The Sinatra Solution: Metabolic Cardiology

Be sure to order the UPDATED Sinatra Solution (Paperback) released March 2011 - the protocols were revised and enhanced! The Sinatra Solution: Metabolic Cardiology The information in Sinatra Solution is *crucial* for anyone with cardiac concerns or anyone who wants to better understand how to avoid developing heart disease and the associated metabolic related diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes, Chronic Fatigue, and Fibromyalgia. In this book, Dr. Sinatra explains the details behind his success of taking patients who were on heart transplant waiting lists and returning them to a normal quality of life, sometimes free of any prescription drugs whatsoever. Magic? Maybe! ;-) In the back of this book Dr. Sinatra provides an easy to follow list of supplementation protocols based upon types of cardiac concerns, even for the "world class athlete" and anyone wanting to follow the "age management protocol" to avoid their own future cardiac concerns. Eighteen months ago a cardiologist with Metro Heart Group near St. Louis (now known as SSM Heart Institute - same office, mostly same practitioners) told me "[your husband's] heart is so badly diseased ... his next step is a heart transplant." Three days later I took my husband back to the ER for probable pneumonia but instead five hours later the local ER team loaded my husband's IV line with Lasix then 2 hours later he experienced ventricular tachycardia with torsade de pointes (80% fatal rhythm) before flat-lining while in their care. After calling a code blue he was resuscitated with 200 joules electric shock and given several types of electrolytes by IV and injection. This was a very TRAUMATIC experience no one should be subjected!! Death, even temporary, is NOT good for a person's overall well-being! After a week-long standoff in which my husband refused further cardiovascular intervention including having an AICD implanted despite their multiple attempts at coercion by entire teams of cardiologists, a local electro-physiologist informed me "Your husband will be dead within 2 weeks, likely in a few days." However, we learned the risks and complications associated with having an AICD implanted and realized that my husband did NOT want to have his quality of life impinged upon, even if it meant risking his death. We believed we were making the best decision in our particular situation. (To this day we still believe having had an AICD would have severely affected his quality of life due to his particular set of hobbies including amateur radio, broadcast journalism and public safety communications!!) If nothing else, no medical professional has been willing to answer the basic question "What will happen to someone with an AICD implanted in the case of an Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP)??" Instead, together, we decided IT IS TIME TO TAKE BACK CONTROL OF OUR HEALTH! A wonderful friend strongly encouraged I get a copy of Dr. Sinatra's books (she specifically mentioned Sinatra Solution) ASAP if I wanted to help my husband remain among the living. I ordered this book through Amazon that very night and it arrived 2-3 days later. THANK YOU AMAZON!! Possible heart transplant needed? AICD recommended? Likely dead in a few days?!?! NOT ANYMORE!!! Within SIX WEEKS after the local cardiologist gave us that fateful prognosis and that fateful ER situation, my husband was able to resume normal daily activities, walk 5 miles in a single day and still go shopping that evening. Within a few short weeks of beginning Sinatra's protocols as described in this book, overall he had more energy and vitality than he had experienced in the past 30 years. My husband made a remarkable recovery!! My husband's recovery is not a "miracle", it was a sensible recovery once the energy system of the human body is understood. We followed the protocols provided by Dr. Stephen Sinatra in this book, along with avoiding the "food chemicals" such as artificial food colors (FD&C Blue 1 has been casually linked to fatalities per the FDA's website), artificial sweeteners, bleached or enriched flour or commercial dough products which often contain brominated dough conditioners, white rice (brown rice is fine!), high fructose corn syrup, brominated vegetable oil, etc, along with a sensible exercise program. In Sinatra Solution, Dr. Sinatra reveals his "awesome foursome" of supplements as magnesium, l-carnitine, co-enzyme Q-10 and d-ribose which all affect the energy system at the cellular level. We also learned the value of "fish pills" (as our current cardiologist calls them) as an anti-arrhythmic - also mentioned in the protocols this book. (The most economical source I have found for