AboutCrystal Fawn PA-C Physician Assistant Expertise You can be assured that I can answer 95% of your nutrition & dieting questions related to
medical conditions (ie. Is the South Beach diet safe if I have renal disease?), fitness
modelling industry (I have had several top 3 finishes in world & international natural
fitness & figure competitions), real-life applications of nutrition/exercise (ie. A practical
approach for busy professionals who want to get toned & fit!), personal issues (eating
disorders, psychological barriers, motivation issues), obesity & preventative nutrition
(treating & reversing obesity, problems of obesity, how to prevent major health problems
through proper nutrition/exercise). Since I am a physician assistant, I am able to provide a
diagnosis.
Experience Physician Assistant (diagnose & treat diseases/symptoms), natural (drug-free) fitness & figure competitor in national & international competitions, fitness model for print, internet & audio publications, former competitve figure skater for almost 10 yrs, weight training for over 10 yrs
Organizations AAPA (American Academy of Physician Assistant)
Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society Alumni
Publications Fitness & Sports Network
Education/Credentials Physician Assistant PA-C Florida: graduated Suma Cum Laude
HBA Psychology Degree-Magna Cum Laude
Awards and Honors Graduated Suma Cum Laude in Physician Assistant Program, and graduated with highest GPA
Graduated Magna Cum Laude in HBA Psychology Degree
Phi Theta Kappa Alumni Member (high GPA honors)
volunteer work at Baptist Hospital, Miami, Florida
Question I read much about the benefits of CoQ10, especially for the heart health. There are claims that CoQ10 inhibits blood clot formation. However, these claims contradict other claims that CoQ10 has properties similar to K2, in that it can be a coagulant. How can CoQ10 be a blood clot inhibitor and a coagulant at the same time? If Coq10 diminishes the effectiveness of a blood thinner drug (coumadin, for example), one can deduct that Coq10 is, indeed, a coagulant? Therefore, if coq10 is a coagulant (causes blood clots), how can it be beneficial to the cardiovascular system? Can you please clarify the confusion or these contradicting claims?
Answer Hi Dominic,
CoQ10 is similar in structure to Vitamin K, and may possibly initiate the clotting cascade, causing clots to form more easily, and thus blocking the effects of coumadin (anti-coagulants). "Blood thinner" is really a misnomer; coumadin doesn't make your blood runnier or thinner, but just inhibits the formation of clotting by blocking the clotting cascade.
So yes, if you are on coumadin, you probably shouldn't use CoQ10!
As far as CoQ10 claims for inhibiting blood clot formation, I haven't any evidence for this; if you can provide a website with that information, I would appreciate this.
However, the "claimed" cardiovascular benefits of CoQ10 are that it helps to lower blood pressure, and may be good for certain types of cardiac disease, such as heart failure. However, the research in this area is sketchy at best; no cause or effect has been proven to date. For example, it has been found that people with high blood pressure have low levels of naturally occurring CoQ10, but this doesn't prove that increasing CoQ10 will lower blood pressure definitively.
I hope this clears up your confusion about CoQ10, Dominic.
Crystal
