Foods to Avoid
| 5 star (2) | 67% | |
 (1) |
33% |
★★★★★
(Los Angeles, California)
10/25/2012
I got caught up in that cocunut oil hype and discovered for the first time in my life that I had high blood pressure. When I removed the coconut oil, my blood pressure went back down to low normal levels.
(Wellington, New Zealand)
03/31/2013
re coconut milk & palpitations:
saw a lot of comments on coconut oil & coconut milk... The key here is to understand your own condition & what triggers episodes.
I am a long time SVT sufferer. Today during exercise I was having minor heart palpitations and drank some coconut milk to see the effect. It calmed my heart and levelled the palpitations. So now I'll add this to my box of tricks for next time I have an episode. Apples work really well for me too.
I would not try coconut oil because most oils in too higher a dose cause SVT episodes for me e.g. cheese will trigger one (and I love cheese :-(
So again, the key is to report your findings as to how they work for you and for those who read them to take note & try. Everyone is different.
(Abbekerk, Netherlands)
09/25/2013
The product advised for tachycardia on Earth Clinic was Coconut water (or milk) and not the oil. The oil that could improve tachycardia is omega-3.
(Cover, Pa)
01/17/2017
I put virgin coconut oil in my hair and on my skin and I had tachycardia for 3 days. I did not know beforehand that it is a stimulant energy booster. I have a mild heart condition to begin with and boy did that get my heart racing
Foods to Avoid
★★★★★
Gas-X
★★★★★
At 5'8" I can't keep weight on, always weighed 120 since high school but weight has dropped to under 110. UGH! Trying to keep it on without overeating is hard.
(FL)
12/05/2023
I found that a good deal of my tachycardia was due to being under weight by even 15 lb (not all was due to this but a lot of the heart palpitations improved). I used to think I was overeating but you have to eat extra calories more than the norm and if the current norm is lower than what is needed then it also makes sense that you would now be eating what was needed prior as well as more to gain. I find my body knows what it needs. 3 meals per day plus 2-3 snacks, when in weight gain, 3 snacks may make sense, should prevent overeating. Also, highly recommend the free RecoveryRecord app for eating disorders (not saying you have one) but it help you track how you eat, what you're feeling, and you can set the settings to track whether you restricted at a certain meal, your scale of hunger and your scale of fullness after eating. Also, there are other calorie tracking apps that will set what you need based upon what you say your goal weight is. This should give a better sense of whether or not you're overeating or just trying to catch up. This is what helped me heal, that and I needed an eating disorder nutritionist. I know this is much later, but I know this can be an ongoing struggle for some, so just in case, and so that others know, I concur that being lower on weight did create some of my symptoms.
General Feedback
(Usa)
11/25/2013
GULP a glass of ice water and your racing heart will go away immediately... In other words drink it hard down your throat.
(U.s.)
03/17/2016
I've been told that putting ice water on your face could stop tachycardia, too. They say put your face into ice water, but an ambulance driver who has tachycardia told me you can also soak a cloth in ice water and hold that to your face. I haven't had an episode since then (heart rate was around 210 last 3 episodes), and the other Valsalva maneuvers I tried wouldn't stop it (coughing, bearing down), so I'll definitely try ice water next time, probably on the face for me, but might try drinking it.
General Feedback
Hawthorn and Motherwort
★★★★★
First, I use a liquid extract, alcohol free if possible. I used to use an alcohol extract but it did not work anything like the alcohol-free. After experimenting with different manufacturers I settled on Nature's Answer alcohol-free hawthorn and Nature's Answer low-alcohol motherwort. These people are based in Hauppauge, New York, and I have no connection with them whatever except as happy user of their products. After a couple years, Nature's Answer turned their hawthorn into hawthorn berry (which it was originally), leaf and flower. On the Net I found this combo supposedly reinforced the properties of the hawthorn berry. I found it had no different ability to stop my cardiac arrhythmia. Same speed.
Nature's Answer motherwort is about 15 percent alcohol. Some experimentation with different manufacturers years ago made it clear you can't put motherwort in solution without using some alcohol, or it will come out of solution. Even so, you still need to shake the motherwort extract to get it evenly distributed.
This stuff can get rid of an attack of PSVTs like lightning. I keep a quarter ounce bottle with glass eye dropper on me at all times, mixed with a 50% hawthorn-50% motherwort mixture. That 50 percent is by volume, not weight, say a full level teaspoon of each. And I shake each one thoroughly before adding to the mix.
