Blood thinners: I am taking 3 meds that... - Advanced Prostate...

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Blood thinners

middlejoel profile image
15 Replies

I am taking 3 meds that could be considered blood thinners....Eliquis: Nattokiness, and Vitamin K. I also take Taurine and Arginine.

My question is...can I eliminate Eliquis and keep Natto?

I take the meds because I have been found to have A-fib. A few years ago, Nalakrats wrote a great article about this subject but Eliquis was not mentioned.

joe

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middlejoel profile image
middlejoel
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15 Replies
middlejoel profile image
middlejoel

I take Vitamin K for bone health, I have osteoporosis and prostate cancer.

Tall_Allen profile image
Tall_Allen

I suggest you ask your cardiologist, rather than rely on any info you pick up in a patient forum. If there is actual clinical proof in a peer-reviewed journal, you can share that and discuss with your cardiologist. If it is the usual poor evidence posted on patient forums, he will rightly laugh you out of the room.

middlejoel profile image
middlejoel in reply to Tall_Allen

Agree, I plan to ask my cardiologist, I just wanted to hear other's opinion. Sometimes, the knowledge in some of these forums exceeds that of doctors, I give as an example yourself and Nalakrats.

Tall_Allen profile image
Tall_Allen in reply to middlejoel

I don't look at anything Nalakrats writes, so I can't speak to that. What I've seen, I found seriously wanting - but caveat emptor. As for myself, I don't go beyond what is published in peer-reviewed journals. I make an attempt to analyze the level of evidence presented (I have the research and statistics background to do that), and if I have an opinion, I state it as such. I hope your cardiologist's knowledge far exceeds mine, since I know how much I don't know on the subject. If you think I know more than your cardiologist, you should certainly find a new cardiologist.

dhccpa profile image
dhccpa in reply to Tall_Allen

I think it's safe to say your knowledge surpasses that of at least 90% of practicing doctors, most of whom don't even read current medical studies. These are the people we oh-so-briefly interact with in offices across America.

depotdoug profile image
depotdoug in reply to Tall_Allen

Agree thouroughly. Ask your cardiologist, hope he or she is an interventional cardio doctor that is very anti-coagulant up to date. And see an EP specialist. Electrophysiologist that know heart rhythms.

tango65 profile image
tango65

If the cardiologist prescribed the Eliquis (most probable you have atrial fibrillation), you should not stop it. You should stop the other supplements which could have anticoagulant properties since they will increase the risk of bleeding .

depotdoug profile image
depotdoug

I was advised not to take vit K that is a known blood clotting mineral. Also arginine i’d be careful taking without talking or approval if your cardiologist. Look for and see a true interventional cardiologist. Please too seek an EP for AFIB control. I’m been AFIB free since May 6 2020 after my 2nd rf catheter ablation 300+ days if NSR.

pjoshea13 profile image
pjoshea13

My wife was able to control A-fib symptoms with taurine & arginine. We can become deficient with age. You take both but still need Eliquis?

Eliquis is not a blood thinner, it is a factor Xa inhibitor and causes delayed coagulation. You can monitor your risk for clots by checking D-dimer levels. You already use nattokinase - knowing your D-dimer lever helps when determining how much nattokinase to use.

Nattokinase is not a blood thinner - is is a clot dissolver (similar to plasmin.)

Vitamin K is not a blood thinner (nor does it cause clots.) It is a vitamin, which means that it is essential for health.

-Patrick

Daveofnj profile image
Daveofnj

Vit K is a factor employed in blood clotting. Patients are advised not to take it if they are taking Warfarin. Warfarin prevents clots because it is a Vit K antagonist.

Eliquis, Xarelto and the other newer blood thinners work in different ways that are unrelated to Vit K.

Currumpaw profile image
Currumpaw

Hey middlejoe!

