Hi all, i went out yesterday evening for long walk with my dog in the great outdoors.Got home, and ate a very spicy meal. Aboit an hour later very symptomatic afib kicked in...lasted for 5 hours.
Daughter, blamed afib on long walk.
I suspect spicy food triggered the afib flare up.
What do you guys think?
Exercise and food are two of my triggers, but I would definitely go with the spicy foods here, although it could be a combination.
Jim
⁷Yes it could have been the exercise! Why? Five days ago i was admitted to hospital. Going by ecg etc triage treated me with aspirin! First cardiologist i saw was very concernced troponin was 185 follow up blood test 6 hours later, troponin was 179!!! This lovely cardiologist requested a echocardiogram. Suspect, she thought i had a HA? Unfortunately, registrar cardiologist (horrid arrogant guy) i later saw ignored high troponin levels and just focused on arrhythmias, an claimed afib was the problem. Really! What a load of crap. Not all arrhythias are down to afib. Sent me home...no echocardiogram. The highest troponin level i ever had while in severe afib was 82. Big difference from 185/179.
From very start of this scary experience my loyal fitbit device did not alert me with the usual continuous afib notifications. I had arrhythmias which were not afib related.
So yeah, think i made a mistake going for long walk.
Troponin was 285/ 279 not 185/179
Spicy food ! ☹️ Actually, for me - anything with gluten, oats and wheat would do it. I consulted a Nutritionist for my solutions and it covered much, much more. You may be interested in researching Vagal Nerve, it is like an information superhighway between brain, heart and gut. Also researching schfmatic diagram of vagal nerve may assist your understanding.
Could you elaborate on your diet and anything else that explains your success? Thanks.
Also, how exactly does one heal one's Vagus Nerve? Thanks.
Hi Pommerania,
Bear with me, your question involves a bit of a detailled answer ............ so here it is, an extract from some notes I made years ago ......
"As the months wore on and I returned to work and continued with my new lifestyle I began to identify the return of an AF event with food I’d eaten. This ‘identification process’ was very slow and very, very subtle to start with. It was almost bordering on the concept of -’Oh! I don’t believe this, so I’ll ignore it’. The symptoms I began to experience were massive, massive and painful bloating – like I was attached to an airline at a garage (to pump up my car tyres). I could see my gut inflate – literally ! The pain was slightly to left of centre of the chest but also around the lower part of the rib cage. Other symptoms were constant burping, loud and therefore antisocial intestinal gurgling, flatulence and diarrhea.
None of these symptoms occurred in any particular order, bloating was almost a given after any meal, diarrhea was very frequent and usually occurred first thing in the morning after breakfast and the others very much when they felt like it – or so it seemed to me. I lived with all this for the best part of a year and through the Atrial Fibrillation Association online forum I noticed people comment on the vagal nerve. This began my journey of discovery leading to a degree of healing and to where I am today.
By June 2011 I’d had enough of my new found condition, not the AF per se, but the way AF was triggered by food and the digestive system. I went to my GP and he arranged for me to have some blood tests to see if there was any indication of either IBS and Coeliac Disease. The test results indicated that I was all clear on both counts but my GP tended to think I might be marginal IBS. He offered to carry out more tests but I declined. I then decided to consult a Nutritionist."
The Nutritionist advised me to go Gluten, Wheat and Oats free, which I did. She also helped me organise a food diary. This food diary enabled me to record all manner of foods that seemed to contribute to the bloating and AF. The list just went on and on. So basically, for me at least, a wide range of food caused a degree of inflammation, thus bloating thus causing a dysfunctional Vagal Nerve which kicked off the AF.
So with the passing of time, and following the Nutritionists advice I eliminated all the troublesome inflammation causing foods. The Nutritionist also prescribed a dose of ProBiotics which I consumed in the beginning and occasionally from time to time afterwards.
