Which one is better, Coenzyme Q10 or Wenxin Granules, to prevent heart disease?

Which one is better, Coenzyme Q10 or Wenxin Granules, for the prevention of heart disease? The answer is that there is no absolute distinction between good and bad. The applicable scenarios of the two are completely different, and there is no way to compare them horizontally: Coenzyme Q10 is more suitable for high-risk groups without obvious symptoms for daily myocardial maintenance. Wenxin Granules are medicines and are only suitable for people with clear signs of Qi and Yin deficiency and premature heart palpitations to be used as directed by the doctor. They cannot be confused at all.

Not long ago, when I was helping teachers sort out cases in the cardiology clinic, I met a 52-year-old state-owned enterprise administrator, Uncle Zhang, who stayed up late all night writing materials. His physical examination revealed that he had sinus arrhythmia. I heard from an old colleague that Wenxin Granules protect the heart, so I went to the drugstore and bought two boxes of them and drank them for less than half a month. I felt chest tightness and nausea. When I came for a follow-up examination, the teacher felt my pulse and said that he had a phlegm-damp constitution, a thick and greasy tongue coating, and often had unformed stools. This was not a symptom of Wenxin Granules at all. The discomfort disappeared within a week after stopping the medicine. Not only did he earn hundreds of dollars in vain, but he suffered for nothing.

Many people's impression of Coenzyme Q10 is that it is an Internet celebrity heart-protecting health care product. In fact, our human body's cardiomyocytes can synthesize this thing itself. To put it bluntly, it is a "power bank" that supplies energy for myocardial contraction. After the age of 25, the synthesis amount decreases year by year. If you stay up late all year round and take statin-type lipid-lowering drugs, the synthesis amount will decrease faster. At present, the attitude of the academic community towards it is not completely unified. Some cardiovascular guidelines in Europe and the United States believe that regular supplementation for healthy people has little benefit. However, many domestic clinical studies have shown that people with high cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes should supplement 100 mg per day. Medicinal coenzyme Q10 can indeed reduce myocardial oxygen consumption and reduce the hidden damage to myocardium caused by long-term high blood lipids. It is no problem to use it for daily prevention. As long as you don’t buy the kind of imported IQ tax that costs thousands, a regular OTC bottle costs tens of yuan to last for two months, and it is very cost-effective.

As for Wenxin Granules, which many people compare with Coenzyme Q10, in fact, the two are not on the same track at all, and there is no comparison. Wenxin Granules is a Chinese patent medicine that has been on the market for almost 30 years. It is a Category A over-the-counter drug approved by the State Council. The ingredients in the formula, such as Codonopsis pilosula, Polygonatum sibiricum, and Panax notoginseng, are targeted at the situation of "deficiency of Qi and Yin and stasis of the heart and pulse" in traditional Chinese medicine. Simply put, it is for you I usually feel palpitation, shortness of breath, and fatigue. I occasionally have a tingling sensation in my chest. My pulse often fluctuates quickly and slowly or even skips a beat. I went for a dynamic electrocardiogram and found out that I had premature atrial and ventricular contractions. The improvement effect of drinking it according to the doctor's advice is very clear. Of course, there are also controversies. Many Western medicine colleagues feel that its evidence-based medicine evidence is not sufficient. However, after so many years of clinical use, many patients with functional premature beats do not want to take anti-arrhythmic Western medicine. Drinking Wenxin Granules can indeed relieve symptoms. This is also solid clinical feedback. But I have to mention that it is medicine after all. If you don’t have corresponding symptoms or your heart rate is slow, you may have problems after drinking it, just like Uncle Zhang mentioned earlier.

If you really have to worry about which one to choose for prevention, it really depends on your own situation: if you don’t have any obvious discomfort, but you are over 40, have high-risk factors such as smoking, staying up late, or having high blood lipids, or there is a family history of coronary heart disease in your family, and you want to do daily maintenance, then Coenzyme Q10 is enough. It is mild and has no side effects, and you don’t need to eat too much. But if you have frequent palpitation and premature beats, and seeking a pulse from a Chinese medicine doctor is also consistent with the indications of Qi and Yin deficiency, then drinