The academician called the substance, the lack of which “hit” the heart the most

An outstanding Russian therapist, physiologist, Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Professor of the Department of Hospital Therapy No. 1 of the Medical Faculty of the Moscow State Medical University named after M.V. A.I. Evdokimova Anatoly Martynov.

In our country, diseases of the circulatory system are still the leaders among the causes of death of the population: in 2019, 47% of the population died from them, in 2020 – 44%, in 2021 – 38.2%, in 2022 – 43.8% of the total number of deaths. However, most deaths are preventable. And it is important not only to lead a healthy lifestyle and follow all the recommendations of the attending physician, but also to maintain the so-called nutritional status – the balance of trace elements in the body. “The concept of deficiency is not always clearly presented by doctors in terms of diagnosis and significance,” the expert said. And he cited as an example several trace elements, the deficiency of which in cardiovascular patients is most often encountered by doctors, but to which they usually do not pay any attention.

Potassium

Potassium provides support for the heart muscle, improves the contractile properties of the myocardium, minimizes the risk of thrombosis and stops the growth of atherosclerotic plaques, regulates heart pressure, and normalizes heart rhythm. The norm of potassium in the human body is 2.5-5 mmol / liter. An adult with no kidney problems should consume approximately 4,700 mg of potassium per day, preferably from dietary sources (up to 2,700 mg for kidney problems).

Scientists have proven that the normal content of potassium by 2-3 mm reduces blood pressure, which, in turn, reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke by 7 and 10 percent. Recent studies also show that low potassium levels are associated with an increased risk of diabetes.

The academician advises paying attention to 7 signs of potassium deficiency: constant fatigue, weakness and dizziness, convulsions, tingling or numbness in the limbs, heart failure, constipation, high blood pressure.

Emotional stress and physical overload can lead to potassium deficiency. Significantly reduce the level of potassium alcohol, sugar, salt, diuretics. Increasing the dose of coffee is dangerous because the fatigue that patients struggle with with it is actually often caused by a loss of potassium.

Potassium levels below 2.5 mmol/liter are considered life-threatening and can lead to paralysis, respiratory failure, muscle breakdown, lazy bowel syndrome, and an increased risk of heart attack or stroke.

Bananas, greens, avocados, spinach, yogurt, potatoes in their skins, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, carrots, radishes are sources of potassium. In addition, potassium levels can be compensated with medications.

But an excess of potassium is dangerous. At levels of potassium above 7 mmol / liter, cardiac arrhythmia develops with a fatal outcome, and at levels above 10 mmol / liter, the heart may stop.

Magnesium

Potassium works in a friendly way with magnesium. Magnesium stabilizes the nervous system, reduces irritability and anxiety, participates in the mechanism of muscle contraction, improves heart rate and vascular elasticity, reduces blood pressure fluctuations, and reduces the rate of atherosclerotic processes.

“The most informative way is to determine the level of magnesium concentration not in blood plasma, but in saliva, this is the most reliable study, which is almost never carried out in our country,” says Martynov.

The most common signs of magnesium deficiency are: anxiety, spasms, convulsions, insomnia, headaches, irritability, chronic fatigue, palpitations, frequent mood swings.

The main causes of magnesium deficiency are pregnancy, diet or unbalanced nutrition, stress and mental stress, sports, use of complex oral contraceptives and the period of growth in children.

Clinically, magnesium deficiency can manifest itself in an asthenic physique, hypermobility of the elbow joints, pterygoid shoulder blades, varicose veins, and mitral valve prolapse.

Data from three scientific studies suggest that the higher the magnesium deficiency in a patient, the greater the damage to the heart muscle during myocardial infarction, and this is not surprising, because its deficiency often causes cardiac pathologies such as sinus tachycardia or sinus arrhythmia.

The daily intake of magnesium is 400 mg, and most of all it is in wheat bran, pumpkin and sesame seeds, greens, and legumes. But excess fat in the diet interferes with the absorption of magnesium. There are many preparations of magnesium, but it is better to choose those where it is contained together with potassium.

What do these microelements affect in a friendly way? To generate heart impulses, maintain normal myocardial metabolism, improve the contractile properties of the myocardium and muscles of the whole body, maintain the elasticity of blood vessels, reduce blood viscosity and prevent the development of blood clots, slow down the growth of atherosclerotic ligaments. Irritability, loss of skin elasticity, bone fragility, nausea, dry skin, heart rhythm failure, heart pain, gastrointestinal disturbances are signs of a deficiency of these two trace elements at once.

