2021 has been an interesting year, and a difficult one for many of us due to various restrictions, supply chain delays, etc.

Hopefully, 2022 will be a happier year for all of us and the divisions in society that have become all too common will fade away.

One thing that really did stand out in 2021 and is becoming more apparent as we move into 2022 is the increase in cardiovascular issues primarily from unexpected heart attacks and strokes. Myocarditis which you hardly ever heard of has also become commonplace, as has blood clotting. I won't go into the various theories about the likely causes of this upsurge but rather focus on what can be done about it.

As you know, I have a personal interest in cardiovascular issues as a result of my overlooking the importance of calcification in the cardio system. This oversight resulted in me having to have open-heart surgery to replace a calcified aortic valve. Not something I would recommend to anyone.

The crazy thing is that after spending over a year researching it after the event I realized that it could have been avoided. That is how CX8 came to be developed, to take care of my personal needs. We also made some adjustments to our Total Balance formula to factor in calcification. The CX8 is working great for me and for hundreds of our customers. My arteries are in great shape now based on tests for elasticity.

The interesting thing is that my blood pressure was perfect prior to the surgery three years ago as were all my other markers, which is why the calcified aortic valve came as a surprise. After the surgery, my blood pressure went from being around 120/80 before surgery to up around 160/95, sometimes higher. I did not discuss this with the Doctor (in fact, I don't even have one as she retired two years ago). I know what would have happened... they would have wanted to put me on a blood pressure medication and then I would have had to refuse. When we completed the development of the CX8 and I started taking it my blood pressure dropped down, which was great, but it would still hang around 140/85, depending upon the time of day.

So, I had our research team start working on what I could to improve it further and a bit quicker. The research moved in the direction of raising nitric oxide, which helps dilate the blood vessels, which in turn makes it easier for the blood to flow.

The challenge was trying to find a good natural ingredient that would not only give reasonably fast results but also others that would stimulate the endothelium to produce nitric oxide in the long term.

We knew beetroot had a good reputation for producing nitric oxide, so that was on the list of ingredients to investigate. We accessed a variety of beetroot powders and tested them for nitrates which are needed to produce the nitric oxide, but the activity was very poor.

We then discovered that a special form of red spinach was very high in nitrates, so we purchased 100kgs from one of our reliable suppliers based on the certificate of analysis which showed a good level of nitrates but when we sent it away for testing the nitrate levels were less than 20% of what they were supposed to be.

We always test for the active ingredient prior to releasing ingredients from quarantine, so we did not use this one.

So, research continued for another source which we eventually found in India. We purchased more and to our delight, it not only passed the ID test but the nitrate levels were almost double the minimum amount on the certificate of analysis.

This in turn formed the basis of the development of a new product which we are calling VasQFlow. It will be promoted as a nitric oxide booster although I have already indicated what its real objective is.

As I mentioned, we also had to do something to help the endothelium produce more nitric oxide. Our scientists reviewed mountains of data and clinical trials and came up with the proposal that we incorporate quercetin, black garlic, and grape seed extract as well. In addition, some further B vitamins (B2 & B12)  and folate were added as co-factors.

After we completed the formula and because it had a substantial amount of quercetin in it, I said what about adding some zinc? The rationale was that quercetin is an ionophore and that zinc prevents viruses from replicating in the cell but it has difficulty getting into the cell without an ionophore so why not add it in? Lots of upsides but no downside… so we added it.

Bottom line, if you want to do everything that you can to strengthen your cardiovascular system try and add CX8 to your regime, and if your blood pressure is not ideal have a look at VasQFlow…and don't forget about the Omega 3 QH/Premium which has the Ubiquinol (CoQ10).

By the way, if you feel that you may have high blood pressure but you're not too sure,  go to your local pharmacy and buy a blood pressure machine…they cost between $60 and $80. You will find it interesting how much your blood pressure may vary throughout the day.

That is all for now, until next time, take care.