Nitrates causing ectopics?

[Belle11]

I've been back in rhythm for 5 weeks now following a cardioversion. On just a few occasions I've had a few ectopics, always within some hours of eating something containing nitrates - and haven't been able to eat anything with nitrates without getting ectopics - I had bacon a couple of times, sausages twice, and yesterday had some pate in the evening, forgetting that would contain nitrates too. So no more processed meat for me. Does anyone have a similar experience?

[BobD Volunteer]

Life style and avoiding meat and processed food is important to reduce AF burden.

[Belle11 in reply to BobD]

Other meat, mostly chicken, chicken livers, occasional venison, are fine I find - it's just the processed, eaten no more than once a week, that produces symptoms. I also used to feel my heart thumping when I ate cheese while in persistent AF. Have totally given up cheese since my cardioversion. I've seen some lists of foods to avoid that suggest that the tyramine in mature cheese can be a factor in AF too.

[Dawsonmackay]

That would be a BIG YES!

[Belle11 in reply to Dawsonmackay]

What's your experience DawsonMackay?

[Dawsonmackay in reply to Belle11]

The problem with Nitrates is that they are loaded with SALT! BIG TIME! Salt is absolutely no friend to Afib or any heart problem. Do you know why? Do you know the genesis of salt within the body. Too much salt... What is too much salt? I say anything on a label that says a certain serving is above 100mg. The genesis of recovering from too much salt is this: the kidneys are FORCED to deal with it and they do a great job of eliminating the threat but at a terrible price. The kidneys pull water from other parts of the body to flush out the saline and your heart kicks into overdrive or an irregularity or ectopics or worse, I'm in NSR one minute and then Afib the next! Processed foods especially canned goods are loaded with SALT. Start reading labels and start taking care of yourself, make a conscious effort not to eat foods that contain salt for a week. I bet you will not suffer from heart irregularities. My experience mirrors what I just wrote. When I go to a friend's house for dinner, I ask them what is in the food. If there is a hint of too much salt, I either won't eat it or I will dilute with milk or liquid. There's nothing worse for me than flipping from NSR into Afib. I don't want to be there. And just for the record, Nitrates or Nitrites are poison to people with Afib or general heart problems. Everything in moderation.

[Belle11 in reply to Dawsonmackay]

Good to hear your experience - thanks for sharing it.

Fortunately I'm not suffering from irregularities, other than on 5 isolated occasions when I had processed meat since my cardioversion, and then each time I had just a few ectopics in the hours following. Just enough to tell me what was causing it, and not to have any more nitrate containing foods!

Nearly all the food I eat is home prepared from fresh ingredients, so not a lot of salt there.

Having given up sugar some long time ago, I was inclined to have crisps as a snack too often instead - so they've had to become an absolute no-no too since being back in NSR!

Thanks for all the info.

[secondtry]

Absolutely, there is some packaged ham 'Unearthed' in Waitrose supermarkets nitrite free.

[Belle11 in reply to secondtry]

Thanks Secondtry. That's useful to know.

[Smokie2D]

I wonder if that apply's to the good old GTN tablets, or spray, that is for angina and the fact I am on 75mg Isorbide Mononitrate (slow release) for my microvascular coronary artery disease!

[Belle11 in reply to Smokie2D]

Sorry to hear of your microvascular coronary artery disease Smokie. Do your GTN tabs/spray help with it?

That's an interesting question you put. I imagine the effects of glyceryl trinitrate which relaxes blood vessels and so allows more oxygen to the heart, will be very different, while according to this US medical site, "it's thought that sodium nitrate may damage your blood vessels, making your arteries more likely to harden and narrow, leading to heart disease."

mayoclinic.org/healthy-life...

So it sounds as if your tabs should be fine.

[Smokie2D in reply to Belle11]

In answer they both help with it, or seem to! The Isosorbide mononitrate is to do the same thing but at a constant level. I have been on them for a long while, even before my AF "appeared"

[Steve101]

Belle do you feel better for being in NSR or do you feel the same?

Steve

[Belle11 in reply to Steve101]

Heaps better thank you Steve. I feel alive again! I was in persistent AF (first ever AF) from last April to mid January, and before my cardioversion, I hadn't got the energy to do anything much at all. Being put on Digoxin last Sept made it worse, and after the dose was doubled in November I became zombie like, and developed foot and ankle swelling.

So, I think I've benefitted from both being in NSR and from being off digoxin, and want to do everything I can to stay free from another attack.

[Steve101 in reply to Belle11]

That’s great to hear!

Let’s hope you stay in NSR, I’m confident you will.

I have my cardio version in March.

Hope it gets me back in NSR and I stay that way.

My cardiologist / EP said to me, if the cardio version gets you in NSR and you feel better as a result, even if AF returns it is a good indication that an ablation would be the next thing to do. If returning to NSR as a result of the cardioversion does not make you feel better, no point in having an ablation.

Fingers crossed for you.

Best wishes

Steve

[Belle11 in reply to Steve101]

Thanks so much Steve. It's really concentrated my mind on finding the best ways of eating and living to hope to keep it that way.

Very best wishes to you too for your cardioversion to be successful.

[tunybgur]

I haven't experienced similar issues, but avoiding processed meats (most of which contain nitrates) is a good idea as they have a very strong link with gastric/intestinal cancers.

One exception is (real) Parma ham which has no nitrates added and is delicious, I also think Berkshire ham is nitrate free....

[Belle11 in reply to tunybgur]

Thank you tunybgur. I love Parma ham, but eating some of it was also sadly followed by a few ectopics, as was some Nakd bacon without nitrates Maybe just the very high salt content with the Parma ham - pushing my BP up perhaps? I must have a look for Berkshire ham, and see what sort of salt content that has.

No problem with any fresh meat so far though.

I was already aware of the cancer risk, and pancreatic cancer too, but thought that once a week would be OK. Nothing like a debilitating health condition to concentrate the mind on what really helps!

[tunybgur in reply to Belle11]

Yes, it could be salt....no advantage in going vegan then.

I've started to cut down on my (red) meat intake and found all sorts of vegetarian options (very popular now), but unfortunately most of them are dripping in salt!

Gotta read the labels...

Good luck

[Belle11 in reply to tunybgur]

Happy food hunting! Most of the time I cook with fresh ingredients, and find herbs and spices give flavour without adding much salt. But I did used to be rather addicted to crisps ....

[Clivecsw]

Hi Belle11, think you might be on to something there - I generally follow a veggie diet (yawn) but if I visit the folks and have a stonking bacon sarnie (yum) or roast it can trigger the old afib!

[Belle11 in reply to Clivecsw]

Thanks for sharing that - interesting discovery. Do you have paroxysmal afib?

[Clivecsw]

Yep, started a couple of years back, tend to go into afib a couple of times a week for several hours at a time, scary and knackering even now, on the old bisoprolol and alixiban along with meds for hereditary hypertension- guess us lot just have to get on with it, gord bless!

[Belle11 in reply to Clivecsw]

It is exhausting to be in AF for those of us that get symptomatic. Various people on this thread have been writing about salt in general as a trigger for it. I'm currently working on cutting out foods that seem liable to trigger my heart, as I don't fancy another 9 months or more of continuous AF.. So out have gone the processed meat, the crisps I used to be partial to, and also cheese, which really made my heart thump when I was in persistent AF. Possibly they all raised my BP??

Good luck with managing your AF too.

[Clivecsw in reply to Belle11]

Thanks Belle, the best of luck and !ove, take care X