What cardiovascular diseases are most useful for potassium and magnesium? These are arterial hypertension, coronary heart disease, chronic heart failure, atherosclerosis, various types of cardiac arrhythmias. “But doctors do not always prescribe potassium and magnesium studies for such patients,” the expert says.

Iron

More than 3.6 billion people in the world have a hidden iron deficiency in the body, of which every second suffers from iron deficiency anemia (about 25% of the world population). At the same time, latent iron deficiency occurs 1.5–2 times more often than iron deficiency anemia itself.

The main causes of iron deficiency states are chronic blood loss and malabsorption and intake of iron from food. However, at an early stage in the development of the disease, the symptoms of iron deficiency can be confused with a host of other diseases. This is done not only by patients, but often by doctors. The main signs of iron deficiency in the body: general weakness and fatigue, decreased efficiency, lack of concentration, daytime sleepiness even after a full night’s sleep, increased susceptibility to infections and colds, chilliness of the limbs, increased fragility and excessive hair loss, dryness and pallor of the skin, the appearance of cracks in the corners of the lips, exacerbation of gastritis.

There are risk groups for iron deficiency, and first of all, these are women of reproductive age, pregnant women, during pre- and postmenopause, as well as patients with cardiovascular diseases, chronically ill patients (diabetes, cancer, obesity), blood donors, people with impaired diet (vegans and vegetarians or those who are undernutritional as a result of low social status). For example, iron deficiency is detected in a huge number of patients with chronic heart failure (37-61%), chronic kidney disease (24-85%), inflammatory bowel disease (13-90%). However, in patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, iron deficiency can lead to particularly severe manifestations of their disease.

Iron deficiency is detected by a ferritin test. A decrease in ferritin levels leads to an increased risk of death, as shown by recent studies. Iron deficiency was found in a total of 8.8% of people, but it was found more often in women (10.9%) than in men (6.3%). A 14-year follow-up of patients with iron deficiency showed that their mortality was 58% higher.

The best prevention of anemia is to eat meat and fish products daily, at least once. Liver, red meat, oysters, fish, veal liver are foods that are very rich in this important mineral. On average, men need about 1 mg of exogenous iron per day, and women – up to 2 mg. And yet, a significant iron deficiency cannot be filled with diet alone; medications must be taken for 4-6 months. Moreover, now there are preparations that contain both iron and multivitamins. There are many iron preparations, the academician recommends preparations where it is combined with ascorbic acid, which increases its absorption.

Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) is an important nutrient that enters the human body with food. It plays an essential role in the formation of red blood cells and DNA, ensures the normal functioning of the nervous system.

Deficiency of this important vitamin is especially pronounced in risk groups. For example, in elderly patients in the age group of 65–75 years, its prevalence reaches 56%, and in people over 75 years of age, iron deficiency occurs in 93% of cases. Patients who take proton pump inhibitors have a vitamin B12 deficiency in every third case, and those who take metformin (patients with type 2 diabetes) already in every second. In addition, this is one of the main problems of vegetarians – vitamin B12 deficiency is detected in 50% of them.

Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause fatigue, weakness, constipation, loss of appetite, and weight loss. There may also be a violation of the sense of balance, confusion, depression, memory impairment, stomatitis.

Who needs vitamin B12 in the first place? People who complain of absent-mindedness, memory loss, fatigue, numbness and tingling in the hands and feet should at least know its content in the blood. This should also be done in the elderly, as well as in patients with diabetes who are taking special treatment that leads to a decrease in vitamin B12 levels. Although, as the academician emphasizes, laboratory studies often do not give quite reliable ideas about the level of this vitamin, so doctors should correlate patients’ complaints with their lifestyle and the drugs they take, and also take into account risk groups.

Vitamin B12 is found in many animal products, including beef liver, fish, shellfish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and dairy products. Vitamin B12 is also found in foods fortified with it, such as breakfast cereals and nutritional yeast.

The expert advises doctors to be more attentive to the complaints of patients with cardiovascular diseases, and patients themselves should not lose vigilance and be ashamed to disturb doctors.