The End of a Decline in Heart Disease

Apparently for the past 40 years heart disease has been in decline. However, earlier this month Reuters reported that the trend may be at an end. Researchers from the Mayo Clinic and the University of British Columbia examined the autopsy reports of residents of Olmsted County, Minnesota that died between 1981 and 2004 from unnatural causes.

They found that “declines in the grade of coronary artery disease ended after 1995 and began to climb after 2000.”

While the data do not point to a specific cause of this about face in heart disease, the researchers do note that during this same period of time, Americans’ lifestyle became more sedentary, fast food consumption grew, physical education in schools was reduced and we all increased our consumption of high-fructose corn syrup.

The most disturbing finding in the study was “the youngest age group was the age group with the worse disease[.] This age group will have major problems as they continue to age.”

You can find the Reuters report at:
Autopsies forecast surge in U.S. heart disease | Reuters

Another Cocoa Study Shows Positive Effects on Hypertension

Here’s a study from The Journal of the American Medical Association that shows that cocoa, or more specifically, the polyphenols in cocoa, has a positive effect on blood pressure. It points out several important facts:

• It doesn’t need to be a huge quantity of dark chocolate to have an effect
• The dark chocolate must be taken regularly
• It must be taken on an ongoing basis

The study was performed on a rather small population (44 individuals) with untreated prehypertension (120-139/80-89) or stage 1 hypertension (140-159/90-99) without any other risk factors. According to the study, the prevalence of hypertension decreased from 86% to 68%. The participants were given either 6.3 g of dark chocolate containing 30 mg of polyphenols or the same amount of white chocolate which contained no polyphenols for a period of 18 weeks.

The study also points out that blood nitric oxide levels increased in the test participants. Nitric oxide is what triggers the dilation of the blood vessels and reduces blood pressure.

Here’s the link to the abstract of the study:

JAMA — Abstract: Effects of Low Habitual Cocoa Intake on Blood Pressure and Bioactive Nitric Oxide: A Randomized Controlled Trial, July 4, 2007, Taubert et al. 298 (1): 49

In my opinion, the thing about eating chocolate as a “medicine” is that healthy individuals probably wouldn’t feel any different, even though the polyphenols would be of benefit. Individuals with cardiovascular disease could probably measure an improvement and may feel healthier.

I know that has been the case with me.