Once in a while I will get a warning jump in my chest saying my heart could go into fast heartbeat. I will sit down as soon as possible, take out my bottle of herbs, shake it well, and fill the dropper about 1/3 to 1/2 full. I always sit or lie down whenever I get a heart incident so I don't have any strain on the heart, and I will stay down for maybe ten minutes.
If I have gone into full tachycardia, where my heart is beating 160-200 beats a minute, I don't care where I am, I lie down. I get my bottle of herbs out, shake it thoroughly, and put a dropper full into my mouth. How fast is it? Once when I couldn't lie down, I was in my car on the freeway, I parked it as soon as I could and took my dropper full. I couldn't get the dropper back in the bottle fast enough to beat my heart getting back to normal. It took one second for my heartbeat to resume normal beating.
This remedy has NEVER failed me. I have gotten into the habit, over the years, of taking 1/3 dropper full after breakfast, 1/3 dropper full after lunch, and 1/3 dropper full after supper. I have noticed that scars that seemed to be getting deeper with age began to disappear, to where they are barely noticeable nowadays. I am 81.
Symptoms that might accompany this remedy being more effective: the tongue is red compared to a fresh cut pork chop. The left pulse between the wrist crease and the head of the radius tends to be weak, perhaps weaker than the pulse at any other position.
I can't guarantee this will work for you. I can tell you it is greased lightning working on me. My incidence of heart palpitations has dropped from several bouts per week to perhaps one every two to five years. I NEVER leave my hawthorn-motherwort on the dresser at home. It is in my pocket at all times.
(Drexel Hill, Pa)
11/15/2011
Thanks Jerry from Seal Beach, Cal. I have had episodes of Tachycardia for close to 30 years and I really appreciate the advice you gave on Motherwort and Hawthorn. I will have to do a little more research into these two herbal treatments but it sounds like a good answer to my heart palpitations. Right now I use cayenne pepper in warm water to help slow down my racing heart. Thanks again and God Bless!
(San Francisco, Ca)
06/27/2013
★★★★★
Thank you so much for this tip. My palpitations lasted sometimes for hours. I am convinced that motherwort which I take under the tongue at the first sign of a flare up is as helpful as you describe. I had been doing many other things, including rubbing myself with magnesium oil, eating smaller meals, and so on, too. Thank you very much. This is the first time in my life that I have ever commented at a forum like this.
(Barrington. Illinois)
09/15/2016
I was just diagnosed with psvt. Was on a monitor and had twenty minutes of over 200 beats per minute. I have not tried any of the remedies yet but I will go to health store tomorrow. Any suggestions as to what I should try first?Also my cardiologist referred me to an electrical cardiologist who can evaluate me for ablation. Has anyone had it and did it help?
Joan
(Tx)
11/01/2016
Hi Joan!
There are a lot of people that do the ablation for tachycardia. Some people it helps a lot, some it sets off a new set of problems. Please just be sure and do your research before jumping into doing that. If it was your first and only incident, check for food or medication allergy or sensitivity.
Please keep us posted!
(On, Canada)
06/07/2018
Thank you for sharing! I m currently in the hosptal for tachycardia and was prescribed Atenolol. It has so many side effects! I took a bit of motherwort when my attack came, but I think I should take it daily for prevention. All the best.
(USA)
03/18/2023
★★★★★
Recently started having racing heart….scary! I found a post by Jerry in 2011, I got the Hawthorne/motherwort TINCTURES at Swanson. I felt the heart racing 8 days ago and blended the 2 tinctures….took 1/3 dropperful, as Jerry suggested. Heart rate dropped from 118 to 79 in about 40min. It was amazing. Even more amazing, I haven't had to take it again! Lowers BP, too. Thank you Jerry & Don(worked for Don too). Thank you EC for maintaining those testimonies for years!!
(Miami)
03/24/2023
Valocordin on Amazon. 100% herbal. Ingredients: Valerian, Adonis, Lily of the Valley, Hawthorn, Saponin, Peppermint oil, alcohol and water. Take at bedtime.
(buffalo)
08/08/2023
I had racing heart (tachycardia) What helped was going on Biest and Progesterone (for menopause).
