Print this and give it to your doctor, please note the double blind, randomized,

[HysteryDiagnosis]

reduction in ACE inhibitors, etc, etc. Pycnogenol and other equally beneficial substances are the true answer to the spiraling health care costs. I will buy this out of pocket before I let them turn me into a human guinea pig.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19083426

Nutr Res. 2008 May;28(5):315-20.
Reduction of cardiovascular risk factors in subjects with type 2 diabetes by Pycnogenol supplementation.

Zibadi S, Rohdewald PJ, Park D, Watson RR.

Nutritional Sciences Department, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
Abstract

Patients with type 2 diabetes are at considerable risk of excessive morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease (CVD). We investigated the clinical effectiveness of Pycnogenol, a flavonoid-rich dietary supplement, in reducing antihypertensive medication use and CVD risk factors in subjects with type 2 diabetes. Forty-eight individuals were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with parallel-group design. Patients were diagnosed with both type 2 diabetes and mild to moderate hypertension and were undergoing treatment with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.

Subjects were randomly assigned to receive either Pycnogenol pill (125 mg daily) or matched placebo for 12 weeks. According to the values of blood pressure (BP) measured at 2-week intervals, the pretrial ACE inhibitor dosage was left unchanged, reduced by 50%, or brought back to the pretrial dosage until a stable BP was obtained. Fasting plasma glucose, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), serum endothelin-1, and urinary albumin were evaluated monthly.

Pycnogenol treatment achieved BP control in 58.3% of subjects at the end of the 12 weeks with 50% reduction in individual pretrial dose of ACE-inhibitors (P <.05). Plasma endothelin-1 decreased by 3.9 pg/mL in Pycnogenol-treated group vs 0.5 pg/mL increase in control group (P < .001). Mean HbA1c dropped by 0.8% in Pycnogenol-treated group (P < .05), whereas it decreased by 0.1% in control group. Fasting plasma glucose declined by 23.7 mg/dL in Pycnogenol-treated group vs 5.7 mg/dL in control group (P < .0001). Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol improved significantly in

Pycnogenol-treated group, declining by 12.7 mg/dL (P < .001). A significant decrease in urinary albumin level was observed at week 8 compared with the control group (P < .05). However, this reduction was not significant at 12th week. After 12 weeks of supplementation, Pycnogenol resulted in improved diabetes control, lowered CVD risk factors, and reduced antihypertensive medicine use vs controls.

PMID: 19083426

[KT2000]

1. OK

I have had doctors pushing antihypertensive medication on me since I was 18 years old. All turned me into a zombie to where I have informed all doctors I prefer death to this. This pisses them off.
Will try the pycnogenol. Thanks.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

3. I presently take 900 mg of algae derived DHA/day as well as 150 mg of

Ubiquinol, a highly absorbent form of Coenzyme Q10. Please see this book written by a board certified cardiologist. It could give you some highly useful information. I cannot cut and paste anything from this book listing, not even the reviews cuz they are the sole property of Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Coenzyme-Phenomenon-Stephen-M-D-Sinatra/dp/0879839570/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1301779456&sr=8-1-spell

EDITED TO CHANGE I TO IT

[KT2000]

5. Thank you! n/t

[cutlassmama]

8. I take CoQ10 too.

[Orrex]

2. It's always a good idea to take medical advice from anonymous online discussion forums.

Doctors love it when patients with a degree in Google make it their business to second-guess their diagnoses on the basis of what someone on the interwebs had to say about it.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

4. Glad they are entertained and schooled in things entirely toxic. Yeah, the pharmcos

own the medical schools so the first thing you will be offered is a safe and effective method for lowering your BP., reducing your LDL, triglycerides, etc. Like there isn't a safe alternative to the crap they peddle.

[TheWraith]

6. I'm glad to see you know more about science than scientists. nt

[HysteryDiagnosis]

9. I know that if there is a choice between getting statins for what is frivolously

called high cholesterol and plant stanols and sterols, pycnogenol, CoQ10 or other equally effective nutritional interventions, you will get the statins without a single mention of the safer alternatives. That is not only sad it is deadly.

[Orrex]

7. You're right. Every doctor in the country is a bought-and-paid-for quack

It's a wonder that they even bothered with a dozen or more years of schooling, when they could simply have called Merck and asked for their diplomas outright.

[HuckleB]

10. Indeed.

Interestingly, the purveyor of the OP has offered many things for sale on these very forums.

[Orrex]

12. Those aren't sales

They're an effort to improve the human condition and to save people from the evil Dr. Shill.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

11. It's not their fault that they are told which tools they can use and which ones

they can't. Some people don't have a problem with drugs being substituted for nutritional issues. Some do. It's a matter of taste I suppose. If I had chronic venous insufficiency I would take pycnogenol. If I had diabetic retinopathy I would take pycnogenol. If I had many other conditions I would take pycnogenol... If I had male issues... pycnogenol, but then that's a thinking man's way out. I would rather attempt a healing rather than a band aid approach.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17703218
In a randomly allocated, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design, 50 patients with mild to moderate erectile dysfunction (ED) were treated for 1 month with placebo or a combination of L-arginine aspartate and Pycnogenol (Prelox). Patients reported sexual function from diaries. Testosterone levels and endothelial NO synthase (e-NOS) were monitored along with routine clinical chemistry. Intake of Pycnogenol for 1 month restored erectile function to normal. Intercourse frequency doubled. e-NOS in spermatozoa and testosterone levels in blood increased significantly. Cholesterol levels and blood pressure were lowered. No unwanted effects were reported. Prelox is a promising alternative to treat mild to moderate ED.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19916788
RESULTS: The major positive observation of this study is the visual improvement, which was subjectively perceived by 18 out of 24 patients in the Pycnogenol group. Testing of visual acuity using the Snellen chart showed a significant improvement from baseline 14/20 to 17/20 already, after 2 months treatment, whereas no change was found in the control group.

CONCLUSIONS: Pycnogenol taken at this early stage of retinopathy may enhance retinal blood circulation accompanied by regression of edema, which favorably improves vision of patients.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17067979
There were no visible effects in controls. In conclusion, this study confirms the fast clinical efficacy of Pycnogenol in patients with chronic venous insufficiency and venous microangiopathy. The study indicates the significant clinical role of Pycnogenol in the management, treatment and control of this common clinical problem. The treatment may be also useful to prevent ulcerations by controlling the level of venous microangiopathy.