Food preservative sodium nitrate may protect against drug-induced heart failure
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By David Liu, Ph.D. and editing by Aimee Keenan-Green
Killing cancer can also hurt your heart.
Researchers now say chemotherapy doxorubicin can cause heart cells to die, which may eventually lead to decreased heart function, or even heart failure, in cancer patients.
A new study suggests eating lots of green leafy vegetables and beet juice, high in an inorganic nitrate, may help mitigate the adverse effect.
Doxoburicin, which has been used since the 1960s, can cause permanent heart damage in cancer patients on the drug.
The drug generates free radicals in the mitochondria of cardiac cells leading to the death of these cells.
Virginia Commonwealth University researchers ,including Rakesh C. Kukreja, Ph.D, conducted the study and found mice treated with the dietary inorganic nitrate supplement were less likely to suffer heart dysfunction induced by doxorubicin.
In the study, the researchers let mice drink water with 1 g/liter sodium nitrate seven days before doxorubicin treatment and during the treatment.
Sodium nitrate was found to stabilize the mitochondria and prevent the free radicals from damaging the heart cells.
The amount of sodium nitrate used in the study was said to be 400 percent of the Acceptable Daily Intake recommended by the World Health Organization.
Exposure to high levels of sodium nitrate may itself increase risk of cancer because this chemical like sodium nitrite can form nitrosamines, which are known to cause gastric and esophageal cancer.
High levels of nitrates have been found also associated with diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson disease, and diabetes mellitus.
The study was released May 16 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Photo credit: wikipedia
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