Claim: Broccoli May Slow or Reverse Some Atherosclerosis
Verdict: REFUTES

Retrieved passages:
title: Atherosclerosis
text: and vegetables decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease and death. Evidence suggests that the Mediterranean diet may improve cardiovascular results. There is also evidence that a Mediterranean diet may be better than a low-fat diet in bringing about long-term changes to cardiovascular risk factors (e.g., lower cholesterol level and blood pressure). A controlled exercise program combats atherosclerosis by improving circulation and functionality of the vessels. Exercise is also used to manage weight in patients who are obese, lower blood pressure, and decrease cholesterol. Often lifestyle modification is combined with medication therapy. For example, statins help to lower cholesterol, antiplatelet medications

title: Campesterol
text: campesterol and other phytosterols can reduce the size of atherogenic plaques, but no data yet show that consumption of phytosterols results in any clinical benefit such as a reduction in atherosclerosis, heart disease, cardiac events, or mortality. Excessive supplementation with plant sterols may be associated with reductions in beta-carotene levels. Excessive supplementation with plant sterols may be associated with reductions in lycopene levels. One small study showed no significant side effects after 15 weeks other than a slight reduction in vitamin E levels, which was not significant after LDL cholesterol levels were taken into consideration. However, the authors concluded that

title: Atherosclerosis
text: of arteries limits the flow of oxygen-rich blood to parts of the body. Diagnosis is based upon a physical exam, electrocardiogram, and exercise stress test, among others. Prevention is generally by eating a healthy diet, exercising, not smoking, and maintaining a normal weight. Treatment of established disease may include medications to lower cholesterol such as statins, blood pressure medication, or medications that decrease clotting, such as aspirin. A number of procedures may also be carried out such as percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass graft, or carotid endarterectomy. Atherosclerosis generally starts when a person is young and worsens with age.

title: Atherosclerosis
text: techniques such as PET and SPECT have provided ways of estimating the severity of atherosclerotic plaques. Up to 90% of cardiovascular disease may be preventable if established risk factors are avoided. Medical management of atherosclerosis first involves modification to risk factors–for example, via smoking cessation and diet restrictions. Prevention then is generally by eating a healthy diet, exercising, not smoking, and maintaining a normal weight. Changes in diet may help prevent the development of atherosclerosis. Tentative evidence suggests that a diet containing dairy products has no effect on or decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease. A diet high in fruits

title: ApoA-1 Milano
text: that injection of a synthetic version of the mutant ApoA-1 into rabbits and mice could reverse vascular plaque buildup. Apo A-I Milano has been shown to reduce atherosclerosis in animal models and in a small phase 2 human trial. Recombinant adeno-associated virus 8 (AAV8) mediated Apo A-I Milano gene therapy in combination with low-cholesterol diet induces rapid and significant regression of atherosclerosis in mice. The first examination of using the mutant ApoA-1 in humans was conducted through a three way collaboration between the University of Milan and the companies Pharmacia and Upjohn in 1996, focusing on treatment of atherosclerosis. The

title: Myocardial infarction
text: atherosclerosis affecting heart vessels. Physical activity can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, and people at risk are advised to engage in 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic exercise a week. Keeping a healthy weight, drinking alcohol within the recommended limits, and quitting smoking reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Substituting polyunsaturated fats such as olive oil and rapeseed oil instead of saturated fats may reduce the risk of myocardial infarction, although there is not universal agreement. Dietary modifications are recommended by some national authorities, with recommendations including increasing the intake of wholegrain starch, reducing

title: Myricetin
text: diabetes mellitus. Antioxidants, including flavonoids such as myricetin, are often touted to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis, the hardening of arteries associated with high cholesterol. However, "in vivo" studies are lacking and "in vitro" studies are contradictory and do not support this claim. This claim is based on myricetin's proposed ability to increase LDL uptake by macrophages, which in theory would protect against atherosclerosis. This theoretical action of myricetin is not supported by experimental data. It is also proposed that myricetin may have the ability as a potent flavonoid antioxidant to prevent LDL oxidation, thus slowing the body's local inflammatory

