You've heard of the 98 pound weakling on the beach 00:00:16.54\00:00:19.18 with all the big guys kicking sand in his face. 00:00:19.21\00:00:22.12 Being not strong isn't necessarily bad unless you're 00:00:22.15\00:00:26.59 talking about your heart. Stay tuned... 00:00:26.62\00:00:30.16 I'm Dr. James Marcum... 00:00:30.63\00:00:32.56 Are you interested in discovering the reason why? 00:00:32.59\00:00:35.76 Do you want solutions to your healthcare problem? 00:00:35.80\00:00:38.67 Are you tired of taking medications? 00:00:38.70\00:00:41.14 Well, you're about to be given "The Ultimate Prescription" 00:00:41.17\00:00:46.88 It all comes down to this... 00:00:46.91\00:00:48.84 How strong is your heart? 00:00:48.88\00:00:52.11 Well, how strong does it need to be? 00:00:52.15\00:00:54.42 Apparently very strong, after all, it sits there pumping 00:00:54.45\00:00:57.79 24/7/365- it doesn't even get Christmas off. 00:00:57.82\00:01:01.99 So heart-strength should be of utmost importance to us all. 00:01:02.02\00:01:06.59 Right, Dr. Marcum? Absolutely, Charles! 00:01:06.63\00:01:09.03 And you know, everyone comes in wanting to know, 00:01:09.06\00:01:12.67 "Well, what's the strength of my heart?" Yes 00:01:12.70\00:01:15.24 And what that means is... How well does the heart 00:01:15.27\00:01:17.44 pump blood to the entire body? 00:01:17.47\00:01:19.51 And there are many ways we can measure the 00:01:19.54\00:01:22.11 strength of the heart. 00:01:22.14\00:01:23.48 The simplest way is just to listen to it to see 00:01:23.51\00:01:26.78 if it's enlarged; feel the pulses everywhere 00:01:26.82\00:01:29.92 to make sure the blood is getting everywhere, 00:01:29.95\00:01:31.75 and make sure all the organs are being nourished. 00:01:31.79\00:01:33.86 Does a weak pulse mean you have a weak...? 00:01:33.89\00:01:35.82 Not necessarily - other things can cause a weak heart too, 00:01:35.86\00:01:39.13 especially if there are problems with the arteries. Okay 00:01:39.16\00:01:42.06 So there are lots of ways we can measure 00:01:42.10\00:01:45.03 if the heart is strong or not. 00:01:45.07\00:01:46.47 We can listen to it; we can feel it; 00:01:46.50\00:01:48.30 x- rays if the heart is enlarged, 00:01:48.34\00:01:50.07 that might be a sign of a weak heart. 00:01:50.11\00:01:51.94 EKGs can give us hints of a weak heart. 00:01:51.97\00:01:55.18 But the most common way we do it nowadays 00:01:55.21\00:01:58.15 is with ultrasound where we look at the heart, 00:01:58.18\00:02:00.25 and we can measure the strength of the heart. 00:02:00.28\00:02:02.68 Ultrasound is also very useful for us because we 00:02:02.72\00:02:05.39 could also tell if the heart is weak, why it's weak. 00:02:05.42\00:02:08.62 And then we're going to talk about that as we go today 00:02:08.66\00:02:11.19 because many things can make a heart weak. 00:02:11.23\00:02:13.80 Of course, the one we've talked about the most common 00:02:13.83\00:02:16.46 is coronary artery disease which 00:02:16.50\00:02:17.93 is the reason people have heart attacks. 00:02:17.97\00:02:19.90 So, lots of things can make a heart weak. 00:02:19.93\00:02:22.10 So once we decide it's weak, 00:02:22.14\00:02:24.14 we want to know why it's weak. Yes 00:02:24.17\00:02:26.47 And then we start looking because the treatment for 00:02:26.51\00:02:28.54 a weak heart is answering the question "Why?" 00:02:28.58\00:02:31.88 If we can fix the reason "why," 00:02:31.91\00:02:33.25 sometimes the heart can get better. 00:02:33.31\00:02:34.75 Sometimes the heart is not permanently damaged. 00:02:34.78\00:02:37.65 We have lots of ways to make hearts stronger. 00:02:37.69\00:02:40.19 For instance, if it's coronary disease, 00:02:40.22\00:02:41.92 make the coronaries better. 00:02:41.96\00:02:43.59 If it's valvular disease, make the valves better. 