A cherished aunt had a history of heart disease and bypass surgery. In her mid eighties she developed A-fib. I brought a bottle of CoQ10 to her. She took one in the morning and one at night. Her A-fib disappeared. About years later she had a fall breaking a hip and her shoulder. The hip was easy, some screws here and there but her shoulder was not able to be repaired and what is common, I understand, an artificial shoulder joint was placed at the upper area of the humerus bone in her arm. Some range of motion is lost but this enables life to go on. Her own shoulder was fused. Time in the hospital, time rehabbing in a nursing home, a little turn for the worse and back to the hospital. My cousin called and told me she was asking for me, that I "should come". A brief conversation and I put together some real foods to take to the hospital. She was "hooked up" with her vitals on the screen. She was on "Palliative Care", not being moved as a trip back to the nursing was out of the question. Her heart rate was bouncing between 115 and 155. We got a bit of food into her. I asked my cousin if she was still taking CoQ10. He informed that since he had been in the hospitals and nursing home she hadn't as it wasn't on her approved list. A short conversation my cousin spoke with her doctor who prescribed the hospital's CoQ10, (I was surprised they had it!), to be taken morning and evening. The next afternoon her heart rate was stable in the mid eighties. She was taken off palliative care and--accompanied by a nurse had a short walk with a walker down the corridor! In a few days she returned to the nursing home--the financial guidelines! It was a little early to move her. She never was quite as good as she had been when moved. Her heart rate never destabilized as it had once she was on the CoQ10 again. I think she had enough pain in life as she set a goal to reach--her 90th birthday! She chose that day to die.

Occasionally in the past a sinus infection might happen to me every other year or so. About a year or two after I initially had my aunt taking CoQ10 I needed a little help. I usually went to the walk in rather than my ENT. A doctor that had become somewhat of a friend was on, Dr. Gordon. Dr. Gordon was in his mid-eighties and practicing! He noted that it had been a couple years since I had been in and informed that he had a heart attack some time ago. He was a "cool older doctor" well liked and competent! Dr. Gordon had debilitating A-fib and was unable to live his life as he wished. The "young" heart specialists had tried this med, that med, these meds combined and so on. A little cardio shock here or there to reset his heart. Nothing worked. Dr. Gordon began reading. His research led him to try CoQ10. Within weeks he was back at work and playing handball again. He took a "little more" than the directions on the bottle suggest! Imagine that! What worked for my aunt had worked for Dr. Gordon after all the meds and specialists had failed! Dr. Gordon pointed that out! The walk in was sold to one of the hospitals several years back and Dr. Gordon must have retired. In the late 90's he gave me some advice that just might be the reason why I am typing this little history now. Thank you Dr. Gordon!

Ask your doctor if you can take some CoQ10. It is important that your docs know what you are doing and taking. I keep mine informed.

Currumpaw

j-o-h-n profile image
j-o-h-n in reply to Currumpaw

Nice Aunt, Nice Doctor..... Next time I see my Kardiologist....I'll mention CoQ10..

(A piece from their ad)

CoQ10 Is Fuel for Your Heart

Your heart beats about 100,000 times a day to get its job done and is fueled by CoQ10, which is why so many scientific studies have shown that it confers powerful support for your entire cardiovascular system.[1] When your heart has the high levels of CoQ10 it needs, it works like a charm. You see, your mitochondria (the cells' energy factories) need CoQ10 to generate ATP energy to keep your heart cells functioning and healthy.*

But when levels get too low, your heart strains to do its job, and ultimately your entire body suffers.[2])

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Thursday 03/04/2021 5:13 PM EST

Currumpaw profile image
Currumpaw in reply to j-o-h-n

Thank you j-o-h-n!

Currumpaw

My wife has Afib and was prescribed Elequis by her cardiologist three years ago.

middlejoel profile image
middlejoel in reply to

Thank you so much for all your replies to my question about blood thinners. I am going to review the comments that were made that were all over the spectrum, in the mean time I am convinced that I should eliminate one of the meds/supplements and I will run it through the cardiologist when I see him in a couple of weeks, The Vitamin K was prescribed by my oncologist because I probably have some bone mets. I am having an MRI next week to definitively ascertain if that is so.

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