Also indexed as: Atrial Fibrillation, Heart Arrhythmia,
Irregular Heartbeat, Sick Sinus Syndrome, Supraventricular Premature Beats, Ventricular
Premature Beats
Cardiac arrhythmia is a term that denotes a disturbance of the heart rhythm.
Cardiac arrhythmias can range in severity from entirely benign to immediately
life-threatening. If arrhythmia is suspected, a doctor should be consulted for confirmation.
In addition, the use of natural substances for arrhythmia should always be supervised by a
doctor.
Checklist for Cardiac
Arrhythmia
What are the symptoms of cardiac arrhythmia?
Most arrhythmia does not result in symptoms, but people may experience anxiety, lightheadedness, dizziness, fainting, unusual awareness
of the heartbeat, and sensations of fluttering or pounding in the chest.
Medical treatments
Prescription medications used to treat irregular heart rhythm, include quinidine (Quinidex®, Quinaglute®), procainamide
(Pronestyl®), disopyramide (Norpace®),mexiletine (Mexitil®), amiodarone (Cordarone®, Pacerone®), verapamil (Calan®, Verelan®), acebutolol (Sectral®), and propranolol (Inderal®).
Medical conditions that may cause arrhythmia, such as
anemia, fever, heart failure, or electrolyte
imbalance, are treated accordingly. In some cases, a synchronized electrical shock
(defibrillation) is applied to the heart either externally or internally (from a previously
implanted device that automatically activates when a life-threatening arrhythmia is detected).
When a normal rhythm cannot be established by these methods, a pacemaker (an electronic device
that controls the rhythm of the heart) may be implanted surgically. A newer procedure called
radiofrequency ablation may be used to destroy small areas of the heart responsible for the
arrhythmia.
Dietary changes that may be helpful
Excessive caffeine consumption has been associated with
arrhythmia in human studies. Although most people do not experience arrhythmia as a result of
caffeine consumption,1 some healthy people appear to be susceptible to as little as
one cup of coffee.2
Allergic reactions to foods and environmental
chemicals have been reported to trigger arrhythmias.3 Consultation with a physician
may help to pinpoint these sensitivities.
Nutritional supplements that may be helpful
A double-blind trial investigated the effect of oral
magnesium supplementation on arrhythmic episodes in people with congestive heart failure. Those people taking 3.2 grams
per day of magnesium chloride (equivalent to 384 mg per day of elemental magnesium) had
between 23% and 52% fewer occurrences of specific types of arrhythmia during the six-week
study, compared with those taking placebo.4 Lower serum concentrations of magnesium
were found to be associated with a higher incidence of arrhythmia in a large population
study.5 The anti-arrhythmic properties of magnesium appear to be specific. For
example, magnesium is clearly able to prevent a drug-induced arrhythmia called torsade de
pointes,6 but it does not appear to prevent atrial fibrillation.7 A
doctor should supervise any use of magnesium for cardiac arrhythmia.
In a double-blind trial, people with a type of arrhythmia known as ventricular premature
complexes were supplemented for 16 weeks with either 15 ml (1 tbsp) per day of fish oil or a similar amount of safflower oil as placebo. Patients taking the
fish oil had a significantly reduced frequency of abnormal heartbeats compared with those
receiving placebo, and 44% of those receiving fish oil experienced at least a 70% reduction in
the frequency of abnormal beats.8 In a separate study, however, men given 20 ml (4
tsp) of cod liver oil per day for six weeks, beginning one
week after a heart attack, had the same frequency of
irregular heart beats as did men given no supplemental oil.9
Patients taking hydrochlorothiazide for high blood pressure had a significant reduction in
arrhythmias when supplemented with 1 gram twice per day of potassium hydrochloride (supplying
1040 mg per day of elemental potassium). Those results
were not improved by adding 500 mg twice per day of
magnesium hydroxide (supplying 500 mg per day of elemental magnesium) to the
potassium.10 Low serum concentrations of potassium were found to be associated with
a higher incidence of arrhythmia in a large population study.11
Three cases have been reported in which ventricular premature beats disappeared after
supplementation with copper (4 mg per day in the two cases
for which amounts were reported).12 In one of these people, supplementing with zinc made the arrhythmia worse, confirming previous observations
that excessive zinc intake may lead to copper deficiency,13 which in turn may lead
to arrhythmia.
Gross deficiency of dietary selenium may cause many
heart problems, including arrhythmia. Based on this finding, one author has theorized that
correction of low selenium status may improve many arrhythmias, even in the absence of overt
deficiency symptoms.14 Controlled research is needed to evaluate this
possibility.
One case of long-standing sick-sinus syndrome (another type of arrhythmia) was reported to
resolve upon supplementation with 800 IU per day of vitamin
D prescribed for an unrelated condition. However, it was not clear from that report
whether the improvement was due to the vitamin D.15 More research is needed.
