Syndrome X is a disorder most people seriously risk developing by the time they reach middle age. It explains the prevalence of heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and other health problems.
~ Burt Berkson, M.D., Ph.D., “Syndrome X: The Complete Nutritional Program to Prevent and Reverse Insulin Resistance”
Do you have high blood pressure or a big belly? Do you often feel physically or mentally sluggish? If yes, you may also have other indications of Syndrome X, a collection of health conditions that can greatly interfere with quality and length of life. The good news is that dedication to good health can reverse Syndrome X and each attendant symptom.
Syndrome X, The Nutritional Disease
Syndrome X, also known as cardiometabolic syndrome, is generally diagnosed when a patient has three of five interrelated conditions: (1) excessive belly fat (waist circumference – women > 35”/ men > 40”); (2) high triglycerides > 150; (3) low HDL (“good” cholesterol that carries LDL out of the body) < 50; (4) high blood pressure over 130/85 (normal is 110/70); and/or (5) fasting glucose > 100, which indicates a resistance to insulin. However, if you have any of these conditions combined with insulin resistance, a prediabetic condition that can cause any of the others, you have Syndrome X.
Insulin resistance develops over time from a poor diet high in refined and simple carbohydrates like sweets, alcohol, starchy snacks, fast food, bread, pasta, potatoes, and rice. Consuming these high-glycemic foods triggers a rapid increase in blood sugar (glucose), which results in increased production of insulin, the hormone that moves glucose into cells to be used as energy. The more one eats carbohydrates, the more the body produces insulin to deal with the excess blood sugar. Eventually, as the body becomes overwhelmed by the volume of insulin, it produces feelings of physical and mental sluggishness. If not addressed, insulin resistance can develop into Type II diabetes. According to Burton Berkson, M.D., Ph.D., insulin resistance always exists in Syndrome X because excess insulin production promotes increases in blood fats, blood pressure, and fat storage.
By generating high levels of cell-damaging free radicals, Syndrome X causes premature aging. Along with Type II diabetes, it also increases the risk for various disorders, including prediabetes, heart disease, obesity, eye disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and some cancers, including breast cancer.
The Conventional Approach
Traditional and alternative practitioners agree that various interrelated lifestyle modifications, including quitting smoking and heavy alcohol consumption, are the best means of combatting Syndrome X. If the patient cannot make necessary changes, or changes made do not adequately address present disorders, a doctor will usually prescribe drugs to lower blood pressure and triglycerides and raise HDL. Not only do all available drugs come with potential side effects, but natural remedies can often address conditions safely and without any side effects.
The Natural Approach
Alternative medicine’s approach to Syndrome X emphasizes the individual’s need to do his or her part by adopting therapeutic life changes. However, certain highly effective, safe nutrients can greatly support the patient’s efforts.
Lifestyle Modifications & The Anti-X Diet
Patients can take various steps to prevent and even reverse Syndrome X disorders. It is first most important to get rid of that belly! Losing just 10% of excess body weight lowers blood pressure and improves insulin resistance.
Regular aerobic exercise, resistance training/weight lifting, and a healthy, calorie-restricted diet, are the keys to long term reduction of excess body fat. Exercise need not be strenuous, and even a 10-minute walk after meals can clear glucose out of your bloodstream. To maximize results, exercise 40-60 minutes once or twice daily, making sure you increase your heart rate and break a sweat. Consider working with a fitness trainer to obtain direction and motivation for a regular regimen. Being accountable to a workout buddy can also help to ensure better long-term results.
A “healthy diet” in this context: (1) excludes saturated, hydrogenated, or trans fats (beef, pork, lamb, or duck) and alcohol; (2) minimizes simple carbohydrates (foods with a high glycemic index: sweets; pasta; bread; potatoes; rice); and (3) includes raw, low-sugar fruits (berries and apples), omega-3 fatty acids (especially in salmon, herring, sardines, tuna, haddock, mackerel, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds), moderate amounts of legumes, and an abundance of non-starchy vegetables. Julian Whitaker, M.D., a holistic diabetes specialist, also recommends cinnamon to control sugar swings (especially in capsules), apple cider vinegar (2 TBS before a high-carbohydrate meal), and white tea. Also, don’t skip breakfast. Those who eat breakfast every day are 33-50% less likely to be obese and have insulin resistance.
Stress reduction is also central to blood sugar control. Stress and anxiety can cause both Type II diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome and, if not controlled, can shorten lifespan.
Insulin Resistance/Blood Sugar Control
Resveratrol (grapes and 70+ other plant species):Shown in animal studies to mimic calorie restriction, combat abnormal blood fat (cholesterol, triglycerides) and insulin levels, lower blood pressure, and fight inflammation.
