Re: Congestive heart failure-any mold connection?-Eat Chocolate

[Guest guest]

HFC: Sweet News -- Chocolate Boosts Vascular Function

By Peggy Peck, Executive Editor, MedPage Today

Published: June 01, 2010

Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and

Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner

BERLIN -- Within just hours of eating a flavonol-rich chocolate bar, patients

with congestive heart failure had measurable improvements in vascular function,

researchers here reported.

Flow-mediated vasodilatation measured at the brachial artery significantly

improved from 4.98% to 5.98% (P=0.045) two hours after eating 40 grams of

chocolate, s Flammer, MD, of University Hospital in Zurich, reported in a

late-breaking clinical trial poster presentation at the Heart Failure Congress.

Moreover, among patients who ate 80 grams of chocolate a day for four weeks,

flow-mediated vasodilatation improved from 4.98% to 6.86% (P=0.027), he said.

Note that this study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference.

These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until

published in a peer-reviewed journal.

But while platelet adhesion significantly decreased -- from 3.9% to 2.99%

(P=0.03) two hours after eating chocolate, this effect was not durable. There

was no change in platelet adhesion at two weeks or four weeks.

Flammer and his colleagues evenly randomized 20 heart failure patients to 80

grams of flavonol-rich chocolate bars or cocoa-free, flavonol-free placebo bars

specially manufactured to resemble and taste like a chocolate bar.

Endothelial function was assessed noninvasively by flow-mediated vasodilatation

of the brachial artery, and platelet function was assessed by a cone and

platelet analyzing system.

There was no improvement from baseline measures of endothelial function or

platelet adhesion among the 10 controls.

He noted that the dose -- 80 grams -- is " a lot of chocolate " and may be more

than many people -- especially elderly congestive heart failure patients --

could easily consume. A Hersey bar, for example, is 43 grams.

Moreover, Flammer said that the chocolate bar used in the study " is commercially

available in Europe, but not in the U.S. " The closest U.S. available product,

Flammer said, would be Lindt dark chocolate bars -- " 80 grams would be almost

all of a Lindt bar. "

And he said that the key to finding flavonol-rich chocolate is not, " the cocoa

content, it is the flavonol content. "

Flammer noted that candy makers have responded to news stories about the health

benefits of chocolate by increasing the cocoa content in chocolate and

prominently displaying the cocoa content on labels. " But the manufacturers boost

cocoa content by increasing cocoa fats, not cocoa itself, " he explained. That

process does not, he said, increase the flavonol level.

Wayne Levy, MD, of the University of Washington in Seattle, said the small study

was interesting for several reasons beyond the natural appeal of chocolate.

He noted, for example, that the daily chocolate intake had no adverse effect on

other parameters including total cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, and

-- most interestingly -- there was no weight gain associated with the chocolate

regimen.

Flammer had an explanation for the lack of weight gain. " They weren't hungry

after eating the chocolate, " he said.

The trial was funded by the Nestle, which also supplied the chocolate used in

the study.

Flammer disclosed research funding form Nestle.

Primary source: Heart Failure Congress

Source reference:

Flammer A, et al " Acute and chronic effects of flavonol-rich chocolate on

endothelial function in patients with heart failure " HFC 2010; Abstract LBT-9.

......................................

>

> I think definately so, since your heart is laying against your lungs.

Inflamation in your lungs can put pressure on your heart and give you that

breathless feeling or the inflamation could easily spread to your heart. My

heart was tested and no problem found but I freq had breathless, heart heaviness

when I was in place breathing bad air. When I moved out, heart heaviness and

breathlessness was gone so in my case, think it was coming from my lungs, unless

whatever I was breathing was directly affecting my heart but easy to see lung

affecting your heart. Also inflamatory agents, like mold toxins can easily be

breathed into your lungs and affect your heart since the blood goes from lung

into heart.

[Guest guest]

Interesting. Nestle chocolate, ONLY Nestle< sometimes got me out of a minor

reaction to an exposure.

