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| Credit: img2.timeinc.net |
This energy-boosting supplement could
HALVE the number of deaths from heart failure
Regular
doses of the dietary supplement Coenzyme Q10 cut in half the death rate of
patients suffering from advanced heart failure, in a randomized double-blind
trial presented recently at the annual meeting of the Heart Failure Association
of the European Society of Cardiology, in Lisbon, Portugal.
Researchers
also reported a significant decrease in the number of hospitalizations for
heart failure patients being treated with Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10).
About
14% of patients taking 100 milligrams of CoQ10 three times a day suffered from
a major cardiovascular event that required hospital treatment, compared with
25% of patients receiving placebos.
In
heart failure, the heart becomes weak and can no longer pump enough oxygen- and
nutrient-rich blood throughout the body. Patients often experience fatigue and
breathing problems as the heart enlarges and pumps faster in an effort to meet
the body's needs.
Coenzyme
Q10 occurs naturally in the body. It functions as an electron carrier in
cellular mitochondria (the cell's "powerhouse") to help convert food
to energy. It also is a powerful antioxidant, and has become a popular over-the-counter
dietary supplement.
“CoQ10
levels are decreased in the heart muscle of patients with heart failure, with
the deficiency becoming more pronounced as the severity of their condition
worsens,” said lead researcher Svend Aage Mortensen, a professor with the Heart
Center at Copenhagen University Hospital, in Denmark.
"CoQ10
is the first medication to improve survival in chronic heart failure since ACE
inhibitors and beta blockers more than a decade ago and should be added to
standard heart failure therapy," Professor Mortensen added.
###
The
above story is based on the May 25, 2013 news release by European Society ofCardiology.
While
randomized clinical trails are considered the "gold standard" of
studies, because this new study was presented at a medical meeting, the data
and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a
peer-reviewed journal.
More information
Visit
the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to learn more about heart
failure.
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