Natural Ways to Reduce Arterial Calcium: Herbs & Prevention

The American Heart Association estimates 81 million Americans have cardiovascular diseases, with 17 million suffering from coronary artery disease. This results in a staggering $475 billion spent on drugs, treatment and job loss expenses and 831,000 deaths annually.

Calcium in Arteries

• The development of plaque in the arteries often leads to coronary artery disease, explains the Patient UK website. Plaques form because of the accumulation of calcium, which thickens the blood and narrows the arteries, boosting cardiac risk factors.

Prevention

• According to Full-Health.com, supplementing with herbs creates a detergent-like action in the arteries and circulatory system, helping clear out artery-clogging calcium deposits.

Herbal Clearing

• The Alternative Medicine Angel website cites a 1995 Hong Kong-based study published in the Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology journal, where researchers discovered ginseng acts much like calcium-blocker drugs without harmful side effects. HolisticOnline.com states that cayenne ̶0;lowers cholesterol and inhibits platelet aggregations by dilating arteries,̶1; while forskolin improves circulation by relaxing muscle cells within blood vessel walls.

Herbs for Arteries

• HolisticOnline.com lists other herbs that help dissolve calcium and other arterial blockage, including garlic, hawthorn, calendula, alfalfa leaf, lemon and curcumin, which deliver blood-thinning, cholesterol-reducing, circulation-improving and/or calming effects.

Conclusion

• For patients diagnosed with coronary artery disease, herbs may prevent cardiac events. Such patients should speak with their doctor and an experienced herbalist, however, before trying herbal remedies or discontinuing prescription medication.