Ray Peat

Ray Peat on the Heart

By OxidativeState · · 89 articles · 192 studies

Short answer: Ray Peat described heart failure as an energy problem of the heart muscle. He wrote that a stressed heart is forced from burning glucose to burning fatty acids, that T3 and sugar restore its function, and that progesterone, not estrogen, is what protects women's hearts.

What Ray Peat wrote about the heart

He wrote that the failing heart shifts from mainly oxidizing glucose to the less efficient use of fatty acids mobilized during stress. With less energy it cannot relax fully between beats. Source: Eclampsia in the Real Organism: A Paradigm of General Distress Applicable in Infants, Adults, Etc, Heart and hormones

T3 protects the heart by supporting the oxidation of glucose. He notes that most physicians still warn patients against thyroid supplements for the heart. Source: Glucose and sucrose for diabetes, Heart and hormones

He cites animal experiments in which a small amount of sucrose in the drinking water restored calcium handling and heart function. Source: Heart and hormones

Progesterone and testosterone strengthen both the contraction and the relaxation of the heart. Source: Heart and hormones

He argued against estrogen as a heart-protective drug, pointing to its role in heart failure and sudden cardiac death, and wrote that progesterone is the coronary protection factor of women. Source: Heart and hormones, Progesterone, not estrogen, is the coronary protection factor of women

He noted the association between higher cholesterol and better survival in heart failure. Source: Heart and hormones

For heart disease in general he looked at clotting, spasm, blood viscosity, and iron and calcium deposits rather than fat in the diet. Source: Cholesterol, longevity, intelligence, and health

He cites the Russian researcher Meerson, who showed that the progress of a heart attack can be halted with natural substances including vitamin E and magnesium. Source: Blocking Tissue Destruction ↗

What he suggested in practice

  • Thyroid function and enough sugar.
  • Salt to taste, to protect blood volume.
  • Breathing into a paper bag for a minute or two, which he suggests for heart rhythm and blood pressure.
  • Vitamin E and magnesium.
  • Heart symptoms need a doctor.

Where he wrote about it

This topic comes up in 89 of the articles on his site. These are the most relevant ones:

Quick answers

What did Ray Peat say about heart disease?

That it is driven by an energy shortage in the heart muscle and by clotting, spasm and mineral deposits, not by saturated fat or cholesterol, and that thyroid hormone, sugar and progesterone are protective.

What did Ray Peat say about thyroid and the heart?

That T3 protects the heart by supporting glucose oxidation, and that the usual warnings against thyroid for heart patients are mistaken.