>

> HFC: Sweet News -- Chocolate Boosts Vascular Function

>

> By Peggy Peck, Executive Editor, MedPage Today

> Published: June 01, 2010

>

> Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor

> University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and

> Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner

>

>

> BERLIN -- Within just hours of eating a flavonol-rich chocolate bar, patients

with congestive heart failure had measurable improvements in vascular function,

researchers here reported.

>

> Flow-mediated vasodilatation measured at the brachial artery significantly

improved from 4.98% to 5.98% (P=0.045) two hours after eating 40 grams of

chocolate, s Flammer, MD, of University Hospital in Zurich, reported in a

late-breaking clinical trial poster presentation at the Heart Failure Congress.

>

> Moreover, among patients who ate 80 grams of chocolate a day for four weeks,

flow-mediated vasodilatation improved from 4.98% to 6.86% (P=0.027), he said.

>

>

> Note that this

[Guest guest]

Chocolate is a cheap source of very high-concentration anti-oxidants. I

remember craving chocolate a lot when I lived in my last moldy apartment. I

crave it less, now that I'm doing better. I wonder if it could be related.

Mold, VOC's, anti-oxidants...

On an unrelated note, I hear VOC's are in the rain near the oil spill. Wonder

if there's any truth to that? How soon before it reaches here?

> >

> > HFC: Sweet News -- Chocolate Boosts Vascular Function

> >

> > By Peggy Peck, Executive Editor, MedPage Today

> > Published: June 01, 2010

> >

> > Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor

> > University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and

> > Dorothy Caputo, MA, RN, BC-ADM, CDE, Nurse Planner

> >

> >

> > BERLIN -- Within just hours of eating a flavonol-rich chocolate bar,

patients with congestive heart failure had measurable improvements in vascular

function, researchers here reported.

> >

> > Flow-mediated vasodilatation measured at the brachial artery significantly

improved from 4.98% to 5.98% (P=0.045) two hours after eating 40 grams of

chocolate, s Flammer, MD, of University Hospital in Zurich, reported in a

late-breaking clinical trial poster presentation at the Heart Failure Congress.

> >

> > Moreover, among patients who ate 80 grams of chocolate a day for four weeks,

flow-mediated vasodilatation improved from 4.98% to 6.86% (P=0.027), he said.

> >

> >

> > Note that this

>

[Guest guest]

I tend to suspect yeast/parasites with sugar cravings... but low energy does it

too. I pretty much always crave it ... & eat it all at once if I buy it. Enough

of it & I get really happy & my eyes glow

:-) I have't eaten it in a while though. The book The Mood Cure relates sugar

caffeine cravings to low thyroid/tyrosine deficiency.

>

> Chocolate is a cheap source of very high-concentration anti-oxidants. I

remember craving chocolate a lot when I lived in my last moldy apartment. I

crave it less, now that I'm doing better. I wonder if it could be related.

>

> Mold, VOC's, anti-oxidants...

> On an unrelated note, I hear VOC's are in the rain near the oil spill. Wonder

if there's any truth to that? How soon before it reaches here?

>

>

[Guest guest]

Chocolate is also a source of Magnesium and when I started taking magnesium

supplements, I didn't want chocolate anymore, but occasionally I will have some

but buy it because it is one of few things that are good for me, if not too

sugary, that is so easy to carry. If the chocolate is sugary, makes me feel a

little 'sickey'. Sugar makes me feel sickey in general but *carbs* do not so I

think sugar is in an entirely different category than just carbs, like pretzels,

bread, noodles, etc. Also diabetics can eat carbs but not sugar so I added

whole grain carbs back into my diet but in moderate amounts and try to stay away

from sugar as completely as possible.

> >

> > Chocolate is a cheap source of very high-concentration anti-oxidants. I

remember craving chocolate a lot when I lived in my last moldy apartment. I

crave it less, now that I'm doing better. I wonder if it could be related.

> >

> >