Are there any side effects or interactions?
Refer to the individual supplement for information about any side effects or interactions.
Herbs that may be helpful
An animal study showed that an extract of hawthorn
significantly reduced the number of experimentally induced arrhythmias.16 Although
the use of hawthorn for arrhythmia in humans has not been studied scientifically, it
traditionally has been used for this purpose.17
An active constituent in corydalis,
dl-tetrahydropalmatine (dl-THP), may exert an anti-arrhythmic action on the heart. This action
was observed in a preliminary trial with 33 patients suffering from a specific type of
arrhythmia called supraventricular premature beat or SVPB.18 Each patient took 300
to 600 mg of dl-THP per day in tablet form, and the dl-THP was found to be significantly more
effective than placebo in reducing arrhythmia.
Are there any side effects or interactions?
Refer to the individual herb for information about any side effects or interactions.
References
1. Donnerstein RL, Zhu D, Samson R, et al. Acute effects of caffeine
ingestion on signal-averaged electrocardiograms. Am Heart J 1998;136:643–6.
2. Dobmeyer DJ, Stine RA, Leier CV, et al. The arrhythmogenic effects of
caffeine in human beings. N Engl J Med 1983;308:814–6.
3. Rea WJ. Environmentally triggered cardiac disease. Ann
Allergy 1978;40:243–51.
4. Bashir Y, Sneddon JF, Staunton A, et al. Effects of long-term oral
magnesium chloride replacement in congestive heart failure secondary to coronary artery
disease. Am J Cardiol 1993;72:1156–62.
5. Tsuji H, Venditti FJ, Evans JC, et al. The associations of levels of
serum potassium and magnesium with ventricular premature complexes (the Framingham Heart
Study). Am J Cardiol 1994;74:232–5.
6. Tzivoni D, Keren A. Suppression of ventricular arrhythmias by
magnesium. Am J Cardiol 1990;65:1397–9 [review].
7. Brugada P. Magnesium: an antiarrhythmic drug, but only against very
specific arrhythmias. Eur Heart J 2000;21:1116 [review].
8. Sellmayer A, Witzgall H, Lorenz RL, Weber PC. Effects of dietary fish
oil on ventricular premature complexes. Am J Cardiol 1995;76:974–7.
9. Hardarson T, Kristinsson A, Skuladottir G, et al. Cod liver oil does
not reduce ventricular extrasystoles after myocardial infarction. J Intern Med
1989;236:33–7.
10. Lumme JA, Jounela AJ. The effect of potassium and potassium plus
magnesium supplementation on ventricular extrasystoles in mild hypertensives treated with
hydrochlorothiazide. Int J Cardiol 1989;25:93–8.
11. Tsuji H, Venditti FJ, Evans JC, et al. The associations of levels of
serum potassium and magnesium with ventricular premature complexes (the Framingham Heart
Study). Am J Cardiol 1994;74:232–5.
12. Spencer JC. Direct relationship between the body’s copper/zinc
ratio, ventricular premature beats and sudden cardiac death. Am J Clin Nutr
1979;32:1184–5 [letter].
13. Porter KG, McMaster D, Elmes ME, Love AH. Anaemia and low
serum-copper during zinc therapy. Lancet 1977;2:774 [letter].
14. Lehr D. A possible beneficial effect of selenium administration in
antiarrhythmic therapy. J Am Coll Nutr 1994;13:496–8.
15. Kessel L. Sick sinus syndrome cured by...vitamin D?
Geriatrics 1990;45(8):83–5.
16. Al Makdessi S, Sweidan H, Dietz K, Jacob R. Protective effect of
Crataegus oxycantha against reperfusion arrhythmias after global no-flow ischemia in the rat
heart. Basic Res Cardiol 1999;94:71–7.
17. Ellingwood F. American Materia Medica, Therapeutics and
Pharmacognosy. Sandy, OR: Eclectic, 1919, 217–20.
18. Xiaolin N, Zhenhua H, Xin M, et al. Clinical and experimental study
of dl-tetrahydropalmatine effect in the treatment of supraventricular arrhythmia. J
Xi’An Med Univ 1998;10:150–3.
Copyright © 2004 Healthnotes, Inc. All rights reserved.
www.healthnotes.com
Learn more about Healthnotes, the company.
Learn more about the authors of Healthnotes.
The information presented in Healthnotes is for informational
purposes only. It is based on scientific studies (human, animal, or in vitro),
clinical experience, or traditional usage as cited in each article. The results reported may
not necessarily occur in all individuals. For many of the conditions discussed, treatment with
prescription or over-the-counter medication is also available. Consult your doctor,
practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any supplements or
before making any changes in prescribed medications. Information expires March 2005.
| 
