Higher Vitamin-B Intake Could Reduce Cardiovascular Disease Risk!

In order to prevent heart disease and stroke (cardiovascular disease), people might need to consume more foods that contain folate and Vitamin-B6.

Folate, also known as Vitamin-Bg, is a water-soluble Vitamin-B that is contained naturally in food. The synthetic form of folate found in supplements is known as folic acid. Folate can be found in leafy vegetables (like spinach and turnip greens), fruits (like citrus fruits and juices), fortified cereals, and dried beans and peas. Vegetables, fish, liver, meats, whole grains, and fortified cereals are good sources of Vitamin-B6.

A group of researchers from Osaka University, who published their findings in Stroke (Journal of the American Heart Association), reported that eating more foods rich in folate and Vitamin-B6 could lower the risk of death from cardiovascular disease for Japanese women and might cut the risk of heart failure in Japanese men.

The dietary consumption of Vitamin-B6 is generally considered low in Japan than in the United States but the findings were consistent with those studies conducted in Europe and North America.

As part of the large Japan Collaborative Cohort (JACC) Study, data collected through completed food frequency questionnaires from 23,119 men and 35,611 women, aged between 40 and 79, were analyzed. All the participants were followed for a period of 14 years and it was found that 986 died from stroke, 424 from heart disease and 2,087 from all diseases related to cardiovascular system.

Based on intake of folate, Vitamin-B6 and Vitamin-B12, the participants were divided into 5 groups. The researchers found that with higher intake of folate and Vitamin-B6, number of men died of heart failure was significantly lower, and number of women died from stroke, heart disease and total cardiovascular diseases was significantly fewer. However, people taking higher Vitamin-B12 were not associated with lower death risk.

According to the researchers, folate and Vitamin-B6 might reduce homocysteine levels in the body by breaking them down thus help prevent cardiovascular disease.

Homocysteine is an amino acid in the blood that is affected by diet and genetic factors. A high level of homocysteine might raise the risk of getting coronary heart disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease.

Heart Damage May Be Reduced By Folate!

When the blood flow is cut off, the damage to the heart muscle could be reduced with the help of high doses of folate, as suggested by an animal study carried out by researchers from Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore. The findings were published in the April 2008’s addition of “Circulation”.

What is folate? It is a water-soluble B vitamin obtainable from food. The synthetic form of folate that is found in supplements and added to fortified foods is known as folic acid. Folate helps produce and maintain new cells. It can be found in natural foods like leafy vegetables (such as spinach and turnip greens), fruits (for example, citrus fruits and juices), and dried beans and peas.

In the animal study, rats were treated with folate or placebo. After 1 week, their left coronary arteries were blocked for 30 minutes. As we know, blood normally carries oxygen to the heart muscle. Any sudden and severe blockage could just trigger a heart attack or an abnormal heart rhythm, which is considered as fatal conditions.

The researchers performed a 90-minute of reperfusion to some rates and do nothing to the others. Reperfusion is the restoration of the coronary blood flow to the heart muscle. Preserving or restoring heart function is a necessary procedure, but it can well cause a disturbance in the function of the cells in the heart muscle known as reperfusion injury.

Rats that were treated with folate had significantly less functional damage of the heart than those that were treated with placebo. When the researchers looked at reperfusion, smaller areas of dead heart muscle were found among rats pretreated with folate.

Further analysis also indicated that folate might have achieved these beneficial effects, in part, by maintaining levels of the high-energy phosphates ATP and ADP in the heart.

Despite of the positive findings, the researchers felt that it is still premature for people to start taking high doses of folate. However, if future studies on human beings can prove equally effective, then high-dose folate could be given to those people with high-risk factors (diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc.) for preventing possible heart attack or to people who have suffered heart attack.