Vitality Unleashed: The Functional Medicine Podcast

Unlock Heart Health with Peptides: The Non-Traditional Solution You've Been Searching For!"

• Dr. Kumar from LifeWellMD.com • Season 1 • Episode 85

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The human heart - our relentless life force that beats approximately 2.5 billion times in an average lifetime. Yet despite its remarkable resilience, heart disease remains our greatest health threat globally. What if we could fundamentally change how we approach cardiac health?

This deep dive explores the revolutionary potential of peptides - small chains of amino acids that might transform cardiovascular medicine by addressing root causes rather than merely managing symptoms. We break down the complex science of how these molecular messengers influence multiple healing pathways simultaneously, potentially offering new hope for heart health longevity.

From heart-derived peptides like Celohart that improve cardiac efficiency to brain peptides that optimize mitochondrial function, we examine the diverse mechanisms through which these compounds support heart function. We explore how peptides like Vuan activate your body's internal repair crew of stem cells, while senolytics clear out troublemaking "zombie cells" that drive inflammation and tissue damage.

The conversation ventures into fascinating territory: peptides that promote healing after heart attacks, reduce clotting risk, reverse cardiac enlargement, and even support the heart's crucial energy factories, the mitochondria. Throughout, we translate complex biochemistry into clear, actionable insights about this emerging frontier in heart health.

While acknowledging practical challenges ahead, the fundamental promise remains compelling - a shift from reactive treatment to proactive optimization of heart function at the cellular level. Ready to explore how these innovative approaches might fit into your personal health journey? Connect with LifeWellMD at 561-210-9999 to learn more about peptide therapies and comprehensive heart health strategies tailored to your unique needs.

Disclaimer:
The information provided in this podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your supplement regimen or health routine. Individual needs and reactions vary, so it’s important to make informed decisions with the guidance of your physician.

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If you enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe, leave us a review, and share it with someone who might benefit. For more insights and updates, visit our website at Lifewellmd.com.

Stay Informed, Stay Healthy:
Remember, informed choices lead to better health. Until next time, be well and take care of yourself.

Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Deep Dive. You're here because, well, you want to get up to speed on important stuff quickly and thoroughly, but without drowning in jargon.

Speaker 2:

Exactly.

Speaker 1:

Today we're zeroing in on something absolutely vital for his death, your heart, health and specifically, we're going to look at the really exciting potential of peptides tiny things, potentially huge impact.

Speaker 2:

And this isn't just theoretical science floating around. It's really relevant to your well-being. We're actually bringing this deep dive to you as part of the team at LifeWellIndeedcom.

Speaker 1:

Right.

Speaker 2:

They're a really innovative clinic based here in Florida, focused on health, wellness, longevity helping people like you. Yeah, Our aim today is basically to cut through that complexity, give you some actionable insights and look if anything we talk about sparks your interest, makes you want to explore your own health journey. Please don't hesitate, Reach out to the experts at LifeWellMD. Their number is 561-210-9999. They're really there to help you figure out that next step.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. And let's just state the obvious A healthy heart isn't optional, is it? Heart disease is? I mean, it's the number one threat globally.

Speaker 2:

It really is.

Speaker 1:

The World Health Organization. They're projecting what is it? Over 23 million deaths a year by 2030. That's just, it's staggering.

Speaker 2:

It is, and it impacts not just how long we live, but maybe even more importantly, how well we live.

Speaker 1:

you know, yeah, that quality of life aspect, things like just being tired all the time or getting short of breath easily, that really limits you.

Speaker 2:

Totally. It affects everything and you know, for such a long time the main approach to heart health has been kind of reactive Wait for a problem, then manage the symptoms.

Speaker 1:

Right Symptom management.

Speaker 2:

Exactly what's so compelling, I think about peptides is their potential to maybe shift that whole way of thinking. These little chains of amino acids, they can actually influence the fundamental processes how your heart ages, how it repairs itself, even regeneration. So getting to the root cause, not just patching things up, that's the idea, instead of just you know, putting a bandage on it.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so that's our mission for this deep dive. Then let's explore how these peptides might offer well new strategies to keep our hearts younger, healthier. We want to translate this complex science into stuff you can actually understand and use. So where do we start? How can these tiny molecules possibly have such a big effect on something as complex as the heart?