d-ribose is here on Amazon... NutraBulk D-Ribose Powder ONE KILOGRAM ) The most significant revelation that I learned by watching an interview of Dr. Stephen Sinatra M.D. that is MISSING from this book is the fact that ATP is related to the oriental concept of chi/qi. As he further points out in this book, the heart muscle cells require the most ATP than any other cell in the body. Hence d-ribose supplementation is crucial for boosting the level of ATP (chi/qi) in the sick cardiac patient. As Sinatra points out, the body doesn't make enough ribose during times of stress, hence why the ATP (chi/qi) production drops off. Sinatra further explains that ribose production is a high energy demand system within the body, hence production in the body is shut down during times of high stress. I have since loaned out my personal copy of this book so many times that I now pick up extra copies to gift away to others. When my husband was hospitalized this year for an unrelated situation many of the hospital staff asked to borrow our copy of Sinatra Solution after hearing his story - kitchen staff, patient services, therapists, RNs, LPNs, even a medical doctor was intrigued to browse the book after hearing my husband's story (which was further validated by our current cardiologist.) I began following Sinatra's protocols as outlined in this book to maintain a healthy heart since my mother and many of my family members have suffered with and died from heart disease - sometimes at a relatively young age. Since implementing the supplements recommended by Dr. Sinatra I have gone from being hypertensive to routinely having a blood pressure of 106/68 and I am no longer on any prescription drugs whatsoever. I am still obese, but now I have abundant energy to be more active hence I, too, am regaining my own health. Thank you, Dr. Sinatra, you have helped us tremendously by sharing your candles of knowledge and experience! UPDATE FEBRUARY 2010: My husband recently celebrated his SECOND birthday since his untimely experience with DEATH at the hands of the medical team in Lake St. Louis, Missouri. Without learning of Dr. Sinatra's protocols as published in this book, these past 2 years would have been much different for us. Despite a serious blow with another illness (the doctors were stumped.. Lyme Disease? a polio-like encephalitis? or ? Perhaps the answer to this puzzle lurks in St. Charles?) my husband's ejection fraction has returned to close to the 50% range despite having previously been documented several times in the 15% to 20% range. 50% is in the NORMAL range - some would call it an AMAZING MIRACLE, we call it Metabolic Cardiology ;-) UPDATE MARCH 2011: Since this saga began my husband has suffered a fractured hip, a compression fractured spine and some sort of "unknown virulent virus" that left him suffering "unilateral partial paralysis" (hence the fractures). Fortunately thanks to Metabolic Cardiology my husband's heart was strong enough to endure these injuries, surgery for the fractured hip and countless months of rehab. Unfortunately with all these major medical setbacks and resultant severely compromised mobility issues his LVEF has fallen and he's been forced into disability due to the combination of the myriad medical situations. HOWEVER, he is still very much alive, enjoying life free of medical devices and has now entered his 4th year "since death." He credits his survival to Sinatra's protocols and has told countless (thousands) of people that there is no way he would still be alive today without having followed the basic protocols of Metabolic Cardiology. We cannot begin to give enough credit to the concept of Metabolic Cardiology as developed by Dr. Sinatra for having given us the priceless gift of YEARS together after TEAMS of cardiologists and electro-physiologists in the St. Louis Metropolitan area refused to provide information on ANY alternatives outside of having an AICD implanted. UPDATE APRIL 2012: We have now completed a full FOUR YEARS since the cardiologists and electro-physiologists near St. Louis informed me that I did not "understand it was a matter of life and death", that I did not "understand I was taking my husband home to die" and that "he will be dead within 2 weeks, probably a few days." I do NOT have a degree in medicine, I am NOT a medical professional. However, obviously we have learned the truth - there are other viable answers outside of pharmaceutical drugs, surgery and medical devices. He is not only still alive but living a relatively normal lifestyle despite other complicating factors. His employer eventually laid him off and told him to file for disability which was approved. He now has endured other medical issues completely unrelated to the