Eventually, very slowly, I lessened the AF events in my life, Some foods on the diet I have been able to return to, others not so. Nowadays I can say I am AF free ( never admit to being cured ) and as far as I can say I haven't had an AF event for about 4 years. I expect it to continue ... it may not !
However, there is always a twist. My Consultant originally wrote in my Discharge Letter that I could be 'asymptomatic' .... that is in AF but not showing/feeling any symptoms. But these days I do feel good, always a bit tired BUT I tend to relate that to a combination of age and my medications I have elected to have for life. I have never entertained either Cardioversion or Ablation.
John
Besides Gluten what are the other foods that you avoid? What are the foods that you DO eat? Thanks very much.
Here we go, hope this answers your questions ..... So, in addition to removing gluten, wheat and oats from my diet, ( which also included even food with traces of this stuff ) out went the typical English pub style real ales while some lager beers are fine, as are wines and some spirits.
Tea and coffee were/are not a problem.
Out went yoghurt, raspberries, runner beans, peas, baked beans, nuts like walnut, almonds, brazil etc. (yet processed nuts like salted cashews or peanuts do not seem to be a problem). Out went soft cheeses like Brie ( but hard cheeses like Edam and Cheddar are fine), all hot spicy food, msg, wholemeal or any grainy bread, roast pork with crackling - but not pork butterfly steaks, roast duck, onions ( yet spring onions/shallots are fine), all salad greens except 'Rocket', yet radish and watercress is fine.
Tomatoes I can only take very infrequently, then only half a tomato or a small tomato.
Jury is still out on eggs, but they are suspect. I find nowadays I can eat one fried egg a week. Can’t eat scrambled egg at all nor boiled eggs. Don’t get me wrong ... I love eggs, Omlettes are OK. Just that eggs upset me.
Oh yes, and I am now added sugar free too because I had a minor health scare which put me borderline pre diabetic. This was a real scare and affected me far more than my AF diagnosis because my father had Type 2 diabetes which eventually killed him. I nowadays self test my blood sugar twice a year at random to ensure my Hb1ac reading is well below the pre diabetic level.
It isn't just these foods in isolation that are the problem I am also convinced it is how these food ingredients interact with each other. I have to say though, this all represents myself, others may be affected by a different range of foods and drinks in slightly different ways.
I would also add that I have been added salt free for at least two decades, maybe closer to three.
So bringing you up to date ..... I have returned in small doses to the following;
Raspberrys, peas, baked beans, tomatoes, I have still kept off yoghurt but enjoy mousse, only have white sliced bread, I can even take full cream milk now but only with cereal at breakfast, I have returned to limited amounts of sugar with tea, but not with coffee at all.
So, there we are. I’m sure I’ve missed stuff out its all been a long time now, a tad over 14 years .... BUT been AF free for about 4 years and my heart hasn’t been tampered with via cardioversion or ablation. It’s still an original heart al beit an old and worn one.
Dining out is still a challenge and requires careful selection of the menu and with Chinese resturants, even careful selection of resturant itself. Hope this has been of interest and is of help.
John 😊
What medicines do you take? Thanks.
Hi,
Please bear with me - I'll get back to you on the range of foods. On the matter of meds ....
1) From Jan 2010 to August 2023 I was on Simvastatin, Ramipril, Felodopine, Warfarin and Bisoprolol.
2) From August 2023 my Surgery Pharmacist advised me to change my party bag of meds to ..... Ramipril, Felodopine, Atorvastatin, Edoxaban and Nebivolol.
I also take a supplement Pharma Nord Bio-Quinone Q10 in 100mg doses.
Throughout the period of years from around 2015 to date and ongoing I was also put on Finastaride ( for Prostate control ).
John
I hade Afib most of yesterday - I went to a Garden Centre but I doubt that's the cause, Spicy food I don't know but I use alcahol. It's so hard to say, it can just come when there seems no reason.