Alpha Lipoic Acid (spinach, broccoli): An antioxidant that helps burn glucose to power the heart, brain, and all other organs. It thus lowers glucose and insulin levels, reduces insulin resistance, and slows the aging process.
Gymnema Sylvestre:An herb that stimulates pancreatic production of insulin.
Vanadium (As Vanadyl Sulfate) (shellfish, mushrooms): Mimics insulin to help maintain normal blood sugar levels.
Chromium (Chromemate/GTF) (brewer’s yeast, whole grains): This trace mineral combats insulin resistance, binds to insulin to facilitate muscle use of glucose, and promotes weight loss.
Magnesium (halibut, almonds, spinach): Type II diabetics frequently suffer a deficiency in magnesium, which increases the number and sensitivity of insulin receptors and helps correct carbohydrate intolerance.
Silymarin (Standardized): An antioxidant flavonoid from the herb milk thistle, silymarin lowers/stabilizes blood glucose levels and protects the liver, the most important tissue involved in insulin utilization.
High Triglycerides/Low HDL: Red Yeast Rice Extract (RYRE)
Red yeast rice extract can both lower LDL and triglycerides and raise HDL. More than 34 clinical studies in the U.S. and China have shown RYRE to be a viable alternative to statin drugs in many patients. Red yeast rice extract contains not only approximately ten different compounds, particularly lovastatin (the statin in Mevacor®), that are similar to those in prescription statins, but also various cholesterol-lowering compounds and monacolins not found in statin drugs.
As all RYRE products are not equal, be certain to use a product that has adequate levels of lovastatin. The recommended dose of Cholestene from HPF, LLC (1,200 mg twice-daily with meals), for example, contains about 5-15 mg of lovastatin and can lower LDL by 23%, triglycerides by 15%, and total cholesterol by 19%.
Although RYRE generally does not cause the typical side effects of statins, it does share the trait of blocking the body’s synthesis of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), essential to energy production and concentrated in the heart muscle. Julian M. Whitaker, M.D., recommends that all patients taking statin drugs take 100-200mg/day of supplemental CoQ10. While some experts recommend that patients taking RYRE take as much as 300mg/day of CoQ10, clinical practice of this writer has shown 200mg of ubiquinol, the most highly bioavailable form of CoQ10, to be a sufficiently protective supplemental dose.
High Blood Pressure
CoQ10 (Ubiquinol)
CoQ10 is a powerful antioxidant that modulates blood pressure apparently by reducing resistance to blood flow. It also is generally important for cardiovascular health. The body uses CoQ10 to convert food into energy, and several trials have reported that supplementing with CoQ10 for 2.5 – 4 months significantly reduces hypertension.
Fish Oil (EPA/DHA)
EPA and DHA are two of the key omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) in the oil of fatty fish such as anchovies, sardines, salmon, herring, white albacore tuna, haddock, and mackerel. The Journal of the American College of Nutrition (2002) has reported that EPA and DHA “may play an important role in the prevention and treatment of coronary artery disease, hypertension . . . [and] other inflammatory . . . disorders.”(Vegetarian flax oil is an inferior source of EFAs since it contains only ALA, which must convert to EPA in the body.) The American Medical Association has even recognized fish oil’s ability to lower triglycerides.
High-quality fish oil supplements are enteric coated, molecularly distilled or pharmaceutical grade, cholesterol-free, and lead- and mercury-free. Most researchers have administered at least 3,000 mg/day of the total of EPA plus DHA in studying the impact of fish oil on humans with various health conditions.
Potassium & Magnesium Aspartate
Adequate amounts of potassium are essential for regulating blood pressure, water balance, levels of acidity, neuromuscular function, and electrical impulse transmission in the heart. Magnesium, one of the body’s most important minerals, lowers blood pressure by helping to relax the smooth muscles of the blood vessels and offsetting the blood vessel constriction caused by calcium.
It is important to ensure proper balance of both minerals. While there are many forms, the aspartate forms are particularly effective in addressing hypertension.
Hawthorn Berry
Hawthorn berry functions as a natural ACE inhibitor, one type of drug prescribed for hypertension. This herb’s bioflavonoids and OPCs are thought to make the heart a more efficient pump, increase coronary blood flow (by inhibiting blood vessel constriction), and help blood circulate to the extremities.
Conclusion
You can beat Syndrome X with a therapeutic lifestyle change program! All it takes is personal commitment to your own well-being, plus will power and discipline. Start by finding some form of exercise you enjoy, plus someone to guide you through the healthy-diet maze and chart your progress. Once you start feeling good, you’ll crave nutritious foods and will wonder how you ever managed living the way you did before!