Speaker 2:

molecules possibly have such a big effect on something as complex as the heart. Well, I think the crucial first step is understanding what actually happens to our hearts as we get older. You know what makes them more vulnerable, so imagine your heart muscle itself getting less flexible. That's something called myocardial stiffness.

Speaker 1:

Right Stiffening up.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, or think about tiny little scars building up over time. That's fibrosis.

Speaker 1:

Okay.

Speaker 2:

The inner lining of your blood vessels, the endothelium, that can start to not work quite as well. Yeah, that's endothelial dysfunction.

Speaker 1:

I've heard of that.

Speaker 2:

And ultimately, the heart's main job, pumping blood efficiently. What we call cardiac output can decline too. These are some of the really key changes linked to aging.

Speaker 1:

Got it Stiffness, scarring, lining issues, weaker, pumping. So these are the age-related challenges. Now, where do peptides fit in? What's so special about them? How can they possibly push back against these things?

Speaker 2:

Well, what's really remarkable about peptides is just how versatile they seem to be. They can interact with your body on like so many different levels to support heart health, Okay. So, for instance, many peptides seem to be able to calm down inflammation, and we now know inflammation is just a massive driver of aging and well, tons of diseases, including heart disease, right that chronic inflammation we hear about. Exactly Then other peptides can actually encourage your heart to repair itself, regenerate damaged tissue. Some act almost like powerful shields against damage from those harmful molecules free radicals.

Speaker 1:

Antioxidant effects.

Speaker 2:

Precisely. We're also seeing peptides that can help grow new healthy blood vessels it's called angiogenesis. Angiogenesis and improve how existing vessels widen, which is obviously crucial for good blood flow. Vasodilation and, finally, peptides can directly influence the communication pathways between cells, those signals that are just fundamental for healthy heart.

Speaker 1:

Wow. Okay, that's a lot of different potential actions from these small molecules. Let's maybe get a bit more specific. Are there particular peptides that researchers are really focusing on for heart health?

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. Yeah, let's maybe start with one called cello heart. This is really interesting because it's actually a natural complex of peptides, kin and peptides derived directly from heart tissue.

Speaker 1:

From the heart itself.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and the research suggests it can help your heart work more efficiently. It can ease symptoms like shortness of breath, chest pain, especially in conditions like ischemic heart disease, where the muscle isn't getting enough blood.

Speaker 1:

Okay.

Speaker 2:

Or that chest pain you might get with exercise, exertional angina. It's almost like the heart has its own. You know, built-in support system.

Speaker 1:

That makes a kind of intuitive sense, doesn't it? Something from the heart helping the heart. What else Are there? Other angles researchers are looking at?

Speaker 2:

Oh yeah, it turns out peptides that don't originate in the heart can also have some pretty significant benefits, certain peptides from the brain and the thymus gland, for instance.

Speaker 1:

Brain and thymus Okay.

Speaker 2:

They've shown potential to sort of boost the activity of the mitochondrial genome within heart cells. Now, mitochondria, remember, they're like the tiny power plants inside your cells, the energy factories. Exactly, and your heart cells are packed with them. So helping those mitochondria work better is well vital.

Speaker 1:

Makes sense.

Speaker 2:

What's particularly interesting here is the idea of delivering these brain and thymus peptides maybe through a nasal spray.

Speaker 1:

A nasal spray.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, for your heart. Yeah, it sounds a bit strange but it might offer a more direct route, potentially getting higher concentrations where they need to go.

Speaker 1:

That is fascinating. Any other brain peptides showing promise for the heart?

Speaker 2:

Yep, another one from the brain called pinion. It's been shown to improve something called heart rate power curves.

Speaker 1:

Heart rate power curves what?

Speaker 2:

It basically reflects how efficiently your heart works during exercise and then how well it recovers, so really relevant for athletes, for example.

Speaker 1:

Okay, efficiency and recovery.

Speaker 2:

Right. But beyond that, pinon has also shown potential in improving insulin resistance, and we know insulin resistance is a big risk factor for heart problems down the line if it's not managed.

Speaker 1:

Ah, so connecting to metabolic health too.

Speaker 2:

Exactly. It shows how these peptides can have effects that go beyond just their tissue of origin.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, it's becoming clear. They have these diverse actions. What about peptides from other parts of the circulatory system itself, like, say, blood vessels?