00:02:43.63\00:02:46.26 If it's high blood pressure, treat the high blood pressure. 00:02:46.29\00:02:49.10 Sometimes other things can make a heart weak like chemotherapy. 00:02:49.13\00:02:53.34 Certain infections can affect it, 00:02:53.37\00:02:54.90 viral infections can make the heart weak. 00:02:54.94\00:02:56.60 Some people are born with a weak heart. 00:02:56.64\00:02:58.74 So there are lots of different causes for a weak heart. 00:02:58.77\00:03:01.51 There are lots of things we can do. 00:03:01.54\00:03:03.14 No one wants to have a weak heart. 00:03:03.18\00:03:04.71 Now a symptom might be according to the cause. 00:03:04.75\00:03:07.22 If a weak heart is due to coronary disease, 00:03:07.25\00:03:09.68 people might have chest pain, they might have valve disease. 00:03:09.72\00:03:12.79 The people might feel tired; 00:03:12.82\00:03:14.22 they might have problems with breathing; 00:03:14.26\00:03:15.79 they might swell up; they might have no energy. 00:03:15.82\00:03:18.79 These are all symptoms I hear when people have weak hearts. 00:03:18.83\00:03:22.26 And this makes sense because the heart is what is pumping 00:03:22.30\00:03:26.10 energy throughout the entire body - the blood. Right 00:03:26.13\00:03:29.50 Without that blood, without the nutrients, the oxygen, 00:03:29.54\00:03:31.77 and the water and all that throughout the body, 00:03:31.81\00:03:34.04 you're going to have weakness elsewhere. 00:03:34.08\00:03:36.08 So it is like the central requirement of the whole 00:03:36.11\00:03:40.55 body to be strong - is to have a strong heart. 00:03:40.58\00:03:42.72 Yeah and that's a good point, Charles, because when our 00:03:42.75\00:03:45.05 heart is working maximally, and when our blood vessels 00:03:45.09\00:03:48.22 are healthy as well - that's what we call 00:03:48.26\00:03:49.79 "cardiovascular system," every organ in our body 00:03:49.82\00:03:54.23 depends on oxygen, the nutrients 00:03:54.26\00:03:56.23 that the heart and the blood vessels supply. 00:03:56.26\00:03:58.20 So really, when we talk about any disease, 00:03:58.23\00:04:00.44 the heart and the blood vessels 00:04:00.47\00:04:01.80 are key components to everything. 00:04:01.84\00:04:03.64 For instance, sometimes the kidneys are damaged 00:04:03.67\00:04:05.81 just because they don't get enough blood to them. Right 00:04:05.84\00:04:07.84 So the real solution is fixing the heart 00:04:07.88\00:04:09.61 and the kidneys will get better. 00:04:09.64\00:04:10.98 And, you know, in our brain, I can't tell you how 00:04:11.01\00:04:13.11 often our brain improves when we have good circulation. 00:04:13.15\00:04:16.58 People that have dementia, exercise helps 00:04:16.62\00:04:19.55 improve the way they think. 00:04:19.59\00:04:21.29 All sorts of good things when we can improve our 00:04:21.32\00:04:23.39 heart and blood vessels that helps other organs. 00:04:23.43\00:04:25.73 You know, I even heard it will help grow hair on your head. 00:04:25.76\00:04:29.83 A strong heart will grow hair on your head. 00:04:29.86\00:04:31.67 Yep via circulation! 00:04:31.70\00:04:33.17 You know, the heart gets the circulation up there, 00:04:33.20\00:04:35.04 you stimulate the circulation, more nutrients for the 00:04:35.07\00:04:38.11 roots of the hair - BOOM, I'm going to work on that! 00:04:38.14\00:04:41.51 You see, I have some genetic problems. 00:04:41.54\00:04:42.88 Did you know my grandfather, he was in his 30s, 00:04:42.91\00:04:45.85 and he was bald - so there's a genetic component to that. 00:04:45.88\00:04:49.55 Now does this getting the blood there override the genetics? 00:04:49.58\00:04:53.22 I don't think so. Okay 00:04:53.25\00:04:55.56 But I wish it could, but maybe can delay it a few years. 