How to make your blood vessels younger to avoid heart attack and stroke

All of the toxins we’re exposed to day in and day out, from air pollution to chemicals in our laundry detergent, results in inflammation that actually damages our cells.

And the big issue there is that it speeds up your aging processes.

But, it’s not just your skin you need worry about…

It can lead to far more serious damage — on the inside… like damage to your blood vessels that boosts your risks for cardiovascular problems, including high blood pressure and heart attack.

But, two studies have now found a two-step process that can help put a halt to those age-related changes in your blood vessels (think inflammation, plaque build-up and even artery stiffness) — effectively keeping your blood vessels and heart younger and healthier…

Recipe for better blood vessel function

The study, performed on firefighters, harnessed the power of two amazing nutrients — CoQ10 (an antioxidant now well-known for its ability to battle everything from vision problems due to aging to Parkinson’s) and aged garlic extract or AGE (an odorless, antioxidant-rich form of garlic that has been the subject of over 700 scientific studies).

The firefighters were split into a control group who were given a placebo (basically a sugar pill) and a second group who took 300 mg of AGE plus 30 mg of CoQ10 every day for a period of one year.

And, the results were phenomenal…

Not only did the firefighters who took the AGE/CoQ10 combo show better vascular elasticity (which can significantly lower blood pressure), but they also had better endothelial function of their blood vessels — meaning that their blood vessels were able to fully dilate (widen) to give them better blood flow.

But, that’s not all…

A second study on firefighters using a higher dose of the combo (1,200mg of AGE plus 120 mg of CoQ10) for a further 12 months discovered even more benefits.

The nutrient powerhouse combination significantly reduced blood vessel inflammation and even prevented atherosclerosis (that plaque build-up that narrows your blood vessels and puts you at risk for heart attack and stroke).

In essence, using aged-garlic extract along with the antioxidant, CoQ10 kept the blood vessels of both groups of firefighters young and healthy, lowering their risk of heart disease.

The power of CoQ10 and aged garlic

There’s nothing new about garlic and heart and artery health…

Behind that strong odor is hydrogen sulfide gas (H₂S). H₂S has many health benefits as an important and beneficial chemical-signaling molecule in the body. The amount of H₂S produced from eating garlic affects the degree of vasodilation and relaxation of blood vessels. This is powerful for healthy blood flow.

Now, aged garlic is aged for up to 20 months. And the great thing about it over raw garlic is that, along with its heart-healthy benefits, it’s also gentler on the stomach than the fresh garlic varieties. You can find good quality AGE supplements both in your local natural health store and online.

But CoQ10 is the new kid on the block…

An extremely powerful antioxidant, your body needs for its basic functions like cell growth and maintenance as well as for protection from free radicals that speed up the aging process.

The problem is that your body’s CoQ10 levels start to drop fast the older you get and other factors can make the decline even worse — including taking statin drugs for your cholesterol.

The good news is that you can replace the CoQ10 your body needs like the researchers did in the study above by taking a high-quality supplement.

But, you need to know what to look for.

Ubiquinone or ubiquinol 

Far too many of the CoQ10 supplements are made with ubiquinone — a substance that must be converted into ubiquinol in order to be used by your body.

And that gets harder as you age. That means that in order to actually be able to use the CoQ10 you take you have to get it in ubiquinol form.

To top it off, even ubiquinol supplement can be a problem if they crystallize during the production process because it lowers CoQ10 bioavailability — meaning your body still can’t use them.

So, the key is to look for a supplement that is completely soluble, liquid crystal-free ubiquinol.