192 studies Ray Peat cited on the heart

  1. Serum antioxidants and myocardial infarction. Are low levels of carotenoids and alpha-tocopherol risk factors for myocardial infarction?Circulation · 1994 · PMID 8087925 · cited in Unsaturated Vegetable Oils: Toxic
  2. Water and electrolyte content of cardiac and skeletal muscle in heart failure and myocardial infarctionAm Heart J · 1952 · PMID 14894423 · cited in Heart and hormones
  3. QT prolongation, Torsade de Pointes, myocardial ischemia from coronary vasospasm, and headache medications. Part 2: review of headache medications, drug-drug interactions, QTc prolongation, and other arrhythmiasHeadache · 2013 · PMID 23216298 · cited in Heart and hormones
  4. Frequency-dependent acceleration of cardiac repolarization by progesterone underlying its cardiac protection against drug-induced proarrhythmic effects in female rabbitsEur J Pharmacol · 2012 · PMID 22705061 · cited in Heart and hormones
  5. Dietary n-3 fatty acids promote arrhythmias during acute regional myocardial ischemia in isolated pig heartsCardiovasc Res · 2007 · PMID 17116294 · cited in Fats, functions & malfunctions
  6. Emodin-mediated protection from acute myocardial infarction via inhibition of inflammation and apoptosis in local ischemic myocardiumLife Sci · 2007 · PMID 17939930 · cited in Cascara, energy, cancer and the FDA's laxative abuse
  7. Mildronate, a novel fatty acid oxidation inhibitor and antianginal agent, reduces myocardial infarct size without affecting hemodynamicsJ Cardiovasc Pharmacol · 2006 · PMID 16633095 · cited in Suitable Fats, Unsuitable Fats: Issues in Nutrition
  8. Randomized trial of estrogen plus progestin for secondary prevention of coronary heart disease in postmenopausal women. Heart and Estrogen/progestin Replacement Study (HERS) Research GroupJAMA · 1998 · PMID 9718051 · cited in Progesterone, not estrogen, is the coronary protection factor of women
  9. Chronic aspirin treatment affects collagen deposition in non-infarcted myocardium during remodeling after coronary artery ligation in the ratJ Mol Cell Cardiol · 1995 · PMID 8596199 · cited in The Cancer Matrix
  10. Coronary arteries of cardiac patients are hyperreactive and contain stores of amines: a mechanism for coronary spasmScience · 1984 · PMID 6701530 · cited in Autonomic systems
  11. Relationship between sex hormones, myocardial infarction, and occlusive coronary diseaseArch Intern Med · 1982 · PMID 7053736 · cited in Multiple Sclerosis and other hormone related brain syndromes
  12. Protective effects of aspirin from cardiac hypertrophy and oxidative stress in cardiomyopathic hamstersOxid Med Cell Longev · 2012 · PMID 22829962 · cited in The Cancer Matrix
  13. Thermal therapy improves left ventricular diastolic function in patients with congestive heart failure: a tissue doppler echocardiographic studyJ Cardiol · 2007 · PMID 17460879 · cited in Salt, energy, metabolic rate, and longevity
  14. Selective remodeling of cardiolipin fatty acids in the aged rat heartLipids Health Dis · 2006 · PMID 16430781 · cited in Fats, functions & malfunctions
  15. Increased lipid peroxidation during long-term intervention with high doses of n-3 fatty acids (PUFAs) following an acute myocardial infarctionEur J Clin Nutr · 2003 · PMID 12792664 · cited in The Great Fish Oil Experiment
  16. Optimal diets for prevention of coronary heart diseaseJAMA · 2002 · PMID 12444864 · cited in Cholesterol, longevity, intelligence, and health
  17. Cod liver oil consumption, smoking, and coronary heart disease mortality: three counties, NorwayInt J Circumpolar Health · 2001 · PMID 11507963 · cited in The Great Fish Oil Experiment
  18. Coronary perfusate composition influences diastolic properties, myocardial water content, and histologic characteristics of the rat left ventricleAnn Thorac Surg · 1999 · PMID 10509985 · cited in Progesterone, not estrogen, is the coronary protection factor of women
  19. Age-dependent decline in the cytochrome c oxidase activity in rat heart mitochondria: role of cardiolipinFEBS Lett · 1997 · PMID 9109403 · cited in Fats, functions & malfunctions
  20. [Circadian variation of sudden cardiac death in young people with and without coronary disease]Cardiologia · 1997 · PMID 9340175 · cited in Bleeding, clotting, cancer
  21. Association of dietary ghee intake with coronary heart disease and risk factor prevalence in rural malesJ Indian Med Assoc · 1997 · PMID 9212571 · cited in Fats and degeneration
  22. Low urinary sodium is associated with greater risk of myocardial infarction among treated hypertensive menHypertension · 1995 · PMID 7768554 · cited in Salt, energy, metabolic rate, and longevity
  23. Dietary restriction modulates the norepinephrine content and uptake of the heart and cardiac synaptosomesProc Soc Exp Biol Med · 1994 · PMID 7938035 · cited in The dark side of stress (learned helplessness)
  24. Influence of hyperbaric oxygen on left ventricular contractility, total coronary blood flow, and myocardial oxygen consumption in the conscious dogUndersea Hyperb Med · 1994 · PMID 8061558 · cited in Altitude and Mortality
  25. Putative role of dietary trace elements in coronary heart disease and cancerBr J Biomed Sci · 1994 · PMID 7881323 · cited in Iron's Dangers
  26. Cardiac release of chemoattractants after ischaemia induced by coronary balloon angioplastyBr Heart J · 1993 · PMID 8037995 · cited in Cancer: Disorder and Energy
  27. Effects of in vivo heart irradiation on myocardial energy metabolism in ratsRadiat Res · 1993 · PMID 8475257 · cited in Altitude and Mortality
  28. Effects of components of myocardial ischaemia on cardiac action potentials in vitroJ Cardiovasc Pharmacol · 1991 · PMID 1717788 · cited in Fatigue, aging, and recuperation
  29. Enhanced lipolysis of myocardial triglycerides during low-flow ischemia and anoxia in the isolated rat heartBasic Res Cardiol · 1989 · PMID 2730523 · cited in Cancer: Disorder and Energy
  30. Edema of cardiac origin. Studies of body water and sodium, renal function, hemodynamic indexes, and plasma hormones in untreated congestive cardiac failureCirculation · 1989 · PMID 2752558 · cited in Growth hormone: Hormone of Stress, Aging, and Death?
  31. ["Dry" carbon dioxide baths in treating patients with myocardial infarction at the sanatorium stage of rehabilitation]Klin Med (Mosk) · 1989 · PMID 2528025 · cited in Altitude and Mortality
  32. Possible interaction of platelets and adrenaline in the early phase of myocardial infarctionRes Exp Med (Berl) · 1987 · PMID 2963360 · cited in Autonomic systems
  33. Mechanisms of coronary spasm of isolated human epicardial coronary segments excised 3 to 5 hours after sudden deathJ Am Coll Cardiol · 1986 · PMID 3711543 · cited in Autonomic systems
  34. Post-ischemic cardiac chamber stiffness and coronary vasomotion: the role of edema and effects of dextranJ Mol Cell Cardiol · 1986 · PMID 2434657 · cited in Progesterone, not estrogen, is the coronary protection factor of women
  35. Digitoxin therapy partially restores cardiac catecholamine and brain serotonin metabolism in congestive heart failureJ Mol Cell Cardiol · 1985 · PMID 4078905 · cited in Serotonin, depression, and aggression: The problem of brain energy
  36. Association of hyperestrogenemia and coronary heart disease in men in the Framingham cohortAm J Med · 1983 · PMID 6837609 · cited in Multiple Sclerosis and other hormone related brain syndromes
  37. Increased ratio of plasma free fatty acids to albumin during normal aging and in patients with coronary heart diseaseAtherosclerosis · 1983 · PMID 6838692 · cited in Fats, functions & malfunctions
  38. Serum estrogen levels in men with acute myocardial infarctionAm J Med · 1982 · PMID 7148879 · cited in Multiple Sclerosis and other hormone related brain syndromes, Progesterone, not estrogen, is the coronary protection factor of women
  39. Hereditary polymyopathy and cardiomyopathy in the Syrian hamster. II. Development of heart necrotic changes in relation to defective mitochondrial functionMuscle Nerve · 1982 · PMID 7057802 · cited in Calcium and Disease: Hypertension, organ calcification, & shock, vs. respiratory energy
  40. Coronary vasoconstrictor and vasodilator actions of arachidonic acid in the isolated perfused heart of the ratBr J Pharmacol · 1982 · PMID 6764740 · cited in Autonomic systems

Showing 40 of 192. Search all of them in the database →

Not affiliated with raypeat.com. This page describes Ray Peat's published articles in our own words and links to the originals. Educational content, not medical advice.

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