Atherosclerosis

Efficacy of Alternative and Other Treatments According to GRADE* Ranking:

Green Tea [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: Weakly in favor (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that Green Tea helps to treat atherosclerosis in any way. Although reports are positive, more studies are needed.)

Grade of Evidence: Low quality of evidence

Fish Oil Supplements [7, 8, 9]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: Weakly in favor (Early studies show that fish liver oil may be able to help treat atherosclerosis. More studies are needed)

Grade of Evidence: Low quality of evidence

Vitamin C [10, 11, 12]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: No recommendation (Current studies on whether vitamin C is helpful in treating atherosclerosis are mixed. More studies are needed)

Grade of Evidence: Low quality of evidence

Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplements [13, 14, 15, 16]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: Weakly in favor (Studies show that omega-3 fatty acid supplements may be beneficial to those that have atherosclerosis)

Grade of Evidence: Low quality of evidence

Vitamin K2 [17, 18, 19]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: Weakly in favor (Current studies on whether vitamin K2 is helpful in treating atherosclerosis are mixed. More studies are needed)

Grade of Evidence: Low quality of evidence

* www.gradeworkinggroup.org

Summary References

Treatments:

1. Ades T, Alteri R, Gansler T, Yeargin P, "Complete Guide to Complimentary & Alternative Cancer Therapies", American Cancer Society, Atlanta USA, 2009

2. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/green-tea

3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16968850

4.  http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_4326770

5. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-green_tea.html

6. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/greentea/index.htm

7. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0735109792900704

8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3191596

9. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/80/3/535.full

10. http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/105/12/1396.full

11. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8821982

12. http://news.usc.edu/7559/Large-Doses-of-Vitamin-C-Supplements-Linked-to-Atherosclerosis/

13. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22760980

14. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23594712

15. https://www.omega3innovations.com/fish-oil-benefits-arteriosclerosis-atherosclerosis/

16. http://atvb.ahajournals.org/content/23/2/e20.full

17. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9414028

18. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18196985

19. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3430691/

Public Discussion