Why conventional methods to prevent blood clots fail
Not all blood clots are bad, of course. The clotting of blood is important during the normal healing process. But abnormal clotting of blood – known medically as thrombosis – can be deadly.
Based on the medical literature, we know that you can reduce the threat of thrombosis by consuming a healthy diet – loaded with antioxidants – and consuming high quality, superfood supplements on a daily basis. The problem here is an out-of-date, chemical mindset of conventionally-trained physicians. What a wonderful opportunity they have to teach patients about the value of good nutrition on health. But, they don’t!
Conditions that can increase your risk include atherosclerosis, mechanical heart valves, atrial fibrillation, venostasis, blood clotting disorders and cancer. Other known risk factors include elevated total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides or low HDL. Another risk factor is elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein or hsCRP.
Just to be clear, hsCRP indicates inflammation and the likelihood of bood vessel injury. It is considered a major predictive risk factor for stroke or heart attack. In addition, hypertension and elevated glucose are also known risk factors.
Of course, we shouldn’t ignore other risk factors such as, cancer, elevated plasma fibrinogen, thyroid disorders, a sedentary lifestyle, surgeries to the lower extremities, elevated homocysteine and excessive abdominal body fat.
Can Western medicine really help us to avoid blood clots and heal the body?
In dealing with blood clots, Western medicine often prescribes two classes of drugs to reduce the risk of thrombosis and its complications. These include antiplatelet drugs and anticoagulants. A third class called thrombolytics or fibrinolytics break up blood clots and limit tissue damage once they have occurred.
But, wait, here’s the problem …
These drugs are unable to effectively address the wide range of mechanisms that can occur to cause a thrombotic event. In fact, many patients still get victimized by a heart attack, stroke or other fatal incident caused by an abnormal blood clot – simply because the medication they are on is unable to address the various true causes of thrombosis.
Remember, many of these drugs cause unwanted side effects. For example, warfarin – a drug first developed as a pesticide for rats and mice – is commonly used to prevent blood clots in patients at risk. Marketed under the trade name Coumadin, this drug greatlyincreases the risk of serious bleeding as well as increasing the risk of death from traumatic injuries.
Warfarin is also known to increase the risk of atherosclerosis and osteoporosis – when used long term.
Choosing natural alternatives for blood clot prevention
The good news is, you can choose from several natural alternatives to reduce your risk of abnormal blood clots, even if you are at greater risk due to other medical conditions. These natural blood thinners work much in the same way as their pharmaceutical counterparts. However, because they can be used safely in combinations, they are able to have a multi-faceted effect on reducing abnormal blood clots.
Some of the most common natural approaches to thrombosis prevention include:
Olive. Both olive leaf extract and olive oil preparations have been shown in laboratory tests to decrease activity associated with abnormal blood clots.
Pomegranate. The pomegranate contains a number of bioactive antioxidant polyphenols that are known to lower blood pressure in hypertensive patients. Pomegranate juice has also been shown to reduce platelet aggregation.
Garlic. Garlic is fairly well known for its ability to boost cardiovascular health. Garlic extracts have also been shown to inhibit platelet aggregation.
Tea. Consumption of tea has been show to provide protective effects for cardiovascular health, reducing the onset of heart disease and stroke. Green tea showed promising results primarily in longer term consumption.
Quercetin. Doses of quercetin glucosides, the natural form of quercetin, were found to inhibit collagen-induced platelet formation. In addition, quercetin from food sources, such as onion, were shown to have positive effects on platelet aggregation.
Tomatoes. These include several nutrients that can play a role in protecting the cardiovascular system. They also have been shown to promote antiplatelet activity.
Additional natural ingredients that have been shown to reduce the risk of abnormal blood clots include resveratrol, grape seed extract, fish oil, capsaicinoids, ginger and curcumin.