00:04:55.59\00:04:58.26 We can try. All right, okay. 00:04:58.29\00:05:00.83 Questions! Questions from heartwiseministries.org 00:05:00.86\00:05:04.13 on the subject of weak and strong hearts. 00:05:04.17\00:05:06.87 This person said, "I have been told that I have a weak heart, 00:05:06.90\00:05:10.44 but I feel fine." 00:05:10.47\00:05:12.74 How can you have a weak heart and feel fine? 00:05:12.77\00:05:15.04 Well, because the heart is still supplying that 00:05:15.08\00:05:17.58 person's needs right now. Enough needs... okay 00:05:17.61\00:05:20.22 And the heart has the ability to compensate, 00:05:20.25\00:05:22.55 and it compensates by getting larger. 00:05:22.58\00:05:25.42 And the body compensates by putting chemicals 00:05:25.45\00:05:28.72 out that stimulates the heart... 00:05:28.76\00:05:30.19 Adrenalin goes up, angiotensin goes up. 00:05:30.23\00:05:32.69 These chemicals that help the heart compensate 00:05:32.73\00:05:34.60 so the body is still happy. 00:05:34.63\00:05:36.13 So God has built in mechanisms that even though we don't 00:05:36.16\00:05:38.83 feel a weak heart, we still compensate. 00:05:38.87\00:05:40.74 But sooner or later, sometimes we cannot compensate. 00:05:40.77\00:05:43.51 Well this compensation is putting you 00:05:43.54\00:05:44.87 in to an altered state certainly. Yes it is. 00:05:44.91\00:05:46.94 To keep the body going, you make more adrenalin, 00:05:46.98\00:05:49.31 the heart gets bigger so it can fill up with more blood, 00:05:49.34\00:05:51.75 other chemical hormone changes and we call this 00:05:51.78\00:05:55.08 the neurohormonal axis changes when a heart is weak. 00:05:55.12\00:05:58.79 Now, what could be causing the weak heart? 00:05:58.82\00:06:01.26 And that's lots of different things and when a person 00:06:01.29\00:06:04.16 comes in and I find out they have a weak heart, 00:06:04.19\00:06:06.29 what I do is, I look for the things that are most common, 00:06:06.33\00:06:09.33 and it's reversible. 00:06:09.36\00:06:11.33 And the most common is coronary artery disease, 00:06:11.37\00:06:13.77 so we do tests to look at the arteries. 00:06:13.80\00:06:15.67 Another common is thyroid, so we look for thyroid. 00:06:15.70\00:06:18.41 I ask them questions about whether they do toxins. 00:06:18.44\00:06:20.81 Did you know that alcohol in some people 00:06:20.84\00:06:22.64 can make the heart weak? 00:06:22.68\00:06:24.68 Yeah, toxins, chemotherapy, some people have gotten 00:06:24.71\00:06:27.88 radiation and sometimes that damage 00:06:27.92\00:06:30.05 unfortunately is permanent. 00:06:30.09\00:06:31.49 We ask about nutrients; 00:06:31.52\00:06:32.95 we make sure they don't have valve disease. 00:06:32.99\00:06:35.29 Some kinds of rhythms that are ongoing all the time, 00:06:35.32\00:06:38.49 for instance, let's say you have atrial fibrillation... 00:06:38.53\00:06:41.30 we talked about that and your heart runs fast all the time. 00:06:41.33\00:06:44.20 Just being fast all the time can sort of wear the heart out. 00:06:44.23\00:06:46.90 It's like running a race 24/7 and never having rest. 00:06:46.94\00:06:50.97 Things like sleep apnea where you don't get enough 00:06:51.01\00:06:53.34 oxygen, that can make a heart weak... 00:06:53.38\00:06:55.24 So there are many different things that make a heart weak, 00:06:55.28\00:06:57.88 and I started the most common things that we can treat, 00:06:57.91\00:07:00.82 and then I work down the list until I can find out the cause 00:07:00.85\00:07:03.89 because then I can tailor treatment. 00:07:03.92\00:07:05.59 All right, so the fact that you have a weak heart 00:07:05.62\00:07:07.96 is not a death sentence per se. 00:07:07.99\00:07:09.62 No, lots of people have weak hearts and they do wonderful. 00:07:09.66\00:07:12.36 We find out the cause of it. 00:07:12.39\00:07:14.13 We have medicines that can actually help strengthen 00:07:14.16\00:07:16.67 the heart by blocking some of these dangerous chemicals. 