Strokes and heart attacks are the leading causes of death and debilitation in the U.S. But by choosing a healthy lifestyle, you can minimize your chances of dying of these diseases.
Both are caused by blood clots traveling through blood vessels until they encounter a place where they are too large to pass. Or a plaque on a vessel wall bursts, allowing clots into the bloodstream. That’s when the real trouble starts. Strokes or “brain attacks” and heart attacks are caused by clots causing a lack of oxygen and other vital nutrients to organs, often leading to tissue damage or death.
How Blood Clots are Formed
Once there is damage to the blood vessel, platelets – tiny components that start the clotting process – gather at the site to clump together to form a plug. This is the body’s attempt at staving off bleeding. At the same time, platelets are releasing a chemical that starts blood clot formation. Fibrin, the glue that holds clots together, is also released.
Once started, blood clotting must be controlled or it can become extremely dangerous. Anti-clotting processes eventually stop the clotting. Natural anti-clotting substances usually balance with clotting chemicals to prevent clots from getting out of control.
As damaged tissue heals, the body slowly breaks down the blood clot. The materials that composed the clot get reabsorbed into the body. The enzyme plasmin break down the tough protein fibers fibrin that make up a blood clot.
Causes of Blood Clots
We’re not going to count knee scrapes or other boo-boos that cause clotting. We are going to list some circumstances and illnesses that make one more vulnerable to blood clots. Diabetes, and heart failure, smoking, pregnancy, and obesity can all lead to metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors which increases your chance of heart disease and other illnesses.
Causes of atherosclerosis – a plaque build-up in arteries, a major cause of damage to blood vessels -- are atrial fibrillation which is an arrhythmia that causes blood to pool in the upper chambers of the heart which can then lead to blood clot formation. Organ transplants and other procedures like dialysis shunts can damage blood vessel walls and cause blood clots to form.
What We Can Do To Food Our Way to Health
One of the most important, and basic, ways to keep your blood flowing is to drink lots of water. Dehydration increases your chances of deep vein thrombosis, which is where blood clots start in your lower legs after hours of inactivity. Drink six to eight glasses of water a day. Check your urine color. If it is dark, you are not drinking enough water. If it is a light yellow or clear, you are doing your body right.
What are salicylates and what do they do?
When it comes to clot prevention, salicylates are key. Salicylates are chemicals that inhibit blood clotting such as aspirin. These compounds have blood-thinning properties. Spices containing salicylates include thyme, peppermint, ginger, paprika, cayenne, curry, licorice, dill, Garam masala, turmeric, garlic and onion.
Most fruits have salicylates, as do dried fruits. Fresh fruits include nectarines, tangerines, blueberries, cherries, oranges, and strawberries, among others.
Coumarin is a naturally occurring substance that has anti-coagulant qualities. Warfarin, the very popular and effective anti-coagulant, is the synthetic version of coumarin. Specifically, coumarin interferes with vitamin K coagulant qualities in clot formation. There are many different plant and food sources which contain coumarin but they are too numerous to list here.
Vitamin E
Foods rich in vitamin E have blood-thinning qualities and may help lower the risk of the onset of blood clots. Vitamin E is fat soluble with anti-oxidant properties. They also have anti-coagulant and antiplatelet qualities though researchers aren’t sure exactly how these work. The thought is that the vitamin inhibits clot formation and counteracts the effects of blood clotting. Two large studies demonstrated that taking vitamin E coincided with a lowered risk of both venous and arterial clots. This vitamin is available in walnuts, safflower, canola or palm oils, hazelnuts, almonds and chickpeas.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Fatty cold-water fishes like wild salmon, herring, lake trout, mackerel, and anchovies are all high in blood-thinning properties and may help cut down on the incidences of strokes or heart attacks.
Fish oil is also high in omega-3 fatty acids. These fish contain polyunsaturated fatty acids that decrease clot formation by cutting down on the ability of platelets to gather into a clot. One study showed that eating two servings a week of the aforementioned fish lowered the risk of strokes or fatal heart rhythm changes. Plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids are safflower, corn, flaxseed or canola oil for cooking.
Fats and More Fats
Well, let’s get the bad fats out of the way, shall we? Any animal-based fat, trans fats (hydrogenated fats), saturated fats, frying oil, fatty meats, omega-6 fatty acid, and most types of sugars aren’t good for you. These can actually lead to clots.
Now the good fats. These include monounsaturated fats such as olive oil, canola oil, avocados, seeds and nuts. Then there are polyunstaturated fats such as those found in omega-3 containing fatty fish, walnuts, green leafy vegetables, corn oil, and soy. A good rule of thumb is to follow a diet low in saturated fats and high in fiber and fruits and vegetable.
Virgin Olive Oil
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that virgin olive oil is rich in phenols, which is suspected of helping to prevent blood clots. The higher the phenol level in the blood, the lower blood clotting chemical.
Now for Something Fun
Red wine or grape juice contains flavonoids from grapes. This chemical helps prevent blood clots by making platelets less sticky, which reduces the risk of blood clots. Also associated with this is a reduction in blood clotting and an increase in dissolving of unneeded blood clots.
“Studies show that if you have about one drink per day, your risk may be lower,” according to Dr. Rost. “Once you start drinking more than two drinks per day, your risk goes up very sharply.” So reward yourself with one glass of merlot at the end of a day. You can drink to your health.
Clots can be downright scary. Integrate these healthy choices into your diet – and it could mean the difference between life and death.