initial heart issues which are now his most limiting physical conditions - a broken hip, a fractured back, partial paralysis stemming from an unknown virulent virus and most recently MRSA likely acquired while in the hospital for a serious burn / staph infected foot. However, without the Sinatra protocols, I am certain there is no way he would have lived through not one, not two, not three, but FOUR other serious medical issues that otherwise were life-threatening on their own accord. He is a real trooper and his story has inspired countless others to empower themselves to regain their own health. We have Dr. Stephen Sinatra and the Sinatra Solution to thank for our continued life together - there was ZERO hope for my husband to have a chance to live until a great friend led us to Sinatra's books. As we entered this 5th year of renewed life together we decided on some major life-changing events. Stay tuned... ;-) UPDATE JAN 2013: He celebrates a mile marker birthday very soon - SIXTY!!! The party is also in celebration of FIVE FULL YEARS of Healthy Life, AFTER the doctors gave up on him. So yes, anything is possible, no matter how "end stage" the situation has become! We continue to faithfully follow Sinatra's protocols as outlined herein, we also adapted them for our Senior German Shepherd who benefited immensely from Sinatra's protocols as he recovered from paralysis from a severe spinal cord injury and related surgery this past summer. He is currently recovering from some unknown illness that even we suspected may have been leading him over Rainbow Bridge, but alas, some Chinese herbal broths and plenty of Metabolic Cardiology and he's running around, wagging his tail and tossing his favorite ball in the air as I post this update! I have also been following a modified age management protocol for myself these past FIVE YEARS. Well last summer I endured an untreated Pulmonary Embolism for many weeks as doctors ran tests and puzzled over why some labs were still "normal" and questioned what I was enduring. Thanks Docs, I'll remember that... if someone tells you they are suffering from a PE, next time, BELIEVE THEM!! Apparently the protocols helped my heart to pump very strongly, very rapidly and very hard for quite a few weeks as the worst of the PE was endured. This experience has caused me to appreciate Metabolic Cardiology even more - although the PE ultimately affected my heart, I am sure my situation would have been far more grave had I not been supplementing wisely these past years.

I'm not sure why Amazon is carrying this book since it is geared more for the medical community. I am a retired Critical Care RN and I found some of the info to be over my head in spite of my training and education post graduation. That said, I have to say it is one of the most valuable books I've ever read. My husband has non-ischemic cardiomyopathy secondary to a viral infection. He's had some medical issues recently after a 7 yr benign course. All of his MDs have been amazed by his ability to carry on with his daily activities such as building a room on the house, bush-hogging acreage with his 40 HP tractor, taking care of 2 homes and a pecan orchard. He's never needed supplemental oxygen despite an ejection fraction of 20-25. I decided to have a look at what this doctor had to say. Most drugs given for this problem relate to the muscle function as a whole, not to the cellular function of the muscle tissue. This book addresses the cellular function. Those of you who took biology may remember the Krebs cycle as well as ATP and mitochondrial function. That's what this is all about. Bottom line is that Dr Sinatra recommends 4 supplements to improve cardiac health: CoEnzyme Q10, l-carnitine, magnesium and d-ribose. My husband had been on CoQ10 since 1991 for oral health (his dentist died. New dentist looked at old chart & thought he was looking at a different patient). He has also been taking magnesium for 15 yrs or so. Both of these contributed, I feel, to the fact that he functions at a higher level than would be expected for his ejection fraction (the % of blood pumped out thru the aorta from the left ventricle of the heart). Normal EF is 55-65%. If you know someone who has difficulty functioning because of heart disease, this would be a good book to read and try the supplements. They are all over the counter and do not react with any prescription meds that I have been able to discover. I mentioned this book to one of my husband's MDs (nephrologist) and he wrote down the name of it and asked the nurse to order a copy for the office. There are many references in the book to various studies and the journals they were reported in. I checked some of them and all were exactly as quoted. I