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Possible PVC Cure - Asking for help
I have been suffering from PVC's for about 5 years. I am a 31 years old male, smoke-free for several years, 5'-9" and 150#. I haven't had a doctor tell me exactly how many I have in a day, but when I have them, they're about 1 every 5 or 6 heart beats on average, and sometimes 1 every 2 or 3 and they happen day and night. I have noticed them at these frequencies 6 out of 7 days a week (on average) for about the last 3 years. Heart disease runs in my family and my cholesterol is borderline, around 210. Like others, I have gotten medical opinions that my PVC's are benign, but I am still concerned that they are a harbinger of heart problems to come.
As evidenced by this forum, there are a lot of other people that are suffering from the same condition.
Like others, I have done a lot of testing. Medicine, diet, life-style management, etc. (not surgery). Lately, I have found what I think to be a winning combination that almost eliminates PVC's for me, and I'm wondering if it would also work for others.
From what I have been able to discern, this is a list of "rules" to make my PVC's go away:
No Caffeine - I have eliminated caffeine from my diet. This alone does not prevent them from happening.
Reduce the amount I eat out - It sounds strange, but eating out almost always triggers them. I haven't been able to determine whether it's sodium, fats, MSG, sugars or what. But, I have always eaten out a lot and unless I'm very particular about what I eat , they will occur. Hamburgers, chinese food, and buttery dishes are particularly aggravating. I still eat out (probably too much) but I've cut back.
Light on red meats, heavier on chicken - As a carnivore, I still eat red meat, just not as often. When given the option, I choose chicken.
Eat a lot of vegetables daily - I have made myself eat a large serving of vegetables at almost every meal. Broccoli, green beans, corn, etc. I usually don't put butter or a lot of salt on them. They can be along side a meaty entree.
Eat a lot of fruits daily - I have gotten into the habit of making myself a smoothie everyday. I may be imagining it, but this seems to make the biggest difference for me. My smoothies are made with frozen fruit, orange juice, yogurt (sometimes honey and vanilla extract). I probably about 24oz as my breakfast.They're actually very tasty. That's about all I eat for fruits each day (sometimes an apple or banana).
Exercise in any form - Walking/running/weight lifting. It doesn't seem to matter, just needs to add up to 30minutes/day.
Avoid nicotine - I don't smoke anymore, but I did in college a little, and the PVC's would start almost immediately.
This is about it. Incidentally, I haven't noticed much correlation with alcohol and chocolate consumption and PVC's, except sometimes with red wine and sometimes with excessive beer drinking. Also, I am not on any medicines.
My PVC's stop within 2-3 days of following these rules. It would be great if others had the same success. Please, if you try this, convey your experience on this thread.
Thanks
As evidenced by this forum, there are a lot of other people that are suffering from the same condition.
Like others, I have done a lot of testing. Medicine, diet, life-style management, etc. (not surgery). Lately, I have found what I think to be a winning combination that almost eliminates PVC's for me, and I'm wondering if it would also work for others.
From what I have been able to discern, this is a list of "rules" to make my PVC's go away:
No Caffeine - I have eliminated caffeine from my diet. This alone does not prevent them from happening.
Reduce the amount I eat out - It sounds strange, but eating out almost always triggers them. I haven't been able to determine whether it's sodium, fats, MSG, sugars or what. But, I have always eaten out a lot and unless I'm very particular about what I eat , they will occur. Hamburgers, chinese food, and buttery dishes are particularly aggravating. I still eat out (probably too much) but I've cut back.
Light on red meats, heavier on chicken - As a carnivore, I still eat red meat, just not as often. When given the option, I choose chicken.
Eat a lot of vegetables daily - I have made myself eat a large serving of vegetables at almost every meal. Broccoli, green beans, corn, etc. I usually don't put butter or a lot of salt on them. They can be along side a meaty entree.
Eat a lot of fruits daily - I have gotten into the habit of making myself a smoothie everyday. I may be imagining it, but this seems to make the biggest difference for me. My smoothies are made with frozen fruit, orange juice, yogurt (sometimes honey and vanilla extract). I probably about 24oz as my breakfast.They're actually very tasty. That's about all I eat for fruits each day (sometimes an apple or banana).
Exercise in any form - Walking/running/weight lifting. It doesn't seem to matter, just needs to add up to 30minutes/day.
Avoid nicotine - I don't smoke anymore, but I did in college a little, and the PVC's would start almost immediately.
This is about it. Incidentally, I haven't noticed much correlation with alcohol and chocolate consumption and PVC's, except sometimes with red wine and sometimes with excessive beer drinking. Also, I am not on any medicines.
My PVC's stop within 2-3 days of following these rules. It would be great if others had the same success. Please, if you try this, convey your experience on this thread.