Iodine
★★★★★
Iron
(Raumati South, Wellington, New Zealand)
03/31/2013
It's not true that if you have palpitations it's (only) because your iron is low. This is one case but not all. I suffered from palpitations for years and I eat a very healthy diet. I have since found out I have SVT. No extra iron helps me. Food avoidance is key for me e.g. oils, chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, etc. Also supplements which are aimed at "heart health" can have bad effects on tachycardia sufferers e.g. Co-Q10 will trigger an SVT episode for me & I have found others the same. Magnesium is the same too. I have to avoid multivitamins with too much magnesium in them.
(Tyler, Tx)
08/15/2013
★☆☆☆☆
(Pennsylvania)
06/03/2024
YES, spinach has lots of iron BUT it also has OXALATES so this iron is not absorbed. My husband has low iron anemia and started to eat scrambled eggs with spinach EVERYDAY. Two years and his iron even went down....Now he replaced spinach with sausage. Not tested yet but looks stronger ... and likes it better!
(America)
06/04/2024
Organic blackstrap molasses (unsulphered) provides iron, and also dessicated liver capsules or eat liver if you like.
Magnesium Water
★★★★★
How to make your own Magnesium water [like the 'Noah' water being sold by a certain company, which bottles water from a spring that is naturally rich in bicarbonates of Magnesium].
The assumption is that we could all use more magnesium in our diet, which may help reduce blood pressure, reduce the likelihood of kidney stones, etc.
Here's how to make your own Mg-rich drinking water:
Buy a bottle of Carbonated Seltzer water - NO SODIUM, just carbonated "fizz" water, unflavored. Refrigerate for a couple of hours.
Get another, larger bottle, and pour 2/3 of a capful of PLAIN (no-flavor) Philips Milk of Magnesia (which is Magnesium Oxide, an alkaline laxative) into the large bottle. (The bottle comes with a plastic measuring cup which is what I mean when I say 2/3 capful.)
Now quickly open the bottle of carbonated water (water carbonic acid) and empty it into the large bottle containing the 2/3 capful of Magnesia.
Shake well.
You will have a bottle of milky/cloudy liquid which is in the process of neutralization between the carbonic acid and the magnesium oxide-- leaving a neutral salt, Magnesium Bicarbonate.
Let the cloudy mixture sit for a while at room temperature, until the liquid clears; there will be some white precipitate at the bottom. Shake again and let sit again. When clear, refrigerate. THIS IS YOUR MAGNESIUM BICARBONATE CONCENTRATE. Unlike the chalky taste of straight Milk of Magnesia, or the biting-fizzy taste of seltzer water, your concentrate will have a strong, sweet, slightly "soapy" taste. You will be DILUTING it in water for drinking purposes.
When it has chilled, pour a small amount into an empty 1 liter bottle (approx. 1/2" of concentrate at the bottom) and fill the rest of the bottle with pure drinking water.
You have now created a sweet-tasting, Magnesium-enriched drinking water, and you're also getting your Bi-carbs without all the Sodium you'd be getting from Baking Soda.
I have been making and drinking this Mg water since Nov. 2006 (I write this in July of 2007) and have not had any bad effects from it. I take a bottle to work and sip it during the day. My resting heart rate seems to have gone down and I feel more relaxed in general. I can't say it has greatly improved my high blood pressure, but it has helped some, and I know I am getting enough Magnesium. Probably would be beneficial to supplement with Calcium for balance.
Try it and see what it does for you.
Magnesium, Potassium
★★★★★
This weekend it was the worst. I just couldn't catch my breath all weekend, and finally I decided to take my pulse. 108 bpm! Crazy, it's never that hight and all the symptoms going with it are very unusual for me -- until about a month or two ago, this kind of thing was something I only thought happened to other people since I have always been 'text book' in the pulse / blood pressure / etc departments.
Anyways, for some reason I had a flash of an idea -- I am a regular taker of potassium and magnesium, mostly due to muscle stiffness and soreness, but I had run out of potassium several months back, and continued on with the magnesium until about 5 weeks ago when I ran out of that too. I was doing ok, so I figured I would buy some when I got to the vitamin shop. Well - I kept forgetting. I mentioned to my husband to look up magnesium in conjunction with heart rate -- and the second article he found said that heart rate is governed by magnesium (foremost) and potassium (secondly). Then he asked if I had any put away in the emergency box. And I knew I did.
I took 400 mg magnsium, and 198mcg Potassium and within 20 minutes I was down to 86 bpm. Another 20 minutes after that, I was down to 76 bpm. I am normally around 70 bpm, resting, so I was reassured.
