Coronary artery calcium scanning may reliably rule out the need for statins, study shows

[sandybrown]

I got an email from diabetic UK, this link gives an article on hearts health!!

An interesting reading.

diabetes.co.uk/news/2016/se...

[Anne76]

I had a coronary artery scan last August twelve month and came out as high risk. I have been on the WFPB NO OIL diet for twelve months and was hoping to have another scan to see how my arteries had responded to this way of eating. Unfortunately due to the radium involved I cannot have another scan for st least a year. All my cholesterol and LDL levels went down within four weeks. Is there another test I could have to see if my arteries have cleared even a little. For all the people who write wanting to lose weight I suggest they give this a go. I am down to seven stone and have a job to eat enough not to lose more weight,

[sandybrown in reply to Anne76]

Heart investigation?

I am sure there are a number of procedures available, radio active or not.

Do we really want to subject our heart to all these tests?

Just enjoy life with regular exercise, food and drinks intake control and watching out for hidden sugar and free sugar. one life.

[PeterWh in reply to sandybrown]

Heart scans are not procedures. A couple of examples of a procedure are a catheter ablation and an angiogram.

Yes they are important because they can provide a wealth of information to the electro physiologist or cardiologist as to how well the heart is performing or deformities.

[sandybrown in reply to PeterWh]

I am afraid I do not know may medical terms, I only learned from medical courses and Google.

This is what I read:

Heart scan (coronary calcium scan).

During the procedure.

Before the actual scan begins, the technician will attach sensors, called electrodes, to your chest. These are attached to an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), which will record your heart activity during the exam and coordinate the timing of X-ray pictures between heartbeats, when the heart muscles are relaxed.

During the heart scan, you will lie on your back on a movable table. The table will slide you into the tubelike CT scanner. Your head will be outside the scanner the whole time. The exam room will likely be cool.

You may be given medication either by pill or injection that slows your heart to ensure clear images. If you are nervous or anxious, you may be given medication to help you remain calm.

The technician will operate the scanner from a room next door. He or she will be able to see you and communicate with you. The technician will ask you to lie still and hold your breath for a few seconds while the X-ray pictures are taken. The machine will make clicking and whirring sounds, and the entire procedure should take 10 to 15 minutes.

After the procedure.

There usually aren't any special precautions you need to take after having a heart scan. You should be able to drive yourself home and continue your daily activities.

[brooks2591 in reply to Anne76]

What is the WFPB NO OIL diet?

[Anne76 in reply to brooks2591]

please search under Dr Esselstyne and you will find all the information you need. I picked this up from the forum and bought his book

[westbury18]

I'd be interested to know where you paid for your heart scan privately (and how much it cost - if you don't mind me asking). Also, did you devise your diet yourself or are you following a plan that I can also obtain? Thanks.

[Anne76 in reply to westbury18]

I went through Lifescan Ltd, based at Tunbridge Wells who do the booking but arrange for e test st a private hospital near where you live. The cost is £295. If you do go ahead I can let you have a voucher which will refund you £25 and me for introducing you, it has to be used by early December though. I found details of this diet through this forum. There is a video on YouTube of a Dr Esselstyne and Bill Clinton. He has followed this diet nice his heart attack some years ago. The diet seems quite drastic to start with, many recipes on the web, but I now quite enjoy it.

[Bazza1234]

A Calcium score test is good - if you have low or high cholesterol. If you have low cholesterol and you have no other "normal" primary risk factors (like high blood pressure, smoking, overweight, etc) you will be classified by a Doctor as having "low risk" -- BUT you may indeed have a high level of calcified plaque and hence partially blocked arteries. Only a calcium score test can detect this. In this case, it is good to know this information as atherosclerosis is not called the silent killer for nothing. On the other hand, if you have a high cholesterol reading like me ( along with no other primary risk factors), you may indeed like me refuse to take statins for many years. However a calcium score test may indeed show (like it did to me) that you have high levels of calcification and you need to address the issue (diet, exercise, statins) to stop the calcification from progressing. I have learned a lot since I voluntarily had a calcium score test a few weeks ago.

[sandybrown in reply to Bazza1234]

Thank you.

[Anne76 in reply to Bazza1234]

I agree with you Bazza1234 that we have to be aware of the silent killer. I do take a statin and upped it to 40mg from having this test. As I have mentioned before I have been on WFPB NO OIL way of eating, there is a lot of information on the web about this although it all seems to come from America where it is covered by their Medicare insurance.

[sandybrown in reply to Anne76]

Hi,

Thank you your discussion, I had a look for WFPB:

A whole foods plant based (WFPB) diet is based on whole or minimally processed whole grains, legumes, vegetables and fruits. It excludes animal-based foods, including fish and dairy, and also highly processed foods such as oils (that means no olive oil or coconut oil).

Olive oil and coconut oil are very important to human diet! but I agree with fresh veg and fresh fruits. There are a lot of information given by different people. Enjoy one life, regular exercise and controlled food and drinks intake can offer a healthy life.

For me no more investigation!, no more medication even for allergy, I have been on this for the last 35 years. time will tell

[sandybrown]

Thank you. Fried rice, "Any special way to fry, which oil?". I take it not like the take away fried rice!

[brooks2591]

Thanks for sharing. Very interesting indeed. No doubt it will take years before available on the NHS.

I'm keen to come off statins as I fee quite young to be on them, but every time I break my Cholesterol creeps up. Been tracking it for awhile now, and I always see a return to high Cholesterol when off of them...

[LemongrassDays4U in reply to brooks2591]

Both my husband and my brother have followed a predominantly plant-based nutrition diet for 6 to 8 weeks. They still have oil in their diet. What you have to understand is that not every oil is good for everyone.

[Penel in reply to brooks2591]

If you have been diagnosed with Familial hypercholesterolemia, coming off statins may not be in your best interest.