Heart Palpitations

[nathan]

I'm just now getting around to reading American Pilgrim and I see @Roosh spending quite a bit of time talking about heart palpitations. They sound like premature atrial or ventricular contractions (PAC/PVC), which are generally benign in 99% of cases but can really pack a punch. I've had a lengthy history with them myself, and I want to see if anyone else here has any notes for combating them, as well as share my notes. Supposedly every single person gets them but for various reasons, not everyone can feel them. And some people get almost none, while some people get a very large number.

The one supplement or medicine I have tried that worked and was almost surely not placebo, was magnesium taurate (specifically this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GFB6S92/ref=dp_iou_view_item). I have a tendency to get PACs/PVCs in spells, and in the middle of one of these spells, upon taking this supplement (I actually only take half a pill), I reduced the PACs by about 75% and the reduction continued as long as I took the supplement.

Mine seem gut-related and I have concluded that it is almost certainly in my case caused by vagus nerve irritation, because I can get them when bending a weird way or when having acid reflux (on that note, Tums can sometimes quiet them).

Another thing I have noticed is breathing in moist, warm air can help, like if you run the shower on high heat for a while and then just breathe in the air.

Sometimes I will get a few in quick succession, which I believe is a well known phenomenon called bigeminy (or trigeminy if there are 3).

One other note is that when I first began to get them, they would sometimes cause my heart rate to increase to around 150-200 or so I estimated, which I understand can happen. But after the first few times this happened, it hasn't happened since. The cardiologist assured me that this too was benign as long as it doesn't last too long (when this happened, it would last for a few minutes). By "too long" he meant like a day and he told me if it ever lasted that long then they could give you something to calm it down. But I also wonder if those first few times it was the result of adrenaline, although thinking back I tend to think not.

I have been assured that these PACs are benign, but they are still annoying.

 

[Blade Runner]

I noticed this happened occasionally to me in the last year (and don't recall it ever happening week to week or month to month before in my life). I take Mg too, so thanks for the supplement advice. I wouldn't be surprised if all of this stuff originates in the gut as I have recently seen on the board here and is a general medical suggestion for all the neurotransmitter and electrolyte or mineral issues. At first I thought it might be due to excessive partying/drinking and dehydration but it doesn't seem quite as linked ... interesting thread.

 

[Thomas More]

I'm glad to know these are considered generally benign. I have them every once in a great while, and they are certainly unnerving. I usually take some deep breaths, and that seems to stop the palpitations. I also try to calm myself mentally, since I assume the palpitations are an instance of my stress manifesting itself with physical symptoms.

 

[tailoredcarnivore]

simple fix: eat more meat and less of everything else. Don't believe it's that simple? Try 30 days of carnivorous eating and see if you don't realize things you never thought could be tied to diet, or a lack of proper one, aren't exactly bc of that.

 

[Roosh]

In about one week I post a big article on how I managed my heart palpitation issue. Like you, I discovered there was a gastric link.

 

[Tex Cruise]

My Grandfather had heart palpitations primarily brought on by stress and hard physical labour all through his life. He was never able to play sport or do hard physical jobs and lived most of his life as an unwell man, though he worked as hard as he could.
He was probably in his late sixties or early seventies when somebody suggested cutting dairy from his diet, which he did, and the palptiations were gone altogether. His heart continued to tick along fine until it eventually ran out of steam aged 91.
He said to me some time in his eighties. "The whole time I was lactose intolerant and I never knew. I would've had a very different life if I had known that 50 years ago"

 

[Sargon2112]

vagus nerve irritation

I've had short episodes (a few seconds worth) of palpations, on and off, since my 20s. Certain sitting positions trigger them, as mentioned in Nathan's post relating to the vagus nerve. Another guaranteed trigger for me is a high dose of caffeine. The one time I drank coffee with expresso, I wondered if I was having a heart attack about 6 hours later, as it woke me up that night. To say it was unnerving is an understatement. I was in my 30s at the time. I had to get up and walk around for a while to calm them down. I've been very active and healthy all my life, having never smoked and I can count the alcoholic drinks I've had on one hand, but as I am now 45, they cause a little more concern.

He was probably in his late sixties or early seventies when somebody suggested cutting dairy from his diet, which he did, and the palptiations were gone altogether. His heart continued to tick along fine until it eventually ran out of steam aged 91.

I'll be dropping dairy products to see if that helps.

My mother has lived with similar palpations for 77 years now, so I'm sure there's a genetic predisposition as well.