I had to take more when I woke up in the morning as I was back up to almost 90bpm, but I know that both potassium and magnesium are cumulative, and I figure I must have been seriously depleted.
Now the interesting conundrum -- was I really as stressed at work as I thought I was? Or was my 'stress' actually a result of depleted Magnesium and Potassium stores? I feel much better today, but only time will tell, I suspect.
(Fountain Inn, Sc)
12/16/2013
To Sonya,
Re your question about fast heart rate and how magnesium and potassium helped you...after the good news that your heart rate went way down after starting back on those two and the pressure at work seemed more manageable...you ask: Could the lack of the two (magnesium and potassium) have caused you to be LESS able to handle the stress?????
VERY perceptive, Sonya and the answer is absolutely YES. Having enough magnesium and potassium enable the system to handle stress much more efficiently and you can easily "roll with the punches" if your system is fortified with those two miracle working supplements.
In the "olden times" our great grandparents would joke that if a person was tense and agitated then that anxious individual "needed his salts" meaning a long series of soakings in "Epson salts baths" which is Magnesium sulfate. Multiple baths ( two cups of Epsom salts ) poured into a very warm bath and the person soaks for twenty minutes therein; such to be repeated four or five times in the following ten days until a slight bit of the salts remains on the skin indicating that the magnesium saturation is met. But also one should consume the tables orally too as you said you do.
The point is you are right in your question; Life is just flat out better with consumption of magnesium and potassium and the heart works better too. Any Afib problem...90 of them...are magnesium and potassium depletion related. (Add natural ...NOT synthetic Vitamin E...only found in a health food store, not drug store...and the cardio problems diminish greatly.)
(Az)
03/12/2016
★★★★★
Yes a deficiency in magnesium can make your heart rate higher. I had that internal shakiness The feeling went way and my heart rate went down after taking magnesium ultra 200 mg a day. Also upped my potassium by drinking low sodium tomato juice and coconut water.
(Ontario)
03/10/2021
★★★★★
I have had no serious health issues all my life approx 59 now
But recently I started getting abnormal heart palpitations to the point where I was getting them even when in bed. I thought eating was the cause as usually, it started after eating. Tried magnesium glycinate with little effect.
Then I remembered I had magnesium calm is what it is called and so after a meal, I took half a teaspoon. I found my symptoms were lessened. That evening I took another half teaspoon I slept without issue and no palpitations.
It works for me the stuff is magnesium carbonate in ionic format. I think you need a larger amount of magnesium in the form your body handles best.
Melatonin
★★★★★
My husband experienced a head injury and the doctor recommended him using Melatonin because he needed to have better sleep at night. I decided to start using it too and at that time I was taking tambacor and experiencing dizzy spells from it. I decided to go off the Tambacor. When I went off this medication I didn't have any tachycardia episodes I've been taking Melatonin for 6 months now and I can honestly say I have not had one episode. I take one 5mg pill at night, and it seem to do the trick.
The Melatonin has changed my life, I no longer rely on hard horrible medications to control my arrhythmia. Plus I get a better sleep at night and no side effects.
I hope this information will help someone, that's having to rely on using these horrible medications.
(North Myrtle Beach, Sc)
02/20/2016
Can't wait to try. Is it over the counter
Multiple Remedies
★★★★★
====ORH====
(Ten Mile, Tn)
07/13/2020
Hi U OLE PATOOTS,,,,,,,, ORH here, and feel like I may survive.
If all recall, I went to the best electrical Doc in this area to fix this problem with ablation. Problem was my venous vein is crimped and he could not get his welder through to my heart. Out of HS, I was 5'9" and now 5'7" but your veins and arteries don't shrink, they just crimp like a water hose. He now says he can use a stronger wire and force open the kink. If he fails, I die, and he gets to write an article in a medical journal.
My dad had the same deal in the 70's and the solution was for the doc was to come to his house, take a clean handkerchief and try to pull his tongue out of his mouth. If that did not work, then he pushed on his eyeballs and if that did not work, then dad stood at the bed and the doc hit him in his heart as hard as he could. One measure always worked. I was getting to that point today. Problem with my shotgun approach is that I never know which thing did the trick. So later I write the story of the COVID 19 testing.
====ORH====
(Ten Mile, Tn)
07/14/2020
HI U OLE PATOOTS,
ORH here, woke this morning and no heart flutter, but I was in AFIB again. Forgot to mention that yesterday, I used my KAATSU BLOOD RESRICTION system on my legs. Began to address my AFIB as I did yesterday and nothing helped. I then went on my KAATSU system and my AFIB was gone by the end of the session.
