Heart Disease, Carotid Ultrasound & Joe Ence of Vasolabs- #21
GUEST: Joe Ence of Vasolabs
Joe is the founder and president of Vasolabs, and for more than 20 years he has been focused on vascular health by helping clinicians and patients understand what's actually happening inside the arteries through carotid ultrasound and CIMT imaging.
Joe discovered plaque in his own arteries, which became a major wake-up call and ultimately led him to lose 84 pounds and completely change his lifestyle.
Joseph has also been a speaker and educator for professional medical organizations, including the American Academy of Oral Systemic Health, where he has presented on CIMT ultrasound screening and interdisciplinary approaches to cardiovascular disease prevention. He is also the host of Legends of Longevity, a podcast exploring cardiovascular health, longevity, lifestyle, and emerging approaches to living longer and healthier lives.
Factoids:
- Adults aged 50–64 without known heart disease: ~42% have some degree of coronary atherosclerosis (plaque) on CT angiography.
- About 5% have significant (≥50%) blockages.
- WOMEN: Heart disease is more deadly than all forms of cancer
- 1 in 31 women die from breast cancer
- 1 in 3 women die from heart disease
- YOUNG: Too young to have disease? Age 35-50 y/o – 30-60% have atherosclerosis, or plaque buildup in the heart vessels.
- STATINS - They don’t “reverse” plaque
The BEST study done: Asteroid = <1% change after 2 years of high dose Crestor
Second best study – Meteor: authors report NO CHANGE in plaque. Want to know WHY? It’s ONE tool trying to fix a multi-factorial issue. It CAN’T WORK. It can be a part of the solution but by itself it is completely inadequate for the job. Statins at low dose or intermittent use can offer more than enough impact. HIGH DOSE statins cause problems, but low dose can be safely engaged. Red Yeast Rice does what a statin does but with lower risk. Natural plant based supplements and vitamins work best for stimulating the reverse cholesterol transport that will actually reduce plaque size. Joe offered a number of studies as evidence of the utility of carotid ultrasound CIMT being used to exposure cardiovascular risk.
Carotid and femoral ultrasound morphology screening and cardiovascular events in low risk subjects: a 10-year follow-up study (the CAFES-CAVE study). Belcaro, Nicolaides, et al. Atherosclerosis 156 (2001) 379–387
- 13,221 low risk asymptomatic people enrolled in the study, were defined into 4 classes and followed for 10 years.
- Class 1: have normal artery wall without plaque
- Class 2: artery wall has thickened but no plaque present.
- Class 3: artery wall is thick and shows presence of plaque
- Class 4: plaque has grown to the point of causing blockage.
- After 10 years of follow up they listed the % of people that had a vascular event like a heart attack or death.
- Class 1 – 0.13%
- Class 2 – 8.7%
- Class 3 – 39.1%
- Class 4 – 81.1%
Effective management of atherosclerosis progress and hyperlipidemia with nattokinase: A clinical study with 1,062 participants
Chen, Chen, Zhang, et al. Frontiers In Cardiovascular Medicine – Aug 2022
- 1,062 patients received 10,800 FU/day (540mg) x12 months
- Ages: 63 to 85. 491 men, 571 women
- RESULT: reduction in the thickness of the carotid artery intima-media and the size of the carotid plaque was observed.
- NK was found to be ineffective in lowering lipids and suppressing atherosclerosis progression at a dose of 3,600 FU/day. (180mg)
- Regular exercise further improved the effects of NK.
- Co-administration of vitamin K2 and aspirin produced synergy
- Plaque reduction in the high dose group was 25 to 40%
Effect of Very High-Intensity Statin Therapy on Regression of Coronary Atherosclerosis - The ASTEROID Trial
Nissen, Nicholls, Sipahi, et al. JAMA, April 5, 2006—Vol 295
- Big Pharma supported trial of Rosuvastatin (Crestor) 40mg x2 years
- 31% drop out rate
- After 2 years of high dose statin there was <1% plaque regression
- The plaque simply didn't shrink under the influence of high dose statin
- Statin drugs hold some value in treating heart disease risk but the ill effects seen with high dose use isn’t justified by the lack of plaque change.
The Effects of Statin and Niacin on Plaque Stability, Plaque Regression, Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in Patients With Mild to Moderate Coronary Artery Stenosis Lee, MD, Ahn, Kang, et al. Korean Circ J 2011;41:641-648
- 28 patients with intermediate coronary artery stenosis.
- 14 patients received a combination of niacin 1,000 mg + simvastatin 40 mg and the other group received simvastatin 40 mg alone
- All patients had a baseline and a 9-month follow-up coronary angiogram and an intravascular ultrasound procedure.
- Statins alone allowed plaque to continue to grow. But the group that got niacin saw benefits in the lab values and their plaque decreased in size.
Niacin enhances reverse cholesterol transport and helps to reduce vascular plaque volume.
Beneficial clinical effects of grape seed proanthocyanidin extract on the progression of carotid atherosclerotic plaques.
Cao, Wang Gao, et al. Journal of Geriatric Cardiology (2015) 12: 417−423- 287 patients diagnosed with asymptomatic carotid plaques or abnormal plaque free carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) were randomly assigned to receive grape seed proanthocyanidin versus placebo.
- Carotid ultrasound examination was performed at baseline and 6, 12, 24 months during follow-up.
- Grape seed extract resulted in significant reduction in CIMT progression (4.2% decrease after six months, 4.9% decrease after 12 months and 5.8% decrease after 24 months) and plaque score improved (10.9% decrease after six months, 24.1% decrease after 12 months and 33.1% decrease after 24 months).
The key to reducing plaque volume is engagement of multiple variables within the lifestyle spectrum: manage weight, improve sleep, eliminate sugar, increase fiber in the diet, manage stress, exercise, etc. Plant based supplements and vitamins have been shown to be more impactful in direct plaque reversal than some prescription medications. But this is a complex picture and is not ideally managed as an individual. Include the insights of an integrative practitioner to guide treatment for the optimal outcome. This podcast is intended to open your mind to the array of options that await you and not intended to be treatment advice. Your unique situation is your own and deserves careful assessment by qualified professions but the first step is in acquiring a carotid ultrasound with Vasolab interpretation to provide a clear picture of your risk.
Action Steps:- Get your carotid ultrasound done to measure CIMT and plaque volume.
- Sit with Juli or Dr. Huber to understand the findings and devise a plan for improvement such as the A.T.T.A.C.K. the plaque program ay Huber Personalized Medicine.
- Work with Chelsea to target the specific aspects of your current lifestyle that will best reverse your plaque. Lifestyle is key – not just diet and exercise but also sleep quality, stress management, EMF exposure, plastic exposure, removal of toxins, and more.
- Retest your ultrasound CIMT in 6-12 months and witness the actual shrinkage of your vascular plaque as well as noting its change in being more stable plaque.
- You can drive your risk for heart attack or stroke to <1% with proper guidance.













