When Heart health is talked about in a conventional setting, lowering cholesterol, quitting smoking, increasing exercise and reducing red meat intake is often recommended. While we agree with those important steps for prevention or treatment of heart disease, the buck doesn’t stop there. There’s many more building blocks that contribute to a healthy heart that we talk about from a Functional Medicine perspective.
Mitochondrial health, your gut microbiome and hormone health can impact cardiovascular disease, too. Inflammation will increase your risk of making plaque in all your arteries. At Blum Center for Health, we treat the whole person and work with our patients to design a program to correct these underlying issues quickly and effectively.
One treatment we often recommend is CoQ10 shots in our Infusion Center. Because it is fat soluble and how well you absorb it is affected by the quality of your digestion, an injection is a great way to make sure you are getting what you need.
CoQ10 is short for Coenzyme Q10, and is found in the highest concentrations in your heart and brain. It powers up your mitochondria, which are the critical energy producing organs inside every cell of your body. CoQ10 is also a potent antioxidant with many health benefits–heart health and beyond!
The whole approach to heart health and CoQ10
The prime candidate for CoQ10 injections are those who are taking a statin or red yeast rice for lowering their cholesterol, because both of these block CoQ10 production as a side effect of blocking cholesterol. Low CoQ10 levels are likely one factor responsible for the muscle aches and brain fog that are commonly reported in people taking statins especially.
If you have fatigue, taking a CoQ10 should be part of your program because it boosts mitochondrial production of energy.
This is also why it’s so critical to take if you’ve had a heart attack or any damage to your heart or want to prevent damage to your heart, because it keeps those heart cells going strong.
The same is true for your brain. If you’ve had a stroke or any damage to your brain or want to prevent damage to your brain, CoQ10 will support optimal functioning of all your brain cells.
Because we know the virus that causes COVID infects the heart and brain, it is especially important for those of you recovering from this virus, and probably all viruses too.
What to expect when receiving a CoQ10 shot
The best way to receive CoQ10 is through our infusion center as an injection so you can absorb the entire dose. When given as an injection, it makes the CoQ10 100% bioavailable because it bypasses the GI tract and goes straight to the cell.
The injection takes only a few seconds and is usually given in either the deltoid or gluteal muscle. There may be some pain when the injection is given and zero to mild soreness for a day in the muscle that the injection is given.
We recommend that you get an injection once a week for four weeks and then to continue with maintenance injections every two to four weeks thereafter.
CoQ10 is a very well tolerated injection with a good safety profile. Majority of people do not experience side effects but nausea, diarrhea, or heartburn have been reported.
It is important to note that CoQ10 should not replace any current medication regimen you are on, and can be helpful in addition to current medications or treatments. Do not stop any of your medications without discussing with your healthcare provider first. Management of almost all diseases at Blum Center remains interdisciplinary with functional aspects such as diet, exercise, supplementation and mindfulness in addition to conventional modalities. Our Functional Medicine doctors can do a work up to see on any existing conditions or can help with prevention of heart conditions. And our Functional Nutritionist and Health Coach are here to work with you on lifestyle and diet changes.
Call or text 914.652.7800 to book your CoQ10 shot in our infusion center.