 

[BasilSeal]

In one of the threads I participate in frequently, either on fasting or supplementation vs. medication, I mention coming off the beta blocker metoprolol which I was taking to eliminate PVCs which I had had for my entire life but got bad enough to keep me up at nights and seeing a cardiologist in my mid-40s.

Coming off of metoprolol is a slow process but in the month or more since I took my last fractional doses, I have not had any issues with PVCs (palpitations). I suspect that, like many things, the combination of low carbs, intermittent fasting, and reduced stress were the chief factors leading to this positive result, for me. Metoprolol was effective in eliminating PVCs. However, for a host of reasons, is not a medication I would recommend if you can resolve the issues naturally or in other ways.

- Basil

 

[nathan]

In one of the threads I participate in frequently, either on fasting or supplementation vs. medication, I mention coming off the beta blocker metoprolol which I was taking to eliminate PVCs which I had had for my entire life but got bad enough to keep me up at nights and seeing a cardiologist in my mid-40s.

Coming off of metoprolol is a slow process but in the month or more since I took my last fractional doses, I have not had any issues with PVCs (palpitations). I suspect that, like many things, the combination of low carbs, intermittent fasting, and reduced stress were the chief factors leading to this positive result, for me. Metoprolol was effective in eliminating PVCs. However, for a host of reasons, is not a medication I would recommend if you can resolve the issues naturally or in other ways.

- Basil

I tried a beta blocker at one point and it seemed to make them worse. But I discovered the magnesium supplement during that time, so I quit the beta blocker

 

[nathan]

My Grandfather had heart palpitations primarily brought on by stress and hard physical labour all through his life. He was never able to play sport or do hard physical jobs and lived most of his life as an unwell man, though he worked as hard as he could.
He was probably in his late sixties or early seventies when somebody suggested cutting dairy from his diet, which he did, and the palptiations were gone altogether. His heart continued to tick along fine until it eventually ran out of steam aged 91.
He said to me some time in his eighties. "The whole time I was lactose intolerant and I never knew. I would've had a very different life if I had known that 50 years ago"

Interesting, because I am scheduled to do a food elimination challenge shortly because I suspect I may have an intolerance to cow's milk or wheat. So not technically lactose or gluten. I have been talking with a nutritionist who has countless examples of people going their entire lives (until doing the elimination diet) eating something common that causes their body to produce almost constant low grade inflammation. The main cuplrits are: cow's milk, wheat, corn, and the nightshade family of vegetables.

The very first questions were whether or not as a child I had my tonsils removed, and did I have a lot of ear infections and fall allergies. In my case the answers were all resounding yeses, and I also took a food sensitivity test (which supposedly gives questionable results but can be used as a starting point), and signs are pointing to possibly having some sort of food intolerance, possibly to multiple foods.

I'll try to remember to post here if I successfully complete the altered diet. In the past when I have radically altered my diet, it has quickly started to cause problems, so I'm hoping I can get through the whole thing. You're supposed to just substitute all of the food groups, wheat -> spelt, cow's milk -> goat/sheep milk, nightshades -> other vegetables, corn -> just avoid for a month.

 

[nathan]

simple fix: eat more meat and less of everything else. Don't believe it's that simple? Try 30 days of carnivorous eating and see if you don't realize things you never thought could be tied to diet, or a lack of proper one, aren't exactly bc of that.

Oh I believe it could be that simple. Unfortunately I am not cut out for the carnivore diet. I tried cutting carbs and it was disastrous. I actually have a friend in real life who is a carnivore influencer, and he swears by it. Maybe it works for him, but he also has to supplement to get all of the nutrients he needs.

 

[nathan]

I'm glad to know these are considered generally benign. I have them every once in a great while, and they are certainly unnerving. I usually take some deep breaths, and that seems to stop the palpitations. I also try to calm myself mentally, since I assume the palpitations are an instance of my stress manifesting itself with physical symptoms.

I have noticed an occasional link to stress, but usually for me, stress just produces tachycardia. For me, it seems like the common triggers are:

1) Stomach irritation (the most common trigger)
2) Positional (i.e. when bending a certain way or sitting in a certain chair that presses my back a certain way)
3) Sharp breaths (I'm guessing that I expand the lungs and they or some other muscle bumps into the vagus nerve)
4) Cold air
5) Certain viruses or infections

 

[NickK]

I was food poisoned last week.
I'm recovered now , but I noticed that for a few days after the poisoning, when I layed down a portion of my dinner was trying to leave my stomach and I got a sour taste in my mouth. This was accompanied by sudden heart palpitations and increased heart rate. That lasted for a few days after the food poisoning. I think my diaphragm was injured during vomitting and for a few days it couldn't do its job of keeping the stomach completely sealed.

