of that review was on blood lipids, such as LDL cholesterol. Of course, that’s just what the most recent SPORT trial also studied.
The authors concluded:
“RYR could represent a therapeutic tool to support lifestyle improvement in the management of mild to moderate hypercholesterolemia in low-risk patients, including those who cannot be treated with statins or other LDL cholesterol-lowering therapies.”
A meta-analysis of 30 randomized controlled trials concluded that RYR lowers LDL and total cholesterol and reduces insulin resistance. Even more important, red yeast rice preparations reduced mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events (Frontiers in PharmacologyFebruary 21, 2022). Those are things that really worry patients.
Another meta-analysis included seven studies with more than 10,000 heart attack survivors (scientific reportsFebruary 17, 2020). The study showed that in these high-risk individuals, RYR for a period of four weeks to four years reduced the chance of another heart attack, stents or sudden death. That is in addition to the helpful effects on blood lipids.
Turmeric (curcumin):
Asian medical systems have also given the world turmeric. While the Cleveland researchers did not find it helpful in lowering cholesterol, other scientists have reviewed the effects of its main ingredient, curcumin. They found that it fights inflammation, reduces oxidation, and improves mitochondrial function.
In fact, there have been studies of curcumin supplements for heart health.
A meta-analysis of studies published in the Archives of Physiology and Biochemistry (December 2022) concluded:
“This study suggests that curcumin can lower blood lipid levels and can be used as a hypolipidemic agent.”
In other words, the authors report that the active ingredient in turmeric lowers blood lipids. That contrasts with the results of the SPORT study.
The bottom line of heart health supplements:
Heart disease is complex. There can be many ways to protect this critical organ. There are also many risk factors beyond LDL cholesterol. If you want to learn more about them and a variety of ways to improve heart health, consider our Electronic Guide to Cholesterol Control and Heart Health. It can be found under the Health eGuides tab at this link. There is also more detailed information on the Try SPORT in this link.
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