A product derived from starch and widely used in pharmaceuticals may hold the key to reducing deaths from heart disease.
The product, Cholrem or cyclodextrin has shown to reduce plaque buildup in arteries in as little as 4 weeks.
The treatment was pioneered by Australian company Cholrem Pty Ltd after reviewing a paper published in 2016 by an international team of scientists led by Eicke Latz and Sebastian Zimmer from Germany's Bonn University, titled “Cyclodextrin promotes atherosclerosis regression via macrophage reprogramming”.
The study showed that cyclodextrin reduced inflammation in the blood vessels and dissolved cholesterol crystals resulting in cholesterol being discreated from the body in urine. The result is prevention of plaque formation and even plaque reduction in mice. Furthermore, when researchers treated biopsies of plaques from human carotid arteries, they found similar results.
In April 2019 Cholrem Pty Ltd treated their first patient with advanced atherosclerosis for 4 weeks using their Cholrem brand of cyclodextrin. Before and after angiograms showed a significant reduction of arterial plaque despite the patient making no lifestyle changes and continued heavy smoking and drinking.
Mr. Hodgetts, from Cholrem Pty Ltd said “the results seem to confirm the research, showing that cyclodextrin can substantially reduce plaque buildup in patients with atherosclerosis “
The reported benefits include reduced plaque, improved vision and lower blood pressure with no side effects. “We don’t fully understand the process, but the results are remarkable and makes sense “Mr. Hodgetts said.
Cardiovascular disease from atherosclerosis is one of the most common causes of death worldwide. Most treatments to prevent this disease rely on reducing the amount of cholesterol in the blood. Cyclodextrin may hold the key to reducing existing plaque and reversing the disease for millions of patients worldwide.