00:07:16.70\00:07:19.93 People with weak hearts usually have problems with rhythms, 00:07:19.97\00:07:22.57 so we have some things that we can do with rhythms, 00:07:22.60\00:07:24.67 as far as defibrillators, we can do things with that. 00:07:24.71\00:07:27.88 We also have special diets we try to put people on to help 00:07:27.91\00:07:31.48 strengthen their heart, lots of things we can do. 00:07:31.51\00:07:35.05 This is an interesting point and I want to just spend a 00:07:35.08\00:07:37.55 moment here with this... 00:07:37.59\00:07:38.92 There are a lot of conditions that we have in our bodies 00:07:38.95\00:07:43.39 that really - you know, good food, diet and exercise, 00:07:43.43\00:07:47.30 and faith in God and all those things... 00:07:47.33\00:07:49.26 sometimes they can only go so far. Right 00:07:49.30\00:07:52.57 We are living 6,000 years from the hand of the Creator, 00:07:52.60\00:07:55.47 and we are not having perfect bodies at all. 00:07:55.50\00:07:58.04 We are damaged, we are aging. 00:07:58.07\00:08:00.18 There are some things that just go beyond our abilities 00:08:00.21\00:08:03.68 in lifestyle to address. 00:08:03.71\00:08:05.81 That is where modern medicine shines! 00:08:05.85\00:08:08.45 It comes right in there and it does amazing things 00:08:08.48\00:08:11.32 to help us live a good quality life longer... 00:08:11.35\00:08:14.59 And so we need to open our minds to the fact 00:08:14.62\00:08:16.96 that it may be necessary for us to enjoy the benefits 00:08:16.99\00:08:20.26 of the modern medicine that God has created for us. 00:08:20.30\00:08:23.10 God put all of this stuff out here for us to benefit from, 00:08:23.13\00:08:26.43 and we should not shy away from modern medicine 00:08:26.47\00:08:28.70 because it's modern medicine. 00:08:28.74\00:08:30.07 But you know what, I would like to take 00:08:30.11\00:08:31.44 it one step further and say these lifestyle changes... 00:08:31.47\00:08:33.54 that is modern medicine. 00:08:33.58\00:08:34.91 That is, actually it is, it is. Yes 00:08:34.94\00:08:36.31 Prevents and treats and that should be the start 00:08:36.34\00:08:39.11 of treatment and prevention, 00:08:39.15\00:08:41.48 and then we should only use this sort of as last resorts. 00:08:41.52\00:08:44.12 All right, instead we're using as first resort. 00:08:44.15\00:08:46.15 Oh I have an ache, I have a pain, go see the doctor, 00:08:46.19\00:08:48.29 get a pill, get a bill and everything is fine... 00:08:48.32\00:08:50.49 and that's not the way it should be. 00:08:50.53\00:08:51.86 No, if we can find ways to treat it naturally. 00:08:51.89\00:08:54.03 You know, and "natural" doesn't always mean take a supplement. 00:08:54.06\00:08:57.33 Naturally means living healthy, eating better food, 00:08:57.37\00:09:01.00 having better thoughts, exercising, drinking water... 00:09:01.04\00:09:04.51 Those are things that I consider natural. 00:09:04.54\00:09:06.64 All right, very good, I like that. 00:09:06.68\00:09:08.24 Okay, another question from heartwiseministries.org 00:09:08.28\00:09:11.75 "How can I make my heart stronger; 00:09:11.78\00:09:14.75 my ejection fraction was 38%." 00:09:14.78\00:09:18.02 And that's pretty high, isn't it? 00:09:18.05\00:09:19.39 No it's not. Oh, it's not high? 00:09:19.42\00:09:20.76 A normal ejection fraction is usually above 55%, 00:09:20.79\00:09:23.93 that means how much blood 00:09:23.96\00:09:25.49 the heart is pumping out with each beat... Oh, I see. 00:09:25.53\00:09:28.60 So the higher the number, the better. Yeah 00:09:28.63\00:09:30.87 The heart is not efficient enough to pump out 00:09:30.90\00:09:32.63 everything with every beat. 00:09:32.67\00:09:34.20 So how much it puts out of in it, 00:09:34.24\00:09:35.77 we call that the "ejection fraction." 