Wouldn’t it be nice to have more energy and a healthy heart? As with most of my posts so far, my focus is to discuss nutrient deficiencies for treatment or prevention of disease. I often find that some of the most common medications that we take are causing a depletion of certain nutrients. Did you know that the most commonly prescribed group of medications are the cholesterol lowering medications. These medications are collectively called “statins” because most of the names of these medications in this group end with “-statin”. A few of the most common medications in this group are Lipitor (atorvastatin), Zocor or Vytorin (Simvistatin), Crestor (Rosuvastatin), and many more. The way these medications work to lower cholesterol cause a nutrient to be depleted. This nutrient is called Co Enzyme Q-10 or CoQ10. This enzyme is necessary in the production of energy inside each cell of our body. Without this enzyme cellular energy production is decreased which leads to the following problems.
Feeling Tired
Muscle Weakness – a common side effect of “statins”
Heart Failure -(from weakening the heart)
Irregular Heart beat (arrhythmia)
High Blood Pressure
Hearing Loss
Immune system dysfunction
Most have seen this enzyme on store shelves but you need to know that there are different kinds of CoQ10 to choose from. We carry two different kinds. Ubiquinone – Less expensive and more difficult for your body to absorb. Although when produced in a liquid softgel we still see impressive results. Ubiquinol – More expensive and less difficult for your body to absorb. When in a liquid softgel we see improved absorption and more benefits.
How much should you take? I suggest that healthy people under age 60 take a minimum daily dose of 60 to 100 mg of hydrosoluble CoQ10 to improve the metabolic efficiency of their cardiovascular system. If you’re over 60 or on a statin drug, I recommend increasing your CoQ10 intake to 100 to 200 mg daily. If you had recent heart surgery, heart attack or congestive heart failure, I recommend 200 to 300 mg daily.
I also recommend dividing the dosages, taking half of your daily CoQ10 in the morning and the rest in the afternoon. That’s because when CoQ10 is taken twice a day, as opposed to one time a day, the blood levels are much higher.
I am currently starting on a combination of Omega-3 and CoQ-10 this week. I am switching from taking the ProOmega-D to this product because my Vitamin D level is good and I also take a separate Vitamin D 5000iu. I love to use combination products to reduce the number of items that I am taking. This product contains the less expensive Ubiquinone 100mg but it is in a softgel.
To find out more about this product you can visit Nordic Naturals Website www.nordicnaturals.com/en/Products/Product_Details/515/?ProdID=1487
If you would like myself or one of our staff to review your medications to see if you are on one of the “statin” medications send me an e-mail jregel@regelpharmalab.com.
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