Vitamin Nutrition Therapy (Orthomolecular Medicine) For Heart Disease, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Other Chronic Conditions, Diseases Of Aging

Vitamin Nutrition Therapy (Orthomolecular Medicine) For Heart Disease, Mitral Valve Prolapse, Other Chronic Conditions, Diseases Of Aging

For those unfamiliar with the term, Orthomolecular Medicine refers to the treatment of disease by finding the root causes of disease, which are usually vitamin deficiency related or nutrient intake related. Staten Islander News sat down with Dr. Richard Z. Cheng, current Editor in Chief of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, which is a semi-regularly published, peer-reviewed scientific journal. The journal has published stories about Vitamin D deficiency and its effects, the benefits of Hydrogen Peroxide nebulization for respiratory infections (including Covid), and the health benefits of Vitamin E. Iodine is another nutrient they have discussed, particularly since the usual treatment for the current epidemic of hypothyroidism (synthetic hormone treatment with Synthroid, Levothyroxine, and others) does not address the body’s need for the elements that build the hormones. Even when this synthetic hormone treatment is used, the body still needs iodine to create the other hormones that are made in the thyroid.

Our discussion with Dr. Cheng focused on the Number One killer of Americans and people worldwide: Cardiovascular disease. This includes heart disease, including ASVCD (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease), stroke, and high blood pressure, which can cause a heart attack. According to the Orthomolecular Medicine model, all diseases, including heart disease, have the same root causes. These root causes cause different clinical manifestations, but they all require a similar treatment protocol: address the root cause, or deficiency, and the body can heal itself.

We discussed one of the most often overlooked but most important deficiencies: Vitamin C. Most Americans, along with people in other countries, are deficient in this nutrient in varying degrees. One of the manifestations of Vitamin C deficiency is scar tissue formation on the inside of the arteries and veins. This scar tissue becomes the initial wound that then causes the body to bring clots, fatty deposits, and other substances to the area, which form on and around the wound. This then becomes a risk for heart attack, and it is known as atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis can eventually occlude the entire artery or vein, where, in the case of an artery, this occlusion can lead to a heart attack or stroke, depending on where the blood flow is cut off. If it is cut off near to the heart, it is likely to cause a heart attack. If it occurs close to the brain, then it can cause part of the brain to die, leading to what is known as a stroke. The other danger of this condition is that the clot and debris that has formed around the wound in the blood vessel can break off and travel to somewhere else. Again, in the brain, this becomes a stroke. In the lung, it becomes a pulmonary embolism. In all cases, it can cause damage and death.

But, as you may have realized, Vitamin C deficiency can be a major root cause of this problem. This is because collagen, which is what keeps your skin soft and supple, also keeps the ‘skin’ on your organs soft and supple, and makes sure that there is no scar formation on the inside of your blood vessels. It is made up of two things: Vitamin C and protein. If you have too little of one or the other of these nutrients, then you will raise your risk of ASCVD.

However, one thing that is not well understood in modern medicine techniques is that these nutrient deficiencies can manifest differently in different populations or individuals. Whereas, one person’s body may react to this deficiency by forming scar tissue inside the blood vessels, another person may have issues with the pancreas. These issues can lead to the condition known as diabetes. But in this instance, as well, increasing the intake of Vitamin C and protein may help with this condition. Recent research has found that Vitamin C deficiency is more common in those with diabetes, and that increasing blood serum concentration of this vitamin can help manage the disease. It may be that there is more oxidative stress on the body of a diabetic person, due to the inability to process sugar. Or it may be also due to other nutrient deficiencies, particularly magnesium.

We also discussed the importance of protein for optimal healthy function. Protein is often overlooked, and most people do not get enough protein. Importantly, common official recommendations are not very high, and studies of elderly subjects has shown that protein is very important, and it can improve overall health outcomes, as well as helping with chronic conditions. In the past, it was believed that high protein intake can lead to kidney damage, but that long-held theory is currently being challenged.