Garden centres as an AF trigger! I’ll definitely be keeping away from those places then! 🤣
😆
🤣🤣
You have AF so you will get AF. Strangely a good Punjabi curry always settled very easily for me and the effect lasted several days.
Spicy food is not a trigger for me. However, I have seen a lot of people on here say it is for them.
food
Last week I had an Indian buffet the last night of our Fiji holiday with my wife. Ate too much, too quickly then went to bed without waiting 3 hours to digest, woke up did usual push ups and sit ups and went into AF. Sometimes it’s the speed or quantity we eat or the spice and richness of the food. It’s taught me another lesson.
Hi
Well it could because it can upset my stomach to make it very acid.
I can't eat Butter Chicken. using jar of 'Chicken To Night'. I think too much butter - too fatty.
I have no gall bladder.
Or if it was a big meal the nerve going near your heart can respond with AF.
I always drink milk or have yoghurt or icecream after.
cheri jOY. 75. (NZ)
Thankfully, spicy food hasn't been a trigger for me, otherwise I would now have a limited diet 😁 but exercise has bought on an attack.But AF is such a poo, with anything seemingly setting it off, looking in the mirror first thing could do the deed............with me I meant, not you 😁
One thing we all know is that we're all different. So, as much as everyone is trying to help by expressing their thoughts, no one really knows what triggered your AF.
Certainly exercise and spicy foods can each be triggers and combined they might even be a double-whammy! They haven't been a problem for me - but I'm not you.
Some members will say you will go crazy trying to identify your AF triggers but since you're asking, I presume you want to try. So, you need to think about the circumstances leading up to you AF episode:
- have you ever associated either with an AF event previously?
- what else can you remember about the lead up to your AF?
- how did you sleep?
- was food spicier than normal and/or did it contain any new ingredients e.g. msg ( a known trigger for some)
- what else did you eat or drink?
- did you keep hydrated?
- how have you been feeling?
- was the walk extraordinary in any regard (faster, longer, more strenuous)?
- anything that stands out etc?
Make notes each time you have an episode and look back at past notes to look for common factors. Google them as possible AF triggers noting that correlation (common factors) doesn't necessarily mean causation.
The reason why they say it will drive you mad is because it's very difficult (near impossible) for us mere mortals to know everything that's different in the lead up to an AF episode to all of the circumstances where we are not in AF. It might be a combination of factors and/or things I did yesterday or the day before that might have an impact. I could ramble on for hours on this - possibly because I'm one of the mad ones 
Anyway, only go as deeply into it as you want to (or even not at all). The main thing is you understand that you are best positioned to determine what triggers your AF - everyone else is trying to help but they are only guessing and/or telling you what they believe affects them.
Good luck
PS the next time you go for a long walk don't have spicy food afterwards and see if the walk triggers AF. Similarly, if you're still willing to eat the same dish again, then try having it on a day when you don't take a long walk. If you do this and you have an AF episode after either I think everyone would appreciate an update.
Thanks bean counter 27. I think the elephant in the room that triggered afib was i suspect i had a HA on 7 Jan an exercise was too soon after the HA. Long story so wont go into too much detail. On 7 jan admitted to hospital a+e only...troponin was 285...second trop test was 279. Was treated with asprin. Registrar cardiologist said it was afib sent me home. In the past, with very symtomatic afib troponin level only ever reached 82. Besides, that on day of suspected HA my trusted and reliable fitbit did not send any notifications that i was in afib.
Hmm. Not good.... but good that you got through it.
I have read that the stomach can easily - through eating and drinking, swallowed or internal gas, movement, exercise, and so on - press up against the heart, via the diaphragm, and cause ectopic beats to occur (PACs). These are thought to bring on AF in some people.
Steve
So how much you eat and drink could also be a factor (assuming a fuller or overfull stomach is more likely to press up against heart and/or exert more pressure).
