I reversed my Coronary Artery Disease

[Ricardo]

Brad,
I am travelling with little access to internet, but i will reply with more details, Monday night your last email. Your previus email gave me the chance to see page 30 Dr E. where he mentions the Framingham study. That big study for about 50years and with the whole population of that city with the conclusion that those with cholesterol under 150 were heart attack proof it is the base for reversal for me. It should be teached in first grade!
One of your comments i will try to reply now. About
what I believe it is more important to reverse CAD are two things, first and by far more important it is plant base food with Very low fat in food. Second it is walking briskly 30 minutes a day to create/activate collaterals inside the heart.

By now,
Your friend Ricardo

[Ricardo]

Brad,
Not to forget that exercise besides helping to activate collateral veins, also helps to reduce weight, therefore as a byproduct reducing blood pressure, but also may help us to increase the good cholesterol and same time reducing the bad one.

Ricardo

[Ricardo]

Brad,
I read your post of today " Post subject: Coronary Artery Disease: chol. drop from 187 to 125 in 7 wks, PostPosted: Mon Jun 20, 2011 6:19 am".

I am so happy for you and for all of us that want to improve our health !

I just arrived from my trip and reading your valuable post I felt happy. Yes we all need encouragement and succes stories. It is so difficult to eat what others do not understand well, that friends like you are a real blessing. You and others make our fight easier.

I promissed to reply your last post with more details, but now I am the one that is going to read (your post in more details) insteat to write to you... as you achieved so much !

Thank you for sharing with us your victory !

Ricardo

[Brad]

Brad,
I read your post of today " Post subject: Coronary Artery Disease: chol. drop from 187 to 125 in 7 wks, PostPosted: Mon Jun 20, 2011 6:19 am".

I am so happy for you and for all of us that want to improve our health !

I just arrived from my trip and reading your valuable post I felt happy. Yes we all need encouragement and succes stories. It is so difficult to eat what others do not understand well, that friends like you are a real blessing. You and others make our fight easier.

I promissed to reply your last post with more details, but now I am the one that is going to read (your post in more details) insteat to write to you... as you achieved so much !

Thank you for sharing with us your victory !

Ricardo

Hi Ricardo, you had your own success as well. And I suspect your struggle has been greater than mine. But thank you for your kind words and perhaps we can encourage and support each other to continue even across the canal
brad

[Ricardo]

Brad,
This lifestyle is great for me. I feel wonderful. My next goal is to get rid of statins and your victory is inspiring me to do just that. I will try to keep my cholesterol well under 150 without statins.

I am starting to follow the 12 days to Dynamic Health of McDougall Program book.
The Program restricts a few things that I still eat or drink, like chocolate, sodas, fat soy, white rice, white flour and suggests to eat/drink items that I still don’t do, like oatmeal, brown rice tapioca, potatoes, pasta, corn, quinoa.

After that I will ask my doctor for a new blood test to see if I got a lower Total Cholesterol mark under statins. If the new mark is lower than before, then I will continue with Dr. McDougall diet and drop statins if my doctor agrees.
I will keep you informed of new ideas and results,
All the Best,
Ricardo

[Starchyme]

Wishing you much success, Ricardo. You are quite an inspiration.

[Ricardo]

Wishing you much success, Ricardo. You are quite an inspiration.

Many people inspired me to reverse my CAD. I am just returning to some people part of what I got from others. But just to be in groups like this, helps me a lot to formulate my own ideas and to stay on this track.

I have one more thing to comment: I had my first colonoscopy done yesterday.
No polyps found!!! One doctor said that the Vegan diet helps a lot to have a result like that.

As you can see, I got many good things from the Vegan diet:

1) I lost a lot of extra weight:
2) I got rid of my medicine for blood pressure:
3) Solved embarrassing "Irritable Bowel Syndrome" digestion problem;
4) Reduced statins pills;
5) Reversed CAD
6) And now a good result in a colonoscopy (I promise to ask more questions to the colonoscopy doctors to see how much percentage of this last benefit came from the Vegan diet).

If the information above may help to inspire others to solve such problems, I will be happy. As an extra idea I would like to add: do not execute big health changes without the support of good documentation, enough planning, support from good doctors, friends and family.
************************************************************************************************************
( I am writing this after returning from the colonoscopy doctor’s office, to bring you his oppinion on regression of Polyps in the colon).