title: Atherosclerosis
text: early phase of arteriosclerosis, appears to be induced by a number of drugs that have an antiproliferative mechanism of action (Rainer Liedtke 2008). Cholesterol is delivered into the vessel wall by cholesterol-containing low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles. To attract and stimulate macrophages, the cholesterol must be released from the LDL particles and oxidized, a key step in the ongoing inflammatory process. The process is worsened if there is insufficient high-density lipoprotein (HDL), the lipoprotein particle that removes cholesterol from tissues and carries it back to the liver. The foam cells and platelets encourage the migration and proliferation of smooth muscle cells,

title: Myricetin
text: response and delaying the appearance of the first fatty streak and onset of atherosclerosis. Although mechanisms relating to myricetin specifically have not been proven, a diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables, and therefore rich in antioxidants, correlates with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, including atherosclerosis. It has also been shown that myricetin is effective in protecting neurons against oxidative stressors. Researchers have shown that PC12 cells treated with hydrogen peroxide (HO) as an oxidative stressor experience cell death due to apoptosis. When treated with myricetin, these oxidatively stressed cells displayed statistically significant increased cell survival. It has

title: Atherosclerosis
text: lead to less cellular cholesterol and higher plasma HDL level through the regulation of ABCA1 expression. The sugar, cyclodextrin, removed cholesterol that had built up in the arteries of mice fed a high-fat diet. Aging is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular problems. The causative basis by which aging mediates its impact, independently of other recognized risk factors, remains to be determined. Evidence has been reviewed for a key role of DNA damage in vascular aging. 8-oxoG, a common type of oxidative damage in DNA, is found to accumulate in plaque vascular smooth muscle cells, macrophages and endothelial cells,

title: Predimed
text: end-point of myocardial infarction, stroke, or cardiovascular death. This corresponded to an absolute reduction in 3 less cardiovascular events per 1000 patient-years, or a 30% relative risk reduction. Other important observed benefits included a strong reduction in peripheral artery disease, breast cancer, and atrial fibrillation (only associated with the consumption of extra-virgin olive oil). Some criticisms included the fact that the protocol for the low-fat control group was changed during the trial, there were losses to follow up in the low fat group which may have biased the results and, very specially, that a true low-fat diet was not achieved

title: Atherosclerosis
text: the plaque induces the muscle cells of the blood vessel to stretch, compensating for the additional bulk, and the endothelial lining thickens, increasing the separation between the plaque and lumen. This somewhat offsets the narrowing caused by the growth of the plaque, but it causes the wall to stiffen and become less compliant to stretching with each heart beat. The relation between dietary fat and atherosclerosis is controversial. Writing in "Science", Gary Taubes detailed that political considerations played into the recommendations of government bodies. The USDA, in its food pyramid, promotes a diet of about 64% carbohydrates from total calories.

title: Coronary artery disease
text: a high fiber diet lower the risk. The consumption of trans fat (commonly found in hydrogenated products such as margarine) has been shown to cause a precursor to atherosclerosis and increase the risk of coronary artery disease. Evidence does not support a beneficial role for omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in preventing cardiovascular disease (including myocardial infarction and sudden cardiac death). There is tentative evidence that intake of menaquinone (Vitamin K), but not phylloquinone (Vitamin K), may reduce the risk of CAD mortality. Secondary prevention is preventing further sequelae of already established disease. Lifestyle changes that have been shown to be