Thanks
What itdood said was right on the money. It saves me alot of time writing out something similar. Im 25, and i suffer from PVC's also. Mine came out of no where and have had them for over a yr and a half. I average around 10000 a day.
I do have to go for an ablation for mine, which i was told there's only around a 60-70% success rate for me. So I hope it works.
I tried everything imaginable to try to help them stop. Quit smoking and drinking heavily instantly after 6 yrs, switched my diet up, tried herbal supplement, all sorts of medications, exercise, no exercise....the list goes on. And to be honest...the only thing that I can GUESS what my pvc's relate too is exercise.
Try to get a holter moniter test done and see exactly how many your having and see if there is anything else they can catch on there. Take care of yourself
Kane
I do have to go for an ablation for mine, which i was told there's only around a 60-70% success rate for me. So I hope it works.
I tried everything imaginable to try to help them stop. Quit smoking and drinking heavily instantly after 6 yrs, switched my diet up, tried herbal supplement, all sorts of medications, exercise, no exercise....the list goes on. And to be honest...the only thing that I can GUESS what my pvc's relate too is exercise.
Try to get a holter moniter test done and see exactly how many your having and see if there is anything else they can catch on there. Take care of yourself
Kane
Wow Russell the only thing i have to say to you and itdood is you two need to open a spa for healthier living.......i'm impressed with you both!!!!
Hi Russell, thanks for your post!
Always appreciate helpful feedback and your experience.
I too have greatly benefited from taking the steps you did. Our PVCs must be similar. I also have strong family history for CAD. None of my tests, including a cardiac MRI, have detected CAD.
My best theory on what causes *these* types of PVCs is some sort of mild ischemia.
There are 3 root causes for PVCs. Two of these are structural issues, these are triggered sites (monomorphic), and reentry. These would be caught in a simple EKG, and usually require surgery to correct.
The other type, which we have, is called enhanced automaticity (EA-PVCs), a.k.a. polymorphic, usually originating in the right ventricular outflow tract or RVOT.
I've never seen a clinical study that could pinpoint a smoking gun. It's all pure anecdotal evidence on what works to treat these.
Here's the general stuff I know about them based on my experience and working with fellow sufferers on this board
Triggers:
BP meds tend to make them increase in frequency (BP meds lower blood flow)
Some could be exercise induced
Some could be recovery induced (post exercise)
They could be positional
Stretching (yes, stretching triggers vaso - vagal response)
Sitting (see above)
Stress (see above)
Anxiety (vaso - vagal)
Depression (vaso - vagal)
Eating a large meal (yes, because it sends more blood to the intestines)
Adrenaline
Endocrine (hormone fluctuations)
Episodes come and go
They are usually classified as infrequent/isolated (this means <6,000/day usually and very rare occurrences of couplets, triplets, or runs)
caffeine
alcohol
General list of things that seem to help
Eating right
losing weight
exercise
Magnesium
eliminate caffeine
eliminate alcohol
control stress, anxiety, stop depression
Statins (statins have been clinically proven to reduce or even stop recovery PVCs in a large study)
If I look at the two lists the one root cause that fits the data is Ischemia (blood flow compromise). All the triggers can be deemed Vasoconstrictors (make arteries constrict thus cutting back on blood flow). All the of the helpful things are vasodilators (makes arteries open more).
The stimulant theory has never been consistent.
I ALWAYS had recovery PVCs. They stopped when I started taking a low dose statin in my 40s. Since I started the statin, along with very many other lifestyle changes, my PVCs have reduced dramatically
CAD begins in our 20s. EA - PVCs worsen as people age, seeming to peak in their 40s or 50s.
Ventricular pacers have a few activation mechanisms. Enhanced Automaticity means they are for some reason over active. Their main trigger is a drop in O2 being supplied to the cardiac muscle. Not sure what the threshold is, but it appears to be a very tiny one, meaning a very tiny drop will fire them. If you'd like, research on ventricular pacers and escape beats.
OK, so I can't think of anything in my theory that doesn't fit the ischemia cause. The ischemia is not clinically significant. However it is perceivable by ventricular pacers, thus firing PVCs.
What I think is that EA-PVCs are the very initial sign that something is starting to cause a bit less blood flow to the heart. It may not be detectable via even the most advanced imaging methods, but it's there. I think it should serve as a warning that we need to take steps to reduce our risk of CAD. People who take these steps often report improvement.
Some other anecdotal feedback I've gathered over the years are some folks with EA-PVCs, who were deemed to be fine but had further tests did find stenosis eventually. The one's I recall had stents but I didn't hear follow-up.
The moral of this is that I think for me, aggressive anti-CAD measures have helped and I don't plan on ever stopping this lifestyle change. Anti-CAD measures such as statins and lifestyle changes have been shown to reverse CAD. I caught it early, and I can see that I'm making positive changes.