bought the Kindle version because it was cheaper but plan on getting a hard copy for other members of my family to read since I'm NOT loaning out my much loved Kindle! UPDATE 4/22/16: I just found out from the nephrologist's office RN, a friend of mine, that he really did buy the book; read it and is now recommending the 4 supplements to all his pts who have cardiac disease. Since then I have purchased a complete set of the nutrients and had them sent to a close friend who also has cardiomyopathy from an MI. I will continue to make sure both hubby & friend stay on this combo as long as they are alive. Can't wait to see what Dec. scheduled ECHO will show on hubby. UPDATE 12/31/2016: Just got back from Houston where hubby had another ECHO done. Reading by same MD as in Feb 2016 shows an increase of his Ejection Fraction to 30%. Prior ECHOs had all been about the same as listed above. This is the first improvement since 2009 when he was diagnosed. The only real change was the addition of the 4 nutrients. All the rest of his meds have been maintenance for many years. All I can say is that after 52 yrs of marriage, I'm not letting him get out of this marriage if I can help it! LOL

A few years ago, I was hit with viral myocarditis which led to a case of dilated cardiomyopathy (a fancy name for congestive heart failure). As a former athlete in his fifties who had always stayed in pretty good shape, and who stayed quite active engaging in backpacking & other vigorous activities, I found this to be a particularly demoralizing situation. My ejection fraction was at 30%, and my cardiologist recommended a pacemaker if I could not rebound. As someone with great familiarity with biochemistry and physiology (a degree in microbiology), I went to work researching my situation. I was not an expert on cardiac cells, but my research found results in that the cardiac tissue in cases like mine were starving for some of the building blocks of a cellular process known as oxidative phosphorylation. The 3 ingredients that seemed to be most needed were coenzyme Q, L-carnitine, and ribose, along with magnesium (a mineral essential for many different enzymes & coenzymes involved in energy metabolism). I immediately began taking dietary supplements involving the aforementioned ingredients. About this time I heard of Sinatra's book about metabolic cardiology. (At the time it was not as well known as it is now). I purchased the book and studied it voraciously. I found that he had written a very informative book on the role of these supplements in the metabolism of the heart, and explained clearly why a heart that was in a state of dilative cardiomyopathy would need dietary supplementation. It was written in a style that a layman would be able to understand, but he gave the biochemistry and physiology background well enough to satisfy those at a higher level of understanding (like those with a scientific degree such as myself). One of the points he made in his book was how the medical establishment pooh poohed the concept of dietary supplementation to help those with congestive heart failure. Yet the proof was in the pudding- his patients who took the supplements seemed to do better and had better survival rates than those who did not. I can back him up on his claim. My cardiologist never once mentioned any kind of dietary supplementation to me- he was strictly drugs & surgery (pacemaker). Well, I must say, I was not cured overnight, but over a period of a couple of years, I made a full (and I mean full) recovery and I remain healthy to this day. My ejection fraction is normal, and I have no restrictions on exercising or activity. I could tell my cardiologist was quite amazed at how everything turned out. But he didn't realize I had another cardiologist in my corner- Steven Sinatra. If you or a loved one are having heart problems, read this book and follow it's recommendations. I still take the supplements he recommended to this day. And he may have very well saved my life. God bless Dr. Sinatra.

I liked this book and think it worth reading. It gives a good outline of the biochemistry of energy production in the heart and muscles. I see people fairly often who are (to my untrained eye) suffering under statin medication and who could do with reading this book. Some of its recommendations I already follow (like taking COq-10 and Magnesium) and I am trying l-Carnitine and ribose because I have an enduring problem of getting really fit. So perhaps its a deficit of these two compounds rather than over training. But I can't really give the book five stars because the "awesome foursome" (COq-10, magnesium, ribose and l-Carnitine) should really be supplemented with Vitamin D which most people are deficient in.