Part of the discussion focused on the best ways to obtain sufficient protein. Dr Cheng and other Orthomolecular physicians believe that people must intake animal based proteins in order to get a sufficient quantity. However, there is a great deal of science, including studies undertaken by the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine (the organization from which we interviewed another cardiologist about Mitral Valve Prolapse) that have shown that plant-based proteins are superior to animal based proteins. Reducing toxin load is important, and many plant-based proteins do contain toxins as well (particularly agricultural chemicals such as pesticides), but plant-based diets have shown demonstrably that they are healthier, and they have even been implicated in preventing and reversing many types of cancers.

Meat-based diets, especially those containing processed meats (bacon, sausage, ham) and red meat (beef and pork) on the other hand, have nearly universally been shown in study after study to increase the risk of cancer, as well as the severity of many types of cancer. The World Health Organization classifies these types of meats as Group 1 (causal association) for processed meats and Group 2A (causal association not strong enough to be definitive) for red meats.  In addition, a large study that followed 21,000 men for 28 years found a correlation between eating dairy and developing prostate cancer. Dairy has also been implicated, though less strongly, with developing breast cancers. The Adventist Health Study followed over 51,000 pre- and post-menopausal women for about 8 years and found that those consuming higher levels of cows’ milk had about a 50% higher rate of breast cancer.

This research and information has led to official recommendations, including those by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly the American Dietetic Association – contributors to the official recommendations of the government, including the Food Pyramid and MyPlate) that an appropriately planned vegan diet can be nutritionally adequate for most Americans, as well as that this type of diet can, in itself, provide health benefits including preventing and treating certain diseases. This includes cancer and heart disease.

It is not difficult to obtain the recommended daily intake of protein, whether on a vegetarian or meat-centered diet, and the video contains a helpful chart of many of the complete protein options that are suitable for plant-based diets. Considering the ethical dilemma that is the factory farmed meat industry, this is an important distinction. Not only is it possible to get the recommended intake of protein, but one is also not contributing to the suffering of animals, they are reducing their toxin load, reducing their contribution to pollution, all the while reducing their own incidence of chronic diseases.

The complete protein chart, as well as the protein recommendations and examples from the PROT-AGE study, and a helpful meal planning example, can be found in the video and below.

When one begins to understand that all diseases stem from the same root cause (poor nutrition, including vitamin deficiencies), it becomes easy to see how to remedy these same conditions. Chronic diseases, particularly those for which modern medicine has very little to offer, can often be remedied with a healthy diet with several vitamins. In particular, Dr. Cheng says that a healthy diet is high in protein, high in fat, low in carbs, and absent ultra-processed foods. Seed oils, such as canola oil, sunflower and safflower seed oil, and other seed oils should be replaced with healthier oils, including olive, coconut, and avocado. While this seems counter-intuitive, many people will even lose excess weight when they consume MORE fat, especially if they are healthy fats and they also eliminate or severely reduce their carb intake.

Nearly all of the vitamins that are necessary for optimal human health are inexpensive. Vitamin C, magnesium, zinc, copper, iodine, B complex, B-12 (if on a plant-based diet),Vitamin D, and Vitamin E all are rather inexpensive. Vitamin K can be a bit more expensive, but most other vitamins are not. The cheapest way to get the vitamins you need is individually, rather than in a multi-vitamin. While multi’s can be helpful, they often have very little of many of the necessary nutrients, particularly Vitamin C, D, E, and K. They sometimes have some of the nutrients of which we need very little, such as Vitamin K and vanadium, but simpler can be better in the case of vitamins. It will also be cheaper, as many of the formulations advertised on television are over-priced, and purchasing the vitamins listed separately will usually cost less.