Years ago I investigated EECP my cardiologist used for heart ailments. It uses a similar technique as KAATSU and is expensive and the FDA will only approve if you can't have a heart by-pass. As all know I's SJS and am excited about what I have learned about getting out of Tachycadia and AFIB on your own.
Yesterday, I was in both at the same time. Am also convinced that the wrong mix of medications can be a factor. For those that have this condition, suggest you research the KAATSU system. By restricting your blood flow, your heart has to work harder and your brain picks that up and it changes things. It is a fascinating story about it's evolution in Japan within the last two decades. Still have the story to tell about COVID 19 testing.
===ORH===
(Forsyth)
11/07/2020
Omega 3 Fish Oil
★★★★★
I take 2 fish oil capsules per day. They have 360 mg EPA & 240 mg DHA. Warning: don't take at night because it activates the brain and may keep you up. Take 30 minutes before you eat for best results.
(Cincinnati, Ohio)
10/27/2019
★★★★★
Johann,
The mainstream medical literature, and the advice they provide are full of misleading info. But so does many internet sites on the alternative medicine, so be quite careful. You can live a long life with this condition and usually without having surgeries.
I studied alternative medicine for 30 to 40 years as a hobby around the world and published several articles on it. Two fish oil gels for someone with tachycardia is nothing. When it hits u, u need to take about 1,500 IUs minimum of Omega 3, fatty acids (don't confuse that with fish oil, what I mean is the EPA and DHA) with at least 800mg magnesium, 99mg potassium and real garlic grown in the USA.
Lay down while elevating your feet. Fried food, sweets and stress are another concern (salt? caffeine? the jury is still out on it) that may cause pooling and stickiness of your blood at the heart valves or in your arteries. Try to eat food that contains the above mentioned elements. Try to drink wine, reds are better and daily and consume garlic and real, clean ocean fish frequently.
Bob V
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome Remedies
Thank you, did I mention I love ec? I love your site and am thankful it's been a ton of help
(Ca, Usa)
08/23/2013
One reason this could possibly happen is when someone is hypertensive and is taking diuretics. Diuretics pulls out body fluids which could lead to dehydration. So if and when you stand up and feel tachycardic (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia), it could be telling you that you need fluids. Coconut water is one of the best fluid replacement for dehydration from diuretics, or from losing fluids thru exercise, etc. Magnesium supplementation would also be a good idea to relax your heart and prevent rapid heart beats. Mg Glycinate is a good form of Mg, without laxative side effects.
Potassium Chloride
★★★★★
Cryj,
I don't know about heart murmurs but potassium chloride seems to cure everything heart related. This man, Joe Vialls, cured himself of 25 years of hi blood pressure and angina by ending life long potassium deficiency. Here is his story:
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/salud/salud_potassium.htm
Personally I had begun to have rapid heart beats maybe once a month for a few seconds only. Still it was scary. I read Joe Vialls article and his story fascinated me and purchased Now Foods potassium chloride on the web http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-Potassium-Chloride-Powder-8-oz-227-g/777
This was many years ago so I don't remember how or how much I took but the rapid heart beats are long gone. I moved two years ago and don't know where my potassium chloride disappeared to.
Patricia
(Northport, NY)
08/03/2016
WARNING:
Do not give potassium chloride to your animal without speaking to your vet about it first. I'm not sure that a vet would even recommend this. Potassium chloride is used in ice melts. Potassium is one of those minerals that most doctors will tell you should be getting from food, not a supplement because it is very easy for the blood levels to get too high which can be very dangerous. Potassium needs to stay in balance with the other important heart minerals such as calcium and magnesium.
The people reading this post most likely have animals who are already on meds or animals with serious heart conditions. And it is really important that they know that potassium chloride can have serious interactions with many heart meds such as enalapril and many of the diuretics. Combining these meds may significantly increase potassium levels in the blood in your animal and high levels of potassium can develop into a condition known as hyperkalemia, which in severe cases can lead to kidney failure and cardiac arrest.
Also, if you have kidney problems you cannot take this – it can be very dangerous. For those who are interested, Dr. Sinatra's website gives an expansive list of recommended foods which are high in potassium, magnesium and calcium which he recommends to his heart patients to help bring down their blood pressure.
(California)
12/30/2017