Yes, I suspect so. There’s not much on the internet about this. A specialist showed me my X-ray once that showed my stomach doing just this and explained the link. A later specialist has never heard of it and seemed unconvinced (or interested).
There’s a condition called gastro-cardiac syndrome that is well described on Wikipedia, but it’s not all that held to. My own GP is convinced on the link between stomach and arrhythmia (but mechanical not “vagal”).
Steve
Hey Steve thats really interesting. Suspect my iffy gut is connected to triggering some of my afib episodes. Off to check out gastro cardiac syndrone on wikipedia. Thanks you
I get the feeling that it's not a commonly accepted idea.
Steve
Well it should be more of an accepted idea. New up coming scientific evidence actually states the brain is in the gut. Have no idea how that relates to cardio issue but do know medical professionals DO NOT KNOW EVERYTHING and can have closed minds....contempt before investigation will keep them confined in their bubble.
I do know i feel well if i dont eat, in fact i never feel hungry but know i have to eat....hence big mistake eating one off spicy meal.
That's interesting in never feeling hunger. It does point to some likely genetic differences in the nervous supply to your stomach. Does it help keep you slim? My hunger goes away with even a small meal, which helps keep my weight down. My downfall is that I do enjoy a glass of wine or G&T and I'm a sucker for a few chocolates while watching TV! I swear I could eat a whole Toblerone and as for M&S Belgian chocolatepeanuts - I could eat two bags!!
Steve
Yeah Steve i have always been slim and could eat any type of food in excess and could never gain weight. Its all down to metabolism...now i older metabolism has slowed down hence hardly ever feel hungry. Have recently gained weight 4kilos grrr but this is due to being hypothyroid. Jealous of you being able to have a lovely G+T....miss that the most during summertime. Carry on munching all your goodies Steve. How come sugar doent trigger your afib...really curious.
Bad luck of putting on weight. Getting older doesn't have many benefits, I reckon!
I have doubts, myself, that sugar (sucrose) ca directly trigger AF given the metabolic route that it takes in the body. At least, let's say that I can't imagine how sugar could scientifically speaking be a trigger of an AF episode directly. I would guess, if eating sugar itself brought on AF, then it would have to be something that sugar "does" such as increase insulin concentration or whatever.
Steve
Yes, I reckon some hot peppers I ate by mistake triggered an AF episode for me last October. Mind you, they were really hot as I was bathing tongue in water for ages!!
Spicy Spanish food put me from paroxysmal into persistent afib. Having said that although it was very scary at first now I feel great on bisopropol 1.25mg per day and Edoxaban 30mg per day. I swim, play golf, do yoga and walk. The EP did not offer me a cardio version or ablation and I'm not pursuing it as I feel so good except have to go a bit slow when walking up hills
I'm one of these people who cannot put on weight no matter how much they eat though I'm very close to prediabetes so have to be careful with the chocolate. My diet is reasonable but a long way from Mediterranean because I have too many food intolerances.
There's definitely a link with the vagus nerve, in my case. This links your gut and your heart, amongst other things. I used to get terrible palpitations after meals and found it was linked to eating a heavy meal, especially if high in carbs. Try taking ginger capsules after meals. I found this after a lot of research. It really does work. They will increase your gas (both ends) for a while - but you feel better for it!
However I have never tried it to settle AF as I have never had any symptoms of that, it just showed up on an ECG. Worth a try though, I don't think it can do you any harm but I would check first.
Neither have ever been triggers for me. Exercise is what I do to stop afib. Spicy food is simply something I eat often, it has never bothered me.
I, like the rest of you tried to identify triggers, I hoped that I could outsmart afib through diligence. In a short time I came to the conclusion that there are no triggers, only coincidences. If you can avoid afib by avoiding certain foods or behaviors I say that is good and I am happy for you, but, I remain more than a little skeptical,
AFIB ATTACK TRIGGER???
AFIB being triggered by food
If stress trigger the first afib episode, can it trigger again for sure?
Afib Ablation 