 

[Thomas More]

I have noticed an occasional link to stress, but usually for me, stress just produces tachycardia. For me, it seems like the common triggers are:

1) Stomach irritation (the most common trigger)
2) Positional (i.e. when bending a certain way or sitting in a certain chair that presses my back a certain way)
3) Sharp breaths (I'm guessing that I expand the lungs and they or some other muscle bumps into the vagus nerve)
4) Cold air
5) Certain viruses or infections

This thread is not turning out the way I expected!


I always thought palpitations were related to stress, and never would have guessed it was related to food.

I haven't had a big problem with palpitations, but I've definitely had them, and worried about it. I will watch next time to see how my recent food intake relates to the palpitations. Now that I have found out about this connection, I can see how this would be true.

 

[Papist]

I'm glad to know these are considered generally benign. I have them every once in a great while, and they are certainly unnerving. I usually take some deep breaths, and that seems to stop the palpitations. I also try to calm myself mentally, since I assume the palpitations are an instance of my stress manifesting itself with physical symptoms.

They are. I have had them and they can be very, very frightening. They usually pass quite quickly.

I've had short episodes (a few seconds worth) of palpations, on and off, since my 20s. Certain sitting positions trigger them, as mentioned in Nathan's post relating to the vagus nerve. Another guaranteed trigger for me is a high dose of caffeine. The one time I drank coffee with expresso, I wondered if I was having a heart attack about 6 hours later, as it woke me up that night. To say it was unnerving is an understatement. I was in my 30s at the time. I had to get up and walk around for a while to calm them down. I've been very active and healthy all my life, having never smoked and I can count the alcoholic drinks I've had on one hand, but as I am now 45, they cause a little more concern.



I'll be dropping dairy products to see if that helps.

My mother has lived with similar palpations for 77 years now, so I'm sure there's a genetic predisposition as well.

I concur. I have found the causes to be the following:

1) Caffeine.
2) Alcohol and/or nicotine - indulging too much in those can induce an attack.
3) Lack of sleep.
4) Stress/anxiety.

 

[Tom Slick]

Kind of a longshot, but an easy one to eliminate for two or three days for a test, and that's garlic. I know its pop-medicine reputation is solely beneficial, but I have met a few people here and there who were sensitive to it and even just using a shaker of it as a seasoning caused subtle palpitations because they used too much daily, and it sort of agitated their heart/mind, as well as prevented them from having a normal sense of calm.

 

[Maddox]

I was food poisoned last week.
I'm recovered now , but I noticed that for a few days after the poisoning, when I layed down a portion of my dinner was trying to leave my stomach and I got a sour taste in my mouth. This was accompanied by sudden heart palpitations and increased heart rate. That lasted for a few days after the food poisoning. I think my diaphragm was injured during vomitting and for a few days it couldn't do its job of keeping the stomach completely sealed.

I read something recently about food poisoning that might explain my own food sensitivity issues. Apparently, having just one bad case of this can really wreck your gut and leave you prone to leaky gut syndrome which then results in food sensitivities. I started taking probiotics lately to help repair the gut and fix the problem. It really sucks not being able to eat all the foods you love.

By the way, heart palps can also be a result of your adrenal glands not functioning properly. Naturopaths call this adrenal fatigue. The more you tax your adrenals through stress, anger, and yes...even food sensitivities, the more likely you are to suffer from things like heart palpitations.

 

[William Faulkner]

Kind of a longshot, but an easy one to eliminate for two or three days for a test, and that's garlic. I know its pop-medicine reputation is solely beneficial, but I have met a few people here and there who were sensitive to it and even just using a shaker of it as a seasoning caused subtle palpitations because they used too much daily, and it sort of agitated their heart/mind, as well as prevented them from having a normal sense of calm.

Interesting, I actually know a health fanatic that chews raw garlic. Apparently it has a number of medicinal properties according to him.

 

[Tom Slick]

Interesting, I actually know a health fanatic that chews raw garlic. Apparently it has a number of medicinal properties according to him.

It does have benefits, but it's sort of a "strong medicine" as far as herbs go from my limited experience, and some people def. can't eat it every day like that.

 

[Blade Runner]

Interesting, I actually know a health fanatic that chews raw garlic. Apparently it has a number of medicinal properties according to him.

I do occasionally. Stomach irritant though.

I agree with the above that the stomach and intestines/gut axis is the origin of many of these bodily issues. I think it even weighs in on seasonal affective/mood and levels of anxiety or depression since it's such a huge center of neurotransmitter production, balance, etc.