Can a blend of apple vinegar, lemon, ginger & garlic juice unclog your arteries?

Hyderabad: A viral Facebook post suggests that drinking a spoonful of a mixture of apple vinegar and the juice of lemon, ginger, and garlic before breakfast every day “naturally” opens “the veins of the heart.”

It also claims that after drinking this magic potion, there will be no need for an angioplasty or bypass surgery. It is potentially better than any medical treatment available, it claims.

Let’s discuss angioplasty and bypass surgery briefly.

Basically, angioplasty is a procedure used to widen blocked or narrowed coronary arteries and a bypass surgery redirects blood around a section of a blocked or partially blocked artery in the heart.

Any blockage in coronary arteries in your heart may lead to a heart attack if ignored.

FACT CHECK

NewsMeter performed a keyword search to find whether there is any method to open artery blockages naturally.

According to Healthline, “You may have read articles or heard reports promoting natural ways to unclog your arteries. For now, research doesn’t support the use of specific foods to unclog arteries, though small studies in animals show promise for the future.”

It also suggested ways to prevent the deposit of plaque in the arteries such as losing weight, exercising, or eating less food high in saturated fat.

“These are all steps you can take to reduce plaques, but these steps won’t remove existing plaques,” it added.

Focus on promoting better heart health by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Healthy habits will help prevent additional plaque from forming.

NewsMeter contacted Dr. Manoj K. Agarwala, MD DM, director Cath lab at Apollo Hospitals, and found that the claim is not true.

“There are no medications or diet which can open existing blockages. Medicines and lifestyle will prevent the further progression of blockages. Severe blockage in important arteries will require bypass or stent,” said Dr. Agarwala.