00:09:35.80\00:09:37.34 So what is normal then above...? 00:09:37.37\00:09:38.71 No, 55- 60 is above normal. 00:09:38.74\00:09:40.78 Some people go down as far as 50%, and that means 00:09:40.81\00:09:43.51 half of all the blood goes out. 00:09:43.55\00:09:45.68 So when a person wants a stronger heart, 00:09:45.71\00:09:48.35 we have to understand why, and if it's due to 00:09:48.38\00:09:50.55 blockages in the arteries of the heart, improve the arteries. 00:09:50.59\00:09:53.05 So, on this person, only 38% of the blood is getting out. 00:09:53.09\00:09:55.66 Yes, 38% that's the ejection fraction... 00:09:55.69\00:09:58.66 Well, we can find out what's causing it. 00:09:59.66\00:10:01.23 If it's due to arterial disease, sometimes people benefit 00:10:01.26\00:10:04.40 from having a bypass surgery. 00:10:04.43\00:10:06.13 Sometimes they benefit from having a stent to make 00:10:06.17\00:10:08.60 their heart stronger. 00:10:08.64\00:10:09.97 Of course, everyone benefits by lifestyle changes. 00:10:10.01\00:10:12.94 The nitric oxide that comes from eating a 00:10:12.97\00:10:14.98 whole food plant-based diet can make the arteries bigger. 00:10:15.01\00:10:17.81 An exercise program can make the heart more efficient 00:10:17.85\00:10:20.58 and stronger as well. 00:10:20.62\00:10:21.95 Getting adequate rest... you know the heart has to have 00:10:21.98\00:10:24.32 some down time. Yes 00:10:24.35\00:10:25.69 All of those are little things that can help breathing well. 00:10:25.72\00:10:28.79 Keeping the stress down is very important for a weak heart. 00:10:28.82\00:10:31.86 When a heart is weak, it makes extra adrenalin 00:10:31.89\00:10:34.43 to keep the heart going, but if you are under stress 00:10:34.46\00:10:36.60 you're making more and adrenalin long-time actually 00:10:36.63\00:10:39.60 kills heart cells, it kills the myocytes. 00:10:39.63\00:10:42.30 So one of the medicines we put people on, 00:10:42.34\00:10:44.57 that have weak hearts, blocks that damage 00:10:44.61\00:10:46.91 from adrenalin and those are called "beta blockers." 00:10:46.94\00:10:49.68 So people with a weak heart are usually on beta blockers. 00:10:49.71\00:10:52.61 Another type of medicine they are on is ACE inhibitors that 00:10:52.65\00:10:55.02 blocks another dangerous chemical. 00:10:55.05\00:10:57.22 So to make their heart stronger, I would go to find out 00:10:57.25\00:11:00.22 the reason why - see if it's a valve, fix the valve. 00:11:00.26\00:11:02.79 If it's the thyroid, treat the thyroid. 00:11:02.82\00:11:04.59 Find out the reason why and then also work on a beta blocker 00:11:04.63\00:11:09.23 and ACE inhibitor, but before that, I would get to a whole 00:11:09.26\00:11:12.63 food-based diet; a modified exercise program depending 00:11:12.67\00:11:16.00 how much you can do; stress reduction techniques... 00:11:16.04\00:11:19.34 I would work on that and I would also work on making 00:11:19.37\00:11:22.84 sure your heart gets enough rest. 00:11:22.88\00:11:24.45 Those are some of the basics. 00:11:24.48\00:11:25.81 Now you've mentioned a lot of medicines here and they're very 00:11:25.85\00:11:29.38 powerful and much needed in some circumstances, 00:11:29.42\00:11:32.25 but a lot of people out there are saying, 00:11:32.29\00:11:34.12 "I want to go natural, I want to do this." 00:11:34.16\00:11:36.49 You mentioned that lifestyle is a natural way of going. Yes 00:11:36.52\00:11:39.56 Are there some natural remedies to help the heart. 00:11:39.59\00:11:42.96 Yeah, well there are some that's been proven out there, 00:11:43.00\00:11:45.27 but remember the natural remedies I don't view 00:11:45.30\00:11:47.64 that much different than a medication. 00:11:47.67\00:11:49.97 Anything that we put in our body has a chemical reaction. 