Let’s talk about the best gut-healing foods to clean out your arteries; that is, to reduce atherosclerotic plaque.
These foods improve your gut microbiome—the population of bacteria and other microorganisms that live in your gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
So, why are we talking about the gut when our goal is to prevent artery blockages that can lead to heart attack and stroke?
This is because recent human studies have shown that the wrong balance of gut bacteria is linked to increased amounts of plaque and hardening of the coronary arteries.
Now, the imbalance of gut bacteria, called dysbiosis, can be caused by a lack of diversity of beneficial bacteria, or an increase in harmful bacteria, or both.
In a new study published in July of 2023 in the journal Circulation, Swedish scientists studied the link between gut bacteria and atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries of 8,973 participants aged between 50 and 65.
They found that Streptococcus and other bacteria commonly found in the oral cavity contribute to increased inflammation and plaque buildup in the coronary arteries.
Another study, published in the European Heart Journal in 2018, found for the first time a link between our gut microbiome and the hardening of arteries.
After studying 617 middle-aged twins, scientists found that those with a less diverse mix of good bacteria in their gut also had stiffer arteries.
These studies, and more, show that there is a link between gut health and heart health; and the key to a healthy heart may lie within your gut. This is called the gut-heart connection.
Next, it’s important to understand how an unhealthy gut can affect your heart.
The negative effects of gut bacteria imbalance occur largely through inflammation–your immune system’s reaction to an injury or a foreign substance.
Now, 70% of your body’s inflammatory or immune cells are located in your gut, so it is hardly surprising that inflammation in your gut can spread throughout your body.
There are 4 ways an unhealthy gut can cause inflammation in the arteries and, ultimately, lead to atherosclerosis.
The first way is “Dysbiosis.”
Studies show that patients suffering from chronic heart failure have reduced diversity in their gut bacteria. Also, they have lower levels of microbial by-products called short-chain fatty acids, such as butyrate, which are beneficial for the heart.
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Second, we have, “Leaky Gut and LPS.”
A primary route by which bacteria can enter the bloodstream and stick to artery walls, causing inflammation, is through a damaged gut barrier, also known as leaky gut.
Leaky gut becomes problematic when large molecules called lipopolysaccharides (LPS), or bacterial toxins, get into your bloodstream and induce inflammation.
This is because inflammation makes the plaque in the arteries unstable and more likely to rupture, which can lead to blood clots, blocking blood flow, and potentially causing a heart attack.
Researchers have found LPS derived from Escherichia coli circulating in the blood of people with heart attacks; these people have leaky guts.
