There’s no question that your blood’s ability to clot is critical-without it, a tiny paper cut could become a life-threatening injury. But like most of your body’s functions, even coagulation has a dark side… and it’s one that could kill you if you don’t keep it under control.
Stroke, embolism, deep vein thrombosis… all of these deadly conditions can be traced back to blood clots. If blood clots form in the brain, heart or lungs, or are dislodged from a leg or other site in the body and are carried in the blood stream to one of these critical organs, they can be fatal.
The truth of the matter is, you can get your clotting mechanisms back in order and minimize the risks from blood clots-thanks to an enzyme called nattokinase, which is highly effective and side-effect free.
Nattokinase is derived from a popular Japanese fermented soybean dish called natto. Dozens of clinical trials have shown that nattokinase can cut your risk of abnormal clotting significantly-and a recent study published just this past spring has only added more weight to this growing pool of evidence.
In this trial, researchers examined the effects of daily nattokinase supplementation on blood-clotting factors (including fibrinogen, and the coagulation proteins known simply as factor VII and factor VIII) in three groups of patients-one group that was healthy, one at risk of heart disease and one group of patients was undergoing dialysis.
At the end of the two-month trial period, all three groups of subjects showed a significant decrease in all three clotting factors. Fibrinogen levels dropped as much as ten percent, while factor VII decreased as much as 14 percent. But it was patients’ clotting factor VIII levels that were most dramatically affected, with subjects demonstrating significant decreases between 17 and 19 percent. These changes were independent of cholesterol levels (which were not affected by nattokinase)-and more importantly, no adverse events were reported.
The study authors’ conclusion? Supplementing with nattokinase daily could pack a serious punch against heart disease and clot formation.
Reference:
1. Hsia CH, Shen MC, Lin JS, Wen YK, Hwang KL, Cham TM, Yang NC. Nattokinase decreases plasma levels of fibrinogen, factor VII, and factor VIII in human subjects. Nutr Res. 2009 Mar;29(3):190-6.