title: Chronic endothelial injury hypothesis
text: carotenoids being the two major naturally occurring antioxidants in human lipoprotein. Although some studies have shown positive results following anti-oxidant therapy with vitamin C, vitamin E therapy has attracted the most public attention. There have been some positive results, though recent studies have shown no benefit for antioxidant therapy on mortality among patients at risk for CHD., An early incarnation of the lipid hypothesis which focused on hypercholesterolemia lead to the suggestion that mortality from CHD might be reduced by controlling dietary input of cholesterol. Studies have demonstrated that increasing dietary cholesterol leads to an increase in both total cholesterol

title: Inflammation
text: indicated by levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein, prospectively defines risk of atherosclerotic complications, thus adding to prognostic information provided by traditional risk factors. Moreover, certain treatments that reduce coronary risk also limit inflammation. In the case of lipid lowering with statins, this anti-inflammatory effect does not appear to correlate with reduction in low-density lipoprotein levels. These new insights into inflammation in atherosclerosis not only increase our understanding of this disease but also have practical clinical applications in risk stratification and targeting of therapy for this scourge of growing worldwide importance. An allergic reaction, formally known as type 1

title: Sitosterolemia
text: reducing the intake of foods rich in plant sterols (e.g., vegetable oils, olives and avocados). However, dietary therapy is often never fully sufficient to control this disease since plant sterols are constituents of all plant-based foods. Statins have been used, and while these lower cholesterol levels and may ameliorate atherosclerotic disease, plant sterol levels are insufficiently lowered by their use alone. If dietary treatment alone is insufficient, bile acid-binding resins (e.g., cholestyramine, colestipol) could be considered. In October 2002, a new cholesterol absorption inhibitor, ezetimibe, received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for use in sitosterolemia. This drug is

title: American Heart Association
text: been strengthened, leading to the new 1961 AHA recommendations: (1) Maintain a correct body weight, (2) Engage in moderate exercise, e.g., walking to aid in weight reduction, (3) Reduce intake of total fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol. Increase intake of polyunsaturated fat, (4) Men with a strong family history of atherosclerosis should pay particular attention to diet modification, and (5) Dietary changes should be carried out under medical supervision. These recommendations continued to become more precise from 1957 to 1980, but maintained "a general coherence among them". In 1994, the "Chronicle of Philanthropy", an industry publication, released the results of

title: Atherosclerosis
text: livers and kidneys. Rabbits fed atherogenic diets containing various oils were found to undergo the greatest amount of oxidative susceptibility of LDL via polyunsaturated oils. In another study, rabbits fed heated soybean oil "grossly induced atherosclerosis and marked liver damage were histologically and clinically demonstrated." However, Fred Kummerow claims that it is not dietary cholesterol, but oxysterols, or oxidized cholesterols, from fried foods and smoking, that are the culprit. Rancid fats and oils taste very bad even in small amounts, so people avoid eating them. It is very difficult to measure or estimate the actual human consumption of these substances.

title: Paul Ridker
text: from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute and from the pharmaceutical industry to design and conduct two multi-national cardiovascular inflammation reduction trials known as CANTOS and CIRT. The CANTOS (Canakinumab Anti-inflammatory Thrombosis Outcomes Study) reported in late 2017 that inflammation inhibition with Canakinumab, a monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1-beta, can significantly reduce future risks of heart attack, need for expensive coronary revascularization procedures, and cardiovascular deaths among high-risk heart disease patients with residual inflammatory risk. Canakinumab had no effects on either cholesterol or blood pressure, and thus these data provided the fundamental first proof-of-concept for the inflammation hypothesis of Atherosclerosis.

title: Myocardial infarction
text: and those that may be adopted as secondary prevention after an initial myocardial infarct. Recommendations include stopping smoking, a gradual return to exercise, eating a healthy diet, low in saturated fat and low in cholesterol, and drinking alcohol within recommended limits, exercising, and trying to achieve a healthy weight. Exercise is both safe and effective even if people have had stents or heart failure, and is recommended to start gradually after 1–2 weeks. Counselling should be provided relating to medications used, and for warning signs of depression. Previous studies suggested a benefit from omega-3 fatty acid supplementation but this has