Our editors comb the news wires daily for the latest developments in the field of natural medicine, saving you the time of having to do that yourself. Just a quick scan of our News Bulletin post will bring you up to date regarding the latest news events on the health topic being discussed. Today’s topic is lowering cholesterol naturally.

How to Prevent, Treat and Reverse Heart Disease with Diet and Natural Remedies

What if much of what you know about your cholesterol control is wrong? According to two renowned cardiologists as reported in NaturalNews.com, it is! A common myth of modern medicine is that “eating foods high in cholesterol will increase your cholesterol numbers and put you at greater risk of heart disease.” But, this is simply not true! According to cardiologists, Dr. Dwight Lundell and Dr. Stephen Sinatra, “fat and cholesterol are not the main culprits responsible for hardening of the arteries and heart disease.”

In reality, sugar is the real villain behind high cholesterol problems. Dr. Robert Lustig explains that sugar and HFCS “cause inflammation, the true source of arteriosclerosis (plaque in the arteries).”  The report describes how, in order to prevent and remedy heart disease, there are 7 steps you should take and it begins with reducing sugar intake:

1. First, to cut back on refined sugar and refined starches (such as white flour and grains).
2. Second, increase your intake of omega-3 fatty acids as “the imbalance of omega-6 fatty acids to omega-3 as an inflammatory factor in the standard American diet (SAD).”
3. Avoid oils processed by heat or hydrogenated oils as these cause inflammation. And, be sure to avoid one very unhealthy cold-pressed oil: Canola (rapeseed) oil.
4. Increase your intake of magnesium either in food sources (such as greens) or via supplements. Magnesium is a critical mineral for heart health.
5. Drink pomegranate juice as studies show it helps unclog arteries.
6. Take the amino acid, L-arginine. L-arginine helps “increase blood vessel nitric oxide to repair arterial inner lining damage.”L-arginine-rich foods include plant and animal proteins, such as dairy products, meat, poultry, fish, and nuts. But, it’s best to get your daily dose of L-arginine through supplements.
7. Try additional herbal remedies and teas such as cayenne, Jamaica tea or hawthorn berry tea and extracts. Each of these natural remedies have been well-researched and recommended by doctors to their own patients.

Merck Recalls This Cholesterol Drug Because it Doesn’t Reduce Heart Attack Risk

As one of the top integrative physicians in the U.S., Dr. Robert Rowen has been decrying for years several of the widely held “cholesterol myths” that conventional doctors, the popular press and Big Pharma have been selling to the general public for the last 25 years. One of those myths is the belief that cholesterol causes atherosclerosis and subsequent heart disease. So I’m rather sure Dr. Rowen took particular delight in his April 17, 2013 Second Opinion Health Alert to proclaim “If you are not convinced about the cholesterol scam, a Merck drug recall should seal the deal.”

Reuters first reported back in January the recall of Tredaptive, a combination “drug” that contains our old standby niacin (vitamin B3) with a fluorinated chemical which suppresses the natural flush niacin causes. Niacin is a natural vitamin that has successfully reduced the bad cholesterol and raised the good cholesterol for five decades, but the combo drug made it patentable so Merck thought they had another blockbuster. But in a December press release, Merck said “Tredaptive did no better in the study at preventing heart attacks, deaths or strokes than traditional statin drugs that lower “bad” LDL cholesterol.” And use of the drug brought on significant side effects.

Dr. Rowen’s analysis of the situation is “So here we see that a drug that improves lipids does not translate into fewer heart deaths. This has more implications than just debunking the cholesterol myth. It goes to show that treating a symptom by not addressing the cause doesn’t work, and might well be dangerous.”

New Study Show How Safe Fish Oil Is – No Matter Your Age

Fish oil has long been hailed as one of the top supplements for lowering cholesterol naturally. Unfortunately, some skeptics have argued that fish oil may not be safe. But, according to Frank Shallenberger, MD, (one of our favorite integrative medicine docs), fish oil is “one of the best and safest supplements on the market.” Dr. Shallenberger’s June 27, 2013 issue of Real Cures Health Alert, reports on the safety of fish oil supplementation for pregnant moms and their babies. As Dr. Shallenberger explains, “If fish oil is safe and beneficial for this group, then you can bet it’s safe and beneficial for you.”

Salacia a New and Old Remedy for Prediabetes and Hyperlipidemia

Salacia is a woody, climbing plant that grows mainly in southern India and Sri Lanka. It belongs to the Celastraceae family, and there are numerous species, one of which is Salacia reticulata. The herb contains a number of natural chemicals believed to have medicinal value including the powerful plant antioxidants, polyphenols.

According to EMaxHealth, a recent study revealed Salacia can help people with pre-diabetes and hyperlipidemia, a condition characterized by excessive amounts of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. The study showed taking 500 mg of Salacia reticulata root bark and leaf extracts daily improved participants’ fasting blood sugar levels within 6 weeks and improved their LDL cholesterol levels in as little as 3 weeks. More importantly, no adverse events were reported and both forms of the supplement were found to be safe, unlike the conventional statin drugs which a plethora of side effects and have been proven dangerous in over 900 studies.