Speaker 2:

Good question. That brings us to one called Vuan. This peptide was isolated from blood vessels and it has this really interesting ability to stimulate what are called mesenchymal stem cells in your body.

Speaker 1:

Stem cells.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and increase their numbers. These are the same kind of stem cells often used in advanced therapies, because they can help repair and regenerate tissues, including heart tissue.

Speaker 1:

So one might help kickstart your body's own repair crew. Essentially.

Speaker 2:

That's a great way to put it. Yeah, helping your internal repair mechanisms work more effectively.

Speaker 1:

That's powerful. Okay, so we've talked about repair. What about preventing damage or stopping it from building up?

Speaker 2:

Right, that's where another class of peptides comes in senolytic peptides like one called FOXO4DRI.

Speaker 1:

Senolytic Sounds like senescence.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, exactly. These peptides specifically target senescent cells. You can think of them as older cells that aren't really working properly anymore and, worse, they often release these harmful inflammatory signals that damage the healthy cells around them in the heart.

Speaker 1:

So they're like bad apples, spoiling the bunch Kind of yeah.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so by reducing the number of these senescent cells, these peptides could be really beneficial, because senescence is a major contributor to that stiffening and scarring, that fibosis we mentioned earlier.

Speaker 1:

So it's like clearing out the troublemakers to let the healthy tissue thrive. Are there other ways peptides protect the heart at that cellular level? Oh definitely.

Speaker 2:

Take carnosine, for instance. It's a small peptide found naturally in muscles, heart, brain. It helps reduce the buildup of harmful byproducts that occur when the heart's under stress, like in heart failure. One of these is beta-alanine. Carnosine also helps fight against something called advanced glycation end products, or AGEs.

Speaker 1:

AGEs right. Those are linked to aging and high blood sugar.

Speaker 2:

Exactly, they accumulate over time. So carnosine offers this sort of cellular defense mechanism.

Speaker 1:

It really sounds like peptides offer this multi-pronged approach, protecting the heart in different ways. What about blood clots? That's a huge concern for heart health.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, a very serious concern and yes, there are indeed peptides being investigated that could help reduce clot risk.

Speaker 1:

How do they do that?

Speaker 2:

Well, they might make red blood cells less sticky, less likely to clump together, they can decrease some of the factors that actually promote clotting and they can even improve the ability of red blood cells to kind of squeeze through tiny capillaries.

Speaker 1:

Improve their deformability.

Speaker 2:

Exactly that could be incredibly valuable for people at higher risk of, say, heart attack or stroke.

Speaker 1:

It's amazing how specific these actions can be. You've mentioned different heart issues. Are there peptides particularly relevant for certain conditions like, say, an enlarged heart?

Speaker 2:

Yes, definitely so. In cases where the heart muscle gets enlarged, that's cardiac hypertrophy. Right, there are peptides being studied that can help activate the production of a protein called GDF11.

Speaker 1:

GDF11.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and there's some evidence it might play a role in actually reversing that enlargement.

Speaker 1:

Reversing it Wow.

Speaker 2:

Potentially and we're also seeing a term many people might recognize from cardiology B-type natriuretic peptide, or BNP- Ah yes, bnp Doctors test for that. They do, it's a hormone the heart releases under stress. Well, bnp itself and lab created versions analogs they show promise too. They help widen blood vessels, lower blood pressure, reduce scarring in the heart. Basically they help alleviate heart failure symptoms.

Speaker 1:

So peptide science is building on things we already kind of knew about, like BNP. What about after someone has a heart attack? The recovery phase.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's critical. A peptide called the simosin beta-4, usually just called TB4, has shown significant potential there.

Speaker 1:

TB4.

Speaker 2:

Okay.

Speaker 1:

Seems to promote the movement of cells to the damaged area. It encourages tissue repair and regeneration and, crucially, it stimulates the growth of new blood vessels, angiogenesis, which is vital for healing. Plus, it helps reduce inflammation and prevent more cells from dying in that damaged heart tissue. So it's really about boosting the heart's own ability to heal itself.

Speaker 2:

So it's like an active helper for mending the heart after injury. Are there peptides focused more squarely on just keeping blood vessels healthy in general?

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. Adrenomagillin is one. It's a vasodilator, helps widen blood vessels.

Speaker 2:

Right.