I was diagnsed with hypertension, an enlarged heart, had an abnormal stress test, and an ejection fraction of 39%. I had constant chest pain and fatigue, and 7 months later I went to the ER with a rapid pulse, extreme hypertension, and extreme chest pain. I stayed in ICU for 4 days, conscious, while my cardiologist figured out with surgical exploration that my right coronary artery was completely blocked and that unblocking it would only cause it to become blocked again in short time. At home I fell into a suicidal depression due to fatigue and listlessness and zero energy. In Dr Sinatra's book this circumstance is explained in full-how, after any major heart infarction, the heart requires at least 2 weeks or more to restore its energy reserves. I would not have known that had I not read it in his book. I had no energy to walk my dog but I had just enough to get out of bed and to the computer to do research about my heart condition. In doing so I found Dr Sinatra's protocol BEFORE I found his book, and had a friend do the shopping for the supplements (most or all can be found in vitamin and health food stores or online) and went on them immediately. Within 4 days my chest pain had substantially abated, and I had enough energy to get my dog up and down my inclined street. I met friends for brunch that Sunday and they were amazed at how I looked and felt to them. THE SINATRA SOLUTION, the book, arrived, 2 days later and I read it cover to cover in one day and corrected the protocol according to Dr. Sinatra's writing. My own cardiologist has read this book, and heartily approves of his recommendations as well their effect on her patient, me. I am forever appreciative of having found Dr. Sinatra's book. I have FAR more energy, clarity of mind, focus, and FAR less pain than before-but be forewarned-if you slept through biology and chemistry class in high school this book will be some tough reading. Luckily the Dr. does summarize his findings in several chapters, and he does have a website where he sells branded versions of the recommended supplements (haven't bought his versions yet....all the stuff can be found for cheaper elsewhere on the net). If you care about your quality of life after a diagnosis with heart disease, you will do everything you can to get Dr. Sinatra's book and read it-cover to cover. His recommendations will make your life with heart disease worth living again.

I have nothing new to add to the 5-star reviews. My recovery is similar and ongoing. I heartily (pun intended) endorese this book. What I wanted to mention is if the curious reader wants more detailed info, heshe can go to youtube and search for "Metabolic Cardiology" you will find Dr Sinatra explaining in detail his program along with potential side effects of Thyroid issues and TMAO presence with Carnitine. Worth a look to see and hear it from the source.

I had a serious heart attack in 1996, at age 38. Now 27 years later I am still strong. I am a lifelong runner. I have followed Dr. Sinatra protocol for about 12 to 15 years. My ejection fraction is still about 35% (same for about 18 years), but I run about 4 miles three times a week, at about a 12 minute pace. I am 66 years old, and am a retired house painter. I have good energy, and perform much better than heart failure patients. Dr. Sinatra protocol has helped me maintain energy and performance. I am doing cardiac rehab now, and the people there cannot believe I run 4 plus miles on the treadmill. No one else in cardiac rehab can run at all. My review from about 11 years ago is below. I had a heart attack in 1996, and slowly over 11 years my ejection fraction decreased from 60% to about 30% (about half of what it should be), and my resting heart has slowed from a lifelong 48 bpm down to 30 bpm given the medications that I am on. I have followed Dr. Sinatra's recommendation for the awesome foursome in this book for about 2.5 years, and can say that despite my low ejection fraction i can do significant exercise. I ran 4.2 miles this morning at a 9 minute pace, (I am a life long runner) and i continue in my profession as a painter, climbing ladders and carrying equipment. The guys who work for me still do not believe that I have heart problems. I believe Dr. Sinatra's protocols have helped me, but i cannot claim that my ejection fraction has improved. But i do have enough energy to work all day. I am a 55 years old man. The supplements are not cheap I spend about $300 to $400 a month, which includes some other supplements. I do believe I have more energy by staying on Dr. Sinatra's protocol. My cardiologist seems ignorant about 90% of the methods of Dr. Sinatra.

Although this book was a a little older, I found it extremely helpful. As a functional medicine health coach and now wife to a heart attack survivor, this book was extremely useful. My husband has been using the “awesome foursome” in addition to medication prescribed by his cardiologist and feels a definite boast in energy as well as overall sense of well-being. I have also begun implementing many of Dr Sinatra’s suggestions with my health coaching clients and have seen impressive results. -Amy H