Vitamin E and Blood Thinners - Safe or Not??

[lolex]

[exitium]

I was put on a beta blocker and aspirin as a blood thinner when I was diagnosed with AFIB. I was on them for 3 months then stopped cold turkey. I researched the meds and the theory behind them and found that there was no real solid evidence that taking them would increase longevity. As a matter of fact the beta blocker actually reduced it. So I had to ask myself why am I spending the money on something that offers no aid? My doc also said afib just happened and that its irreversible however if it became a problem they could possibly due an ablation which once again can have som very serious side effects.

So began my journey into whole health and all the possible causes of afib. Im happy to report that after a year of extensive supplementation my afib is about 90% improved and I suspect it will fully resolve given some more time.

I particularly like this line for your post above:

"Vitamin E may interfere with the way the body processes certain herbs or supplements using the liver's "cytochrome P450" enzyme system."

now, there are some very serious interactions that can occur with supplements and medication, but I have always wondered. how come the medical community is so hell bent on stearing people away from consuming ESSENTIAL nutrients and in turn replacing them with drugs??

I mean really, thats like cutting off your nose to spite your face isnt it? Why would a doc tell you NOT to consume an ESSENTIAL nutrient? Especially if they have not even checked to see if your levels are below the norm? Thats not to say I am condoning mega supplementation of all nutrients but I would wager that many of the ailments we face today are simply brought on by lack of essential nutrients OR a sever imbalance between whats needed.

For example the modern diet is high in salt low on potassium. Low in iodone, low in C and many other nutrients due to poor food sources.

Many nutrients have found to work well at helping reduce excessive blood clotting. Like niacin for example does wonders at unclumping blood without over thinning it. Vit E and fish oils also help blood "flow".

If your determined and persistant I think you could certainly get off your meds but it will take time, patience and ideally proper blood tests to insure optimal safety. If you are at the point where you need drugs I would say you likely have a number of deficiencies and/or imbalances if you fix them your body should be able to heal itself.

[ofonorow]

[Doug444]

It depends what you mean by "safe".

I have been taking Warfarin for about 2.5 years. I find that Vitamin E does increase my INR (as does red wine and curry).

This allows me to reduce my Warfarin dose.

My blood is tested on a monthly basis - sometimes weekly, if my INR varies too much.

[Johnwen]

[ofonorow]

Yes! Vitamin E does thin the blood especially the higher quality varieties."

Interesting Doug444 - as this must be more individualized that I previously thought (as my brother took large amounts of Unique-E from A.C. Grace and was not able to budge his INR, at least that is what he told me. In his case, the only thing that seemed to matter was the dosage of warfarin or coumadin or whatever he was on.)

[Johnwen]