Speaker 1:

It plays a role in regulating blood pressure and the health of that inner lining, the endothelium. It also has anti-inflammatory effects and promotes angiogenesis, so it's a potential target for things like heart failure and high blood pressure.

Speaker 2:

Okay.

Speaker 1:

Then there's another one vasoactive intestinal peptide or VIP.

Speaker 2:

VIP sounds important.

Speaker 1:

Well it is. It's also potent vasodilator Plus. It helps reduce inflammation and scarring and can enhance both heart muscle function and new blood vessel growth. Okay so, improving blood flow, reducing inflammation these seem to be recurring themes with peptides and heart health.

Speaker 2:

They really are key mechanisms.

Speaker 1:

yes, what about peptides that work maybe a bit more indirectly, perhaps through influencing hormones?

Speaker 2:

That's a great point. Growth hormone-releasing peptides, ghrps like GHRP6 and hexarolin.

Speaker 1:

GHRPs.

Speaker 2:

okay, they're being actively looked at for their protective effects on the heart. They've shown promise in helping the heart withstand periods of low blood flow like ischemia. They seem to promote regeneration, improve the pumping function of the left ventricle, reduce scarring, widen vessels, reduce inflammation. That's quite a list.

Speaker 1:

That's a really impressive range of benefits from those GHRPs. Are there any others that have maybe less direct but still valuable effects?

Speaker 2:

Well, yeah, Caspeptin, for example, is mainly known for his role in reproductive hormones.

Speaker 1:

Right.

Speaker 2:

But it's also demonstrated this ability to promote angiogenesis and improve endothelial health, both crucial for cardiac repair and function.

Speaker 1:

Interesting connection.

Speaker 2:

And then there's melatonin. We usually think of it for sleep, right.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, the sleep hormone.

Speaker 2:

Turns out, melatonin is also a really powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic, meaning it helps prevent cell death. So it can help reduce damage to the heart muscle and improve its function.

Speaker 1:

Wow, so melatonin does more than just help us sleep. That's amazing. Okay, finally, let's touch on something that sounds really cutting edge Mitochondrial peptides. We know mitochondria are crucial for energy in the heart. How do peptides fit in there?

Speaker 2:

Right, this is a super exciting area Mitochondrial peptides, names like humanin, MOTSC, and there's a broader category sometimes called mitoorganelles. These are emerging as incredibly important broader category, sometimes called mitoorganelles these are emerging as incredibly important. They seem to help protect the heart against stress.

Speaker 1:

Right.

Speaker 2:

They regulate how well the mitochondria themselves function. They improve the heart cells energy production, bioenergetics. They encourage regeneration and reduce oxidative stress and cell death right within the heart.

Speaker 1:

So directly supporting those little power plants.

Speaker 2:

Exactly yeah.

Speaker 1:

And, given the heart's constant massive energy demand, keeping those mitochondria healthy is just absolutely fundamental. This has been incredibly insightful A really detailed look at the potential here with peptides for heart health. It's clear there's just so much exciting research going on.

Speaker 2:

There really is, and you know it's important to temper the excitement slightly by remembering that, while the potential is huge, these therapies still face challenges. Sure Things like delivery methods, how do we get them where they need to go effectively?

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

Ensuring long-term safety stability. And then there are factors like cost and scaling up production.

Speaker 1:

It's still an evolving field, absolutely Practical hurdles to overcome, but the underlying message, I think, is so encouraging Understanding how the heart ages, these complex processes and then exploring innovative approaches like peptides. It really offers hope for maintaining a healthy, vibrant heart for longer.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, what's truly exciting is the prospect of moving towards more targeted interventions, things that can go beyond just managing symptoms and potentially address the root causes of age-related heart issues. Peptides seem to offer that kind of precision.

Speaker 1:

So, as we wrap up this deep dive, here's maybe a final thought for everyone listening. Considering this complex interplay between aging and your cardiovascular health, and seeing the emerging possibilities with targeted therapies like peptides, what personal proactive steps could you maybe explore, starting today to really invest in your long-term heart well-being?

Speaker 2:

It really is about taking that first step, isn't it? On your own wellness journey. If anything we've discussed today has intrigued you, if you want to learn more about how some of these innovative strategies might fit into your health plan, we really do encourage you to connect with the experts over at LifeWellMBcom in Florida. Give them a call. The number again is 561-210-9999. They can help you explore your options and start building that personalized path towards better health and, hopefully, longevity.