00:11:50.01\00:11:54.18 Whether that be our thoughts, the food, the herbs, 00:11:54.21\00:11:57.25 but there are some herbs... hawthorn is one of them 00:11:57.28\00:12:00.22 that's been shown to help make the heart stronger... 00:12:00.25\00:12:02.88 And they use that very frequently in Europe. 00:12:02.92\00:12:05.42 And hawthorn has side effects so you're saying. 00:12:05.45\00:12:07.32 Everything has side effects. Yes 00:12:07.36\00:12:09.22 Some of them have been studied more than others. 00:12:09.26\00:12:10.79 That's one natural thing that has been used to make 00:12:10.83\00:12:13.23 the heart stronger. 00:12:13.26\00:12:14.60 But when I think of natural remedies, 00:12:14.63\00:12:16.80 I think of looking at the whole 00:12:16.83\00:12:18.40 body that will make the heart stronger. 00:12:18.43\00:12:20.04 What are things that I could do for the whole body 00:12:20.07\00:12:22.04 that will change my chemistry? 00:12:22.07\00:12:23.64 And my goal is to make the adrenalin and those type of 00:12:23.67\00:12:27.08 damaging chemicals less and find out the reason why. 00:12:27.11\00:12:29.81 So if I can get people to eat healthier, 00:12:29.84\00:12:32.25 that's a natural remedy. 00:12:32.28\00:12:33.65 If I can get them to walk and move every day, 00:12:33.68\00:12:36.12 even getting up out of a chair, that's a natural remedy 00:12:36.15\00:12:38.69 that changes the chemistry of the entire body. 00:12:38.72\00:12:40.96 If we can treat their brains 00:12:40.99\00:12:42.62 and get their brains less stressful, 00:12:42.66\00:12:44.73 that helps the whole body. 00:12:44.76\00:12:46.16 If we can teach someone to rest, those are all natural remedies 00:12:46.19\00:12:47.90 those are all natural remedies that help too. 00:12:47.93\00:12:50.20 And then if we need to, we can add on more things to that. 00:12:50.23\00:12:53.54 And I wish, Charles I wish I had the scientific studies 00:12:53.60\00:12:56.87 that said, "I'm going to compare a day of rest for someone with a 00:12:56.91\00:13:00.04 weak heart with a beta blocker and see who would win. 00:13:00.08\00:13:03.31 I would love to have the studies to compare 00:13:03.35\00:13:04.71 with someone that will eat a whole food plant-based diet 00:13:04.75\00:13:07.75 to strengthen their heart with an ACE inhibitor. 00:13:07.78\00:13:09.95 Those would be wonderful studies to have. 00:13:09.98\00:13:11.52 Well I mean, the studies sort of have been done 00:13:11.55\00:13:13.49 where in those countries where heart disease 00:13:13.52\00:13:15.12 is almost unheard of... like the China Study, Campbell, 00:13:15.16\00:13:18.63 that the people who don't have heart disease 00:13:18.66\00:13:21.43 tend to be the vegetarians and live the lifestyle 00:13:21.46\00:13:25.23 that doesn't have all that stress, 00:13:25.27\00:13:26.60 so you have, sort of, that study going on. 00:13:26.63\00:13:27.97 Yeah because the #1 cause is blockages in the arteries 00:13:28.00\00:13:30.54 and that's the #1 cause of weak hearts today. Okay, all right 00:13:30.57\00:13:33.54 Well it looks like we're coming up on the break, 00:13:33.61\00:13:35.34 and so I don't want to ask this next question 00:13:35.38\00:13:37.38 until we come on the other side of the break. 00:13:37.41\00:13:38.85 When we do, we like to go to God's Prescription Pad, 00:13:38.88\00:13:42.45 the Bible, and find a text that is encouraging to us 00:13:42.48\00:13:45.82 and brings hope to the sickest heart or the sickest mind, 00:13:45.85\00:13:48.96 or the sickest body and I think we have found one 00:13:48.99\00:13:51.19 here that you will find will really help you 00:13:51.23\00:13:54.10 and give you encouragement and hope, 00:13:54.13\00:13:55.53 so stay right where you are, we'll be right back. 00:13:55.56\00:13:57.67