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The following links and descriptions are from Dr. Cheng about diet and lifestyle changes for ideal nutrition for heart conditions: 

1. High Protein Intake and Anti-Aging: What the Science Says

https://open.substack.com/pub/rzchengmd/p/high-protein-intake-and-anti-aging?r=lbr5k&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

2. For heart disease including nutrients: ascvd | Search Results | Dr. Richard Cheng, Cheng Integrative Health Center https://www.drwlc.com/blog/?s=ascvd

3. Basic lifestyle and nutrients for most people: https://www.drwlc.com/blog/2025/01/09/preventing-viral-infections-integrative-orthomolecular-medicine-protocol/

Following are studies provided by and conducted at Dr. Cheng’s clinic about Mitral Valve Prolapse and ASCVD:

1. Mitral Valve Prolapse: an Orthomolecular Medicine Approach. https://www.drwlc.com/blog/2025/01/29/mitral-valve-prolapse-an-orthomolecular-medicine-approach/

2. A Holistic Approach to ASCVD:Summary of a Novel Framework and Report of 10 Case Studies. https://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v20n20.shtml

3. The Mismanagement of ASCVD: A Call for Root Cause Solutions Beyond Cholesterol. https://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v21n02.shtml

4. Understanding the Root Causes of Dyslipidemia in Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease. https://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v21n03.shtml

UPDATE: John Di Leonardo from Humane Long Island provided some context for the “Complete Protein” debate: a new study showing that the body is able to absorb the plant-based protein well, whether it is “complete” or “incomplete,” as well as information on vegan UFC fighters and heavyweight boxing champions:

As the below graphic, using data from Dr. Cheng’s clinic, illustrates, there are a small number of vitamins that can make a big impact. Nearly every American is deficient in Magnesium and Vitamin D, and both of these can have a large impact on the heart in particular. Restoring yourself to excellent health does take work, and it takes dedication and change, but it can be very worthwhile and rewarding in the end. Most people who make these changes notice a difference right away. For others, it may take more time.

The following methods and recipes for homemade yogurt and buckwheat bread are provided as described in the graphic above: 

Homemade yogurt is very easy to make.  Do you have an oven with an oven light? You can also use a heating mat (the ones made for animals are better since they stay on constantly, and yogurt takes several hours to make depending on ambient temperature and season:

To make yogurt from milk, simply take 32oz of milk into a Ball jar, add two Tbsp of store bought yogurt, 1/4 tsp salt, and stir.  Since regular milk already has lactose (milk sugar) in it, added sweetener is not necessary for fermentation to occur.   For soymilk yogurt, use unsweetened organic soymilk (such as Silk), add 4 Tbsp of brown sugar or maple syrup (or to taste), 2 Tbsp store bought yogurt and 1/4 tsp salt.  Place the Ball jar into the oven or on the heating mat, making sure the ambient temperature is between 90-110 degrees Fahrenheit.  After about 4-6 hours, it will have thickened and will smell and taste like yogurt.  It should not be foamy (or it’s gone too far). Refrigerate immediately to stop the reaction. Divide into 8oz cups for a serving.

For the buckwheat bread, you need raw buckwheat groats, water and salt.  Soak overnight in water and salt.  After about 24 hours, grind the water and groats together.  Then let it stand covered at room temperature for about 6 hours (see charts in recipe to determine how long). Then pour into a loaf pan and bake for the time described in the article link.  That’s it.  Simplest thing to make and packed with complete protein.

**The preceding article is not meant to be construed as medical advice. Everyone’s case is different, and any individual thinking of changing their diet or increasing their intake of vitamins is invited to discuss their proposed changes with their doctor.

Banner Image: Dr. Cheng’s study about ASCVD. Image Credit – Orthomolecular News Service 

Staten Islander News Service Staff Writer

This byline indicates that this article was penned by a member/members of the Staten Islander News Organization office team. Our staff writers are the backbone of our newspaper, performing all sorts of important tasks like conducting interviews, investigating leads, besides writing the news stories you see.