Source: Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition (07/06/2009) – Edited for grammar and definition.
Diseases of the heart and circulation are so common and the public is so well acquainted with the major symptoms that result from cardiovascular disorders that patients, and occasionally physicians, wrongly attribute many unrelated complaints to cardiovascular disease (CVD). It should not be a surprise that this occurs, as most patients are aware that cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States.
There are four principle properties of the cardiovascular system that can be evaluated to provide information to help manage cardiovascular disease. These include movement of electrical signals through the heart, heart pump function, blood flow through the heart, and anatomy. There are several risk factors for cardiovascular disease that are essentially undeniable. These are older age, male gender, and a family history of CVD. Additionally, three major risk factors identified include cigarette smoking, dyslipidemia (high cholesterol), and hypertension.
By definition a multivitamin is a preparation intended to supplement a human diet with vitamins, dietary minerals and other nutritional elements. A multivitamin/mineral supplement is defined in the United States as a supplement containing 3 or more vitamins and minerals but does not include herbs, hormones, or drugs, with each nutrient dosage below the tolerable upper level determined by the Food and Drug Board (FDA). People with dietary imbalances may include those on restrictive diets and those who can't or won't eat a nutritious diet. Pregnant women and elderly adults have different nutritional needs than other adults, and a multivitamin may be indicated by their physicians.
A recent study was done involving 128 obese Chinese women aged 18-55 years having an increased risk of cardiovascular disease by having hypertension, hyperglycemia or hyperlipidemia. It was a 26-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with the subjects receiving either one tablet of high-dose multivitamin and mineral supplement (MMS), or one tablet of low-dose MMS (Low MMS), or calcium 162 mg (Calcium) or identical placebo (Placebo) daily. The results showed that supplementation with adequate multivitamin and mineral supplement could reduce blood pressure and serum CRP in obese women with increased cardiovascular disease risk. (1)
(1). Wang C, Li Y, Zhu K, et al. Effects of supplementation with multivitamin and mineral on blood pressure and C-reactive protein in obese Chinese women with increased cardiovascular disease risk. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2009;18(1):121-30.