First of all I asked what is the effect of a vegan diet on colonoscopy results. He said that if we change our diets to a very low fat food, we automatically improve the colon health. Fiber and other components that are present in broccoli, kale, whole breads, etc. are well know to be also good to colon health. This kind of environment in colon reduces the chances of polyps to form. A polyp not being created reduces the chances of a cancer in that organ.

About regression of Polyps:
He said that after a Polyp is created, it should be removed (it would not reverse, according to him). He said that this is his approach and that implementing prevention measures reduces the chances of polyps to be created.

[f1jim]

Congrats to you Ricardo for a nice group of positive health outcomes. Anytime you can receive this kind of health news it must be encouraging to continue this way of eating. Here is to many years of the same kind of results.
f1jim

[Ricardo]

Congrats to you Ricardo for a nice group of positive health outcomes. Anytime you can receive this kind of health news it must be encouraging to continue this way of eating. Here is to many years of the same kind of results.
f1jim

Jim,
thank you. I am lucky to be here with all of you.
This way of eating is the best prevention against the health problems that threat aging.

I am 71 years old and because of this new lifestyle I feel energetic and with lots of hope to continue to enjoy life as never before.

I am out of BP medicine and going to reduce statins even more. No other medications for now.

The support we get from a team with persons like you makes the difference. I do not feel alone in this battle.

[flabingo]

Ricardo,
Twenty years ago, I lived in Brazil for three months. In Leblon, Ipanema, and Copacabana. I also visited Buzios, Salvador, Fortaleza, and Curtichiba. We are on the same program with diet and exercise now, but I could not imagine living in Brazil on the same diet. Giving up the cachaca would be very difficult, and having my first chope at 9:00 in the morning on the beach was the norm. It was one of the special times in my life, but I don't think I could be a McDougaller living in Brazil. Boa Noite
P.S. No Churrascaria impossible!

[Ricardo]

Ricardo,
Twenty years ago, I lived in Brazil for three months. In Leblon, Ipanema, and Copacabana. I also visited Buzios, Salvador, Fortaleza, and Curtichiba. We are on the same program with diet and exercise now, but I could not imagine living in Brazil on the same diet. Giving up the cachaca would be very difficult, and having my first chope at 9:00 in the morning on the beach was the norm. It was one of the special times in my life, but I don't think I could be a McDougaller living in Brazil. Boa Noite
P.S. No Churrascaria impossible!

Dear Flabingo,
It is true. It is hard. Churrascarias were a must in my life in happy days or in days I felt depressed. Your e-mail made me to reflect on my past and present lifestyles. The last 40 years have living in ipanema, except for 3 years spent in NC and NY states, while working for IBM Brazil and US.
(Your email made me to go to the beach after writing this text. I walk briskly for 40 minutes and after that I will be walking slowly in the sand, touching the water with my feet).

Past: I had all you can imagine it is possible to get from here, although working the many hours the kind of job I had demands: churrascarias, caipirinhas with cachaca or vodka, beach, kids, codornas eggs, batata frita, etc. Good friends also.
But one day I had to change my lifestyle. That change occurred almost 4 years ago, when I failed a treadmill test.
So I reached for help in the Internet to try to extend this good life we may have here or elsewhere in the world. McDougall, Esselstyn and other doctors came through books or home pages to my rescue… I adopted that innovative lifestyle and I enjoy it all the way! I have the local unprocessed food in my side…

Can you imagine that I feel even happier now than being a meat eater?

Now I walk briskly for about 40 minutes a day, eat a lot of good tasting vegan food that I buy twice a week in street markets that happen in Ipanema, I get help to cook it all and for drinks I buy coconuts that I drink with straws at home or at the beach.

The good part is that after almost 4 years I got my CAD reversed and other health problems solved. We can enjoy life here being a carnivorous or a vegan with VLF food. I had to go vegan to try to extend my life in order to take care of the family. As a byproduct I feel happy as ever. It is wonderful.

Please if you come to Brazil again, let me know. I would be pleased to welcome you and show the health food and other places I am discovering in this new step of my life. There is a lot of fun.

Cheers,
Ricardo

[flabingo]

Ricardo,
First of all,you should be a STAR McDOUGALLER.

