What is Arterial Plaque and why does it cause heart attacks
Cardiac Attack (Heart attack). It is a term which sends alarm bells ringing and instils fear as everyone wants to know his or her chances of getting one.
So why do we get a heart attack and why is the incidence of such attacks rising so rapidly?
To bring it down to understand easily, arterial plaque is one of the major reasons. Plaque causes arteries to thicken, restricting blood flow. Thickening of arteries causes them to lose their flexibility causing a rise in blood pressure.
CIMT (Carotid Intima Media Thickness) is a test designed to measure the deposition of plaque and the level of thickening that has occurred. It is actually a measure of your actual versus your biological age because you may be (for example) 50 years old but your biological age maybe 65 years. Some healthy individuals have the opposite. They may be 70 years but their biological age may be much less, say 55 years.
The thickness of arteries is caused by many factors which include some complex genetic inheritances also. But largely it is caused by your lifestyle and diet. As plaque keeps building, there are areas where fluid buildup causes a leakage in the intima and it comes in contact with blood. On coming in contact, it forms a clot. The clot finally disintegrates and on reaching the heart, can be a cause of heart attack.
Another test, the CAC (Coronary artery thickness) test is another important test in determining the thickness of the Coronary Artery and the buildup of plaque.
LDL cholesterol, especially the thick and damaged, not the large and fluffy LDL causes friction with the wall of the artery and gets deposited as plaque. Taking statin drugs causes a number of side effects and many times it is unnecessarily prescribed for too long. It is necessary to determine the number of damaged LDL particles and take steps to reverse the plaque buildup. Niacin is another name for vitamin B3 and it can be very useful in raising HDL and lowering LDL.
By far, the most important is to make permanent changes in your diet. Stopping sugar in every form can be extremely beneficial. Eating more whole foods and reversing diabetes and blood pressure by reducing carbohydrates and processed foods and oils can actually help in reversing plaque buildup also.
Vibhuti Misra
Holistic Health Specialist
+91 813 088 2160
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