Top 10 Supplements for Heart Health

Your heart is a vital organ—and keeping it healthy is, indeed, vital to your longevity. So what are you doing to keep the beat on a healthy heart? Hopefully, you're seeing your doctor regularly and following their advice. This usually includes a healthy diet and exercise (they don't call it "cardio" for nothing), keeping your weight in a healthy range, and avoiding stress, smoking and drinking.

But your heart health efforts don't have to end there. If you want to be even more proactive about your cardiovascular health, certain supplements may help. Fish oil, folate and vitamin K2 are some of the most popular ingredients, and they aren't the only ones.

What are the top 10 heart health supplements?

Here's the scoop on the top 10 heart health supplements—plus tips for keeping your ticker in top shape!

1. Fish oil

Fish oil is a popular supplement because it helps maintain already-healthy triglyceride and HDL cholesterol levels. Its omega-3 fatty acids are essential for your heart because they promote healthy blood flow and support already-healthy blood pressure. They also help inhibit inflammatory factors to promote whole-body health.

• Where to get it: Fatty fish like salmon, anchovies and sardines, and fish oil supplements that provide docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) omega-3s.

2. CoQ10

Coenzyme Q10, or CoQ10, is a molecule found in your heart, liver and other organs. CoQ10 provides critical support for mitochondria, which supports your cells' energy production. With this coenzyme, your cells can stay energized and carry on with daily functions.

While CoQ10 exists naturally in our bodies, encouraging cell energy production with a CoQ10 supplement is a good way to promote heart health. Your heart needs plenty of energy to keep pumping, so taking CoQ10 helps to ensure your ticker has enough.

Supplemental CoQ10 may also benefit older adults, as CoQ10 levels tend to decline as you age.

• Where to get it: Organ meats like liver, fatty fish like salmon and sardines, and dietary supplements.

3. Fiber

While you may associate fiber with digestive health or weight management, it is also renowned for helping with heart health. Incorporating fiber daily helps maintain already-healthy cholesterol and blood sugar levels. A meta-analysis shows glucomannan fiber helped promote already-healthy LDL and HDL cholesterol levels in people taking two or more grams of this fiber supplement.

• Where to get it: Fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and glucomannan fiber supplements derived from the konjac plant.

4. Magnesium

If you want good health, you'll need magnesium throughout your body to support your muscles, bones and heart—they don't call it the mighty mineral for nothing!
This heart-healthy element helps maintain already-healthy blood pressure levels. Magnesium also supports healthy serum lipid profiles, a healthy inflammatory response and healthy endothelial function to promote cardiovascular health.

• Where to get it: Leafy green vegetables, nuts, milk and dietary supplements.

5. Vitamin K2

Vitamin K2 may not be as popular as vitamins C and D, but it plays an important role in keeping calcium inside your bones and out of your arteries. This promotes both heart health and strong, healthy bones.

Research has shown the benefits of vitamin K2 for your heart. A seven-year study examined nearly 5,000 participants and found better cardiovascular health among those with the highest vitamin K2 intake compared with those with the lowest intake.

• Where to get it: Fermented foods, high-fat dairy products and vitamin K supplements.

6. Aged black garlic

Garlic may be known for immune health and Italian food, but aged black garlic has a different focus: helping to maintain the already-healthy blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels that mark cardiovascular health. Aged black garlic is a source of a valued heart-healthy compound known as S-allyl cysteine, or SAC.

• Where to get it: Aged black garlic bulbs or supplements providing a clinically studied dose of 500 mg of aged black garlic extract.

7. B vitamins

B vitamins are essential for energy metabolism, and they play a big role in a variety of important functions in your body. One of those important functions is helping maintain already normal homocysteine levels, supporting heart and brain health. B vitamins also help form red blood cells, promote nervous system health and have antioxidant activity that protects cells from oxidative stress.

• Where to get it: Food sources of B vitamins include whole grains, legumes, leafy greens and fortified products. Specific B vitamin supplements are formulated to help your body maintain homocysteine levels within normal range and support cardiovascular and brain health.

8. Probiotics

Certain probiotics support your cardiovascular health by helping you maintain already-healthy cholesterol levels. A standardized, specific strain of beneficial bacteria, Lactobacillus reuteri 30242, has been clinically studied for its heart health benefits. This strain promotes healthy levels of apolipoproteins B100 and A1, molecules that are key to the effects of LDL ("bad") and HDL ("good") cholesterol in your body. It also helps maintain fibrinogen levels to support your cardiovascular wellness and helps support already healthy C-reactive protein levels.

• Where to get it: Fermented foods like yogurt and pickles contain probiotics, but clinically studied amounts of heart health probiotics like Lactobacillus reuteri 30242 are found in probiotic supplements.

9. Amla

Amla, an Indian gooseberry extract, contains tannins that help maintain already-healthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels to support heart health. Amla also promotes healthy endothelial function, including the ability of the blood vessels to dilate and constrict, and supports a healthy inflammatory response, both of which are essential for overall cardiovascular health. Its antioxidant polyphenols also help fight oxidative stress.

• Where to get it: Indian gooseberry and standardized supplements.

10. Olive leaf extract

Olive leaf extract is a heart-healthy supplement that contains oleuropein, an antioxidant compound in olive oil with numerous health benefits, most notably support for already-healthy blood pressure, as seen in clinical studies. Olive oil, in general, is a great choice for heart health and is a mainstay of the Mediterranean diet.

• Where to get it: Olive oil and supplements offering standardized olive leaf extracts with a consistent amount of beneficial compounds.

Taurine: Honorable mention

Taurine is an amino acid known for its energy benefits as well as its heart-supporting qualities. Taurine helps maintain already-healthy blood pressure, encourages healthy heart muscle contractions and supports muscle mass. Taurine is also an important component in bile, supports optimal exercise performance, and helps maintain muscle mass.

• Where to get it: Animal proteins like seafood, meat and poultry or from dietary supplements.

The top heart supplements support different areas of cardiovascular health. The following chart breaks it down.

References

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