I am going to figure out how to make it happen. I don't live that far away from Santa Rosa.
For my birthday, can I have Feijoada at Caesar Park?
You are an inspiration.
It may be time for you to write your first book. I think Amazon would be your publisher,on Kindle. I will also check that out
I have a friend who's husband has been diagnosed with colon cancer.
He is grossly overweight(100 pounds) and I think that your diet and behavior is equally applicable to many types of cancer.

More later Flabingo

[Ricardo]

For my birthday, can I have Feijoada at Caesar Park?

Flabingo,
thank you for your nice words and encouragement.
Yes, for your birthday, you can have your Feijoada at Caesar Park, but do you know that is possible to have it vegan style? Dr. Pinckney has a recipe or almost it. He lived in Brazil for many years. That could also be a project for Dr. McDougall. But remember that the most important is the caipirinha and that it is vegan, right? I would go far enough to say that beer is also vegan, right? Why not?
If you come to Rio I would need some time to convince the chef of the Caesar Park to prepare the Vegan Feijoada, but not as much time to prepare the drinks for you...

I will do whatever necessary to spray the vegan and VLF lifestyle.
I don't get tired of promoting this diet and other things that made me happy:

1) No more a big belly (Cardiac risk), as I lost extra weight:
2) I got rid of my medicine for blood pressure;
3) No more "Irritable Bowel Syndrome" digestion problem;
4) Had statins pills reduced;
5) Had CAD reversed;
6) And now a good result in a colonoscopy: No polyps!

Cheers,
Ricardo

[flabingo]

Ricardo,
Glad to hear from you.
Facts and questions.
BP I have the following equipment
a. Blood Pressure Panasonic machine(arm)
b.Polar watch ft7
c. Polar chest band
I take my BP every morning at the same time, before eating
I wait 5 minutes to rest in the chair( FOUR TIMES)
I space my recordings by 3 minutes
I sit up and have good posture
My results can vary from systolic readings of 151 to 117,during that 12 minute period, but my diastolic and pulse are more steady at 76-65 and 51-39.
Also my total pulse is between 55 and 78(difference between systolic and diastolic) I am told that is normal for a senior (77)
I have switched the time that I take my BP medicine, either at 10:00 at night or 9:00 in the morning.
The results seem to indicate that my numbers are affected by the time I take my medicine. Lower if I take the meds at night(12 hours before readings. I have not split any pills so far
I have been doing this for over a year.
My conclusion is that when a person goes to a doctors office, the reading can be meaningless and/or wrong.
What is your opinion?
I will talk about my exercise and weight program in the next post
My BMI is 21 and I am a pescatarian, 95% veggies, fish and fruit, no meat , low salt and very little dairy
Flabingo

[Ricardo]

[quote="flabingo"]
Flabingo,
You are well equipped to measure BP and I also used to measure mine often too, but I gave up doing it. I went to the extreme to bring my equipment to the clinic and have the doctor measuring BP in one arm while I took the measure using the other arm, to see if my equip was OK ! After learning that my BP was OK for most of the time, that the diastolic was OK all the times and that the systolic, in my case, would go little higher with emotions, (like when in the clinic or just worrying to get a bad measure) I gave up of measuring it all the times. Now even at the doctors office it is OK most of the times, except when I am afraid of bad news from them.

Please take in consideration that measuring it resting in bed might be lower than sitting. That happens to me and the doctor said is normal. So I like better when my blood measurements are taken that way...

One of my doctors have his patients to rest in a bed for 20 minutes before to see him and measuring their BP. I get bored and so restful that I almost take a nap! Usually BP are better than with patients stressed when talking seated to the MD...

Your BP may be OK, more even the systolic. Were you having emotions when getting the 151 measures? Is your equipment well calibrated? Have you discussed it with your MD?

Why you don't you give up salt forever, using instead other things? Bread here in Brazil has so much salt that I don't need more in my food. That alone may lower your BP. It worked for me, I am not using medicine but in my case I was also overweight and lost 30 kg (it seems that for each 10 kg we get one point lower in BP). Ask your doctors help to get it done, but I agree (it happens to me) that when a person goes to a doctors office, the reading can be wrong. It is called white coat factor...and it is well known here in Brazil.