Microscopic red blood cells being pumped from your heart to your lungs pick up oxygen and then return through the veins to deliver the oxygen to the cells of the heart. Simply put angina is any episode that reduces oxygen delivery to the heart and causes chest pain.
There are three types of angina and different causes:
- Variant angina occurs due to a random spasm of the coronary artery and typically occurs in younger people and when they are at rest. (1) The cause is not related to diet.
- Stable angina occurs in response to an increased physical exertion or stress. This type of angina is predictable.
- Unstable angina is the most serious, this is when a blood vessel ruptures (often where due to plaque build up) and causes a blood clot that blocks blood flow- this can cause a heart attack.
Medications such as beta-blockers, nitroglycerine, blood thinners and calcium channel blockers can get the blood flowing again and relieve the chest pain. There are also lifestyle and dietary changes you can make to reduce angina episodes and get to the root of the problem.
Avoid it or deal with it like a stress champ! During stressful moments if you can quickly become aware of the trigger and redirect your thinking, it is possible to stop the stress response. Transcendental meditation done for a period of 20 minutes twice daily showed to reduce angina chest pain in people without plaque build up in arteries. (2)
Keep Triglycerides and LDL (bad) cholesterol in check by including enough fiber in your diet. Fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains are all nutrient dense sources of fiber. Fiber is naturally cholesterol free, filling and soaks up cholesterol in the gut reducing the amount we absorb.
Aerobic exercise has been documented to increase HDL (good) cholesterol. (3) HDL picks up particles of cholesterol inside blood vessels and transports it out of circulation.
- (n.d.). Retrieved June 05, 2017, from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/DiagnosingaHeartAttack/Prinzmetals-or-Prinzmetal-Angina-Variant-Angina-and-Angina-Inversa_UCM_435674_Article.jsp
- Cunningham D, Brown S, Kaski JC. Effects of transcendental meditation on symptoms and electrocardiographic changes in patients with Cardiac Syndrome X. Am J of Cardiology2000;85:653-5.
- Stefanick, M. L., Mackey, S., Sheehan, M., Ellsworth, N., Haskell, W. L., & Wood, P. D. (1998). Effects of Diet and Exercise in Men and Postmenopausal Women with Low Levels of HDL Cholesterol and High Levels of LDL Cholesterol. New England Journal of Medicine, 339(1), 12-20. doi:10.1056/nejm199807023390103
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This information is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging. Do not use the information from this article for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before taking any medication or nutritional, herbal or homeopathic supplement, or using any treatment for a health problem. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Do not disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking professional advice because of something you have read in this article.