Vitamins & Supplements for Heart Health

Your heart needs vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients to function. Luckily, most people get all they need from the food they eat.

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Preventive cardiologist Leslie Cho, MD, talks about how vitamins and nutrients affect heart function and why you should only consider taking a supplement if your healthcare provider recommends it.

How do vitamins and minerals affect your heart health?

Vitamins, minerals and other nutrients can both benefit and damage your heart.

The key is balance. You don’t want to get too much or too little of anything.

Vitamin C is a great example. If your vitamin C levels are average, Dr. Cho feels it’s unlikely to have a significant impact on your heart health — for good or for ill. But tip the scales too far in either direction, and the story changes.

Studies show that severe vitamin C deficiency can raise your risk of heart disease. Meanwhile, overdosing on the stuff is harmful for some people, especially those with hemochromatosis.

Keeping your vitamin and mineral levels in a healthy range allows you to experience their benefits and minimize their risks. And most people don’t need supplements to strike that balance.

Essential nutrients associated with heart health

There’s a wide range of vitamins, minerals and essential nutrients commonly associated with heart health — and they’re probably already on the menu. Supplements may be necessary in certain circumstances for certain people, but Dr. Cho says the best way to get the nutrients your heart needs is to maintain a balanced diet.

Eating with your heart in mind means hearing about the importance of these nutrients:

Magnesium

Many of us get enough magnesium through our diets by eating beans, greens, nuts and, every once in a while, some dark chocolate.

If your magnesium levels are normal, supplementing hasn’t been shown to improve heart health. But a deficiency can cause abnormal heart rhythms. Your provider can check for a deficiency with a simple blood test.

Folic acid

One of the B vitamins, folic acid (folate) may lower both blood pressure and artery-hardening homocysteine levels. You’ll get enough by eating foods like spinach, asparagus and whole grains.

CoQ10

This co-enzyme, also known as ubiquinone and ubiquinol, may help prevent muscle damage. But researchers have yet to prove that CoQ10 lowers blood pressure or eases heart failure symptoms. Claims that it reduces the risk of subsequent heart attacks after your first are unproven, too.

If you’re a “better safe than sorry” type, you can stock up on CoQ10 by incorporating fatty fish, plant-based oils, nuts and seeds into your eating plan.

Fiber

Fiber has been shown to lower “bad” LDL cholesterol while raising “good” HDL cholesterol. Ideally, you want to get fiber naturally from fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. If you’re falling short of your goals, your provider may recommend a supplement to make up the difference.

Plant sterols

Plant sterols, also called phytosterols, are natural compounds found in plants that may help lower cholesterol. Your diet is probably already packed with them: You can find them, to varying degrees, in most foods derived from plants.

The key is quality and variety: The wider the range of plant-based, whole foods you eat, the better!

If you have a condition that restricts your eating habits, your cardiologist may consider a supplement. But they can cause lots of potential side effects, like limiting your body’s ability to absorb certain vitamins and making certain health issues worse. Some people, like children and those who are pregnant, shouldn’t ever take them.

Garlic

This beautiful bulb has plenty of health benefits, but the claim that garlic can lower your blood pressure doesn’t have much science behind it.

Dr. Cho agrees that it’s a great way to keep a heart-healthy eating plan flavorful and fun, but she doesn’t recommend adding more than you’re already eating.

Garlic supplementation isn’t recommended, either, because there’s evidence that in high doses, it can interfere with blood thinners, blood pressure medications, and even anti-rejection and HIV medications. It’s also known to cause other unpleasant side effects, from body odor to diarrhea. And it doesn’t lower your cholesterol.

L-Carnitine

L-carnitine is an amino acid that your body makes. It’s also found in dairy, meat and seafood. While it appears to play an important role in cardiovascular health, most people are already getting all they need.

If you think you may have a deficiency, talk to your cardiologist or dietitian. It’s unlikely they’ll recommend a supplement, because L-carnitine absorbs more effectively when you eat it. And some studies suggest that taking too much could actually raise your risk of heart disease.

Green tea extract

We’re all for a piping-hot cup of green tea. While not conclusive, there’s some evidence that the antioxidant brew can lower bad cholesterol and improve blood sugar levels.

But green tea extract is another matter. First of all, green tea is toxic in large quantities and is known to cause liver damage. It’s also chock full of caffeine, which can cause heart palpitations. Other side effects include gastrointestinal problems, insomnia and headaches.

Supplements for heart health

There’s little data to back up claims that supplements can benefit your cardiovascular health unless you have a deficiency — which is why providers rarely recommend them. Even supplements you’re used to hearing about as heart health boosters aren’t proven to prevent or treat heart disease.

“The manufacturers do a good job selling the idea that they can be helpful, but so-called heart health supplements aren’t tested for efficacy,” Dr. Cho highlights.

Even multivitamins and nutritional supplements that are specifically formulated for heart health aren’t evaluated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). So, you can’t be sure the manufacturers used quality ingredients — or even that their products contain what they say they do.

Other risks associated with supplements include:

Interacting with your other medications
Having unpleasant or dangerous side effects
Containing allergens or toxins
Being inconsistent in strength and dosing

Always check with your provider before taking supplements. They can help you figure out if the benefits outweigh the risks.

Supplements to avoid

There are exceptions to every rule, but these supplements generally aren’t recommended for people with concerns about their heart health:

Vitamin E: Vitamin E can increase the risk of heart failure and stroke in some people. “If you’re getting medical care for heart-related health issues, using vitamin E is strongly discouraged,” Dr. Cho stresses.
Vitamin D: Research suggests that taking extra vitamin D won’t improve your cardiac health. According to Dr. Cho, only those with very low levels should consider supplementation.
Calcium: While calcium supplements are a go-to method for preventing osteoporosis, there’s some controversial evidence that they may increase cardiovascular disease risk.
Fish oil: Recent research suggests that fish oil supplements don’t reduce your risk of heart disease. In fact, they may increase your chances of atrial fibrillation, or Afib, a form of arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) that can lead to stroke.
Flaxseed oil: While it may help lower cholesterol and blood pressure, flaxseed oil can also interact with blood thinners and cause GI issues.
Choline: Some people need choline supplements to address a severe deficiency. But overdoing it can cause unpleasant side effects, like nausea and vomiting — and some studies suggest it could raise your risk of heart disease.
Animal-based thyroid supplements: Supplements made with animal thyroid may interact with heart medicines and cause unwanted side effects, like rapid heartbeat, increased blood pressure and increased bleeding.
Red yeast rice: Red yeast rice contains a compound called monacolin K, which may help lower cholesterol. But it’s dangerous in large quantities. Red yeast rice supplements with too much monacolin K can be deadly. The same goes for the rice itself: There have been recalls around the world in recent years due to deaths associated with red yeast rice consumption.
Caffeine: Many supplements — especially those marketed for sports nutrition and weight loss — come with a heaping side order of caffeine. Too much caffeine can raise your heart rate, spike your blood pressure and trigger palpitations.