More info I'd like to see, does Niacin help anyone with EA-PVCs?.... Niacin has been shown to reverse calcification in heart arteries. If it helps this is more evidence pointing in this direction
Always appreciate helpful feedback and your experience.
I too have greatly benefited from taking the steps you did. Our PVCs must be similar. I also have strong family history for CAD. None of my tests, including a cardiac MRI, have detected CAD.
My best theory on what causes *these* types of PVCs is some sort of mild ischemia.
There are 3 root causes for PVCs. Two of these are structural issues, these are triggered sites (monomorphic), and reentry. These would be caught in a simple EKG, and usually require surgery to correct.
The other type, which we have, is called enhanced automaticity (EA-PVCs), a.k.a. polymorphic, usually originating in the right ventricular outflow tract or RVOT.
I've never seen a clinical study that could pinpoint a smoking gun. It's all pure anecdotal evidence on what works to treat these.
Here's the general stuff I know about them based on my experience and working with fellow sufferers on this board
Triggers:
BP meds tend to make them increase in frequency (BP meds lower blood flow)
Some could be exercise induced
Some could be recovery induced (post exercise)
They could be positional
Stretching (yes, stretching triggers vaso - vagal response)
Sitting (see above)
Stress (see above)
Anxiety (vaso - vagal)
Depression (vaso - vagal)
Eating a large meal (yes, because it sends more blood to the intestines)
Adrenaline
Endocrine (hormone fluctuations)
Episodes come and go
They are usually classified as infrequent/isolated (this means <6,000/day usually and very rare occurrences of couplets, triplets, or runs)
caffeine
alcohol
General list of things that seem to help
Eating right
losing weight
exercise
Magnesium
eliminate caffeine
eliminate alcohol
control stress, anxiety, stop depression
Statins (statins have been clinically proven to reduce or even stop recovery PVCs in a large study)
If I look at the two lists the one root cause that fits the data is Ischemia (blood flow compromise). All the triggers can be deemed Vasoconstrictors (make arteries constrict thus cutting back on blood flow). All the of the helpful things are vasodilators (makes arteries open more).
The stimulant theory has never been consistent.
I ALWAYS had recovery PVCs. They stopped when I started taking a low dose statin in my 40s. Since I started the statin, along with very many other lifestyle changes, my PVCs have reduced dramatically
CAD begins in our 20s. EA - PVCs worsen as people age, seeming to peak in their 40s or 50s.
Ventricular pacers have a few activation mechanisms. Enhanced Automaticity means they are for some reason over active. Their main trigger is a drop in O2 being supplied to the cardiac muscle. Not sure what the threshold is, but it appears to be a very tiny one, meaning a very tiny drop will fire them. If you'd like, research on ventricular pacers and escape beats.
OK, so I can't think of anything in my theory that doesn't fit the ischemia cause. The ischemia is not clinically significant. However it is perceivable by ventricular pacers, thus firing PVCs.
What I think is that EA-PVCs are the very initial sign that something is starting to cause a bit less blood flow to the heart. It may not be detectable via even the most advanced imaging methods, but it's there. I think it should serve as a warning that we need to take steps to reduce our risk of CAD. People who take these steps often report improvement.
Some other anecdotal feedback I've gathered over the years are some folks with EA-PVCs, who were deemed to be fine but had further tests did find stenosis eventually. The one's I recall had stents but I didn't hear follow-up.
The moral of this is that I think for me, aggressive anti-CAD measures have helped and I don't plan on ever stopping this lifestyle change. Anti-CAD measures such as statins and lifestyle changes have been shown to reverse CAD. I caught it early, and I can see that I'm making positive changes.
More info I'd like to see, does Niacin help anyone with EA-PVCs?.... Niacin has been shown to reverse calcification in heart arteries. If it helps this is more evidence pointing in this direction
The point I would like to make is that the results have been almost immediately after these changes are made. This is the exciting part to me. It doesn't take 3 months to see results, rather 2-3 days. This is what I want to share with people, and also to find out if anyone else can replicate the results of the experiment, so-to-speak.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Congratulations on your good results with moving toward a more heart healthy life-style. With a cholesterol of 210, given you good life-style practice, you may want to consider taking a statin drug. I take a generic and it is very inexpensive and very effective. I'd guess you'd get your cholesterol down to below 170 with a statin (Simvastatin is what I take, 20 mg a day with very good results: around 170 from a past 240).
Chocolate has a lot of caffeine, and often sugar. So if you can get away with eating that, a cup or two of coffee or tea shouldn't bother you either, I'd think. Not an argument, but it may be that you caffeine threshold isn't hit unless you intake chocolate and coffee in the same day.
Chocolate has a lot of caffeine, and often sugar. So if you can get away with eating that, a cup or two of coffee or tea shouldn't bother you either, I'd think. Not an argument, but it may be that you caffeine threshold isn't hit unless you intake chocolate and coffee in the same day.
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