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Psyllium (Ispaghula Husk)

Related Topics:

• fiber / senna / docusate / constipation / cholesterol / statins

Specific Recommendations:

• Psyllium husk at Amazon.com

News & Research:

• Psyllium May Be Safe and Effective as Add-On Therapy for Elevated Cholesterol - Medscape, 5/26/06 - "After 8 weeks, total cholesterol decreased by similar amounts in 2 groups (61 mg/dL in the 20-mg simvastatin group and 66 mg/dL in the group receiving 10 mg of simvastatin with psyllium)"
• Low-Cholesterol Diet as Good as Drugs - WebMD, 7/22/03 - "a vegetarian diet combining four types of cholesterol-lowering foods works as well as cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins ... It had four basic components: plant sterols in the form of a cholesterol-lowering margarine; soy proteins; sticky or soluble fibers such as fruits, vegetables, oats, and legumes; and almonds" - If you look at their sample menu, it contained a lot of psyllium.  That alone could have been responsible for a lot of the drop in cholesterol.
• Are These Cholesterol Busters For You? - CBS News, 3/6/03 - "People with high cholesterol may lower their levels by a surprising one-third with a vegetarian diet that combines a variety of trendy heart-healthy foods, including plenty of soy and soluble fiber ... the diet works about as well as the older statin drugs that are still first-line therapy for people with high cholesterol ... A typical breakfast included oat bran, fruit and soy milk, lunch might involve vegetarian chili, oat bran bread and tomato, and a typical dinner was vegetable curry, a soy burger, northern beans, barley, okra, eggplant, cauliflower, onions and red peppers. Volunteers also got Metamucil three times a day to provide soluble fiber from psyllium"
• Ispaghula Husk [psyllium] Nearly As Effective As Simvastatin For Hyperlipidemia - Doctor's Guide, 12/24/02 - "One group received 3.5 grams of ispaghula husk twice a day and the second group received 20 milligrams of simvastatin each day ... total cholesterol decreased by 15.8 percent and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol decreased by 22.97 percent among patients taking ispaghula husk ... Triglycerides decreased by 20.89 percent and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol increased by 10.69 percent in these patients ... Among patients taking simvastatin, total cholesterol decreased by 24.15 percent, LDL cholesterol decreased by 36.08 percent, triglycerides decreased by 20.47 percent and HDL cholesterol increased by 11.4 percent" - I've got that. See psyllium husk at Amazon.com.

Abstracts:

• Effects of psyllium on metabolic syndrome risk factors - Obes Rev. 2012 Aug 5 - "High-fibre intake has been shown to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome (MS), cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Psyllium is one of the most widely used fibre supplements because it is reasonably cheap and is better tolerated than other fibre supplements. The review of the literature supports the notion that the consumption of psyllium provides benefits to many components of the MS. Psyllium supplementation does improve glucose levels and insulin response, blood pressure, as well as lipid profile in both animals and humans, thereby reducing metabolic risk factors. Appetite has also been reported to decrease after the consumption of psyllium in most studies"
• Effect of Combining Psyllium Fiber With Simvastatin in Lowering Cholesterol - Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:1161-1166 - "The mean lowering of LDL-C in the group receiving 20 mg of simvastatin plus placebo was the same as that in the group receiving 10 mg of simvastatin plus psyllium. Similar results were seen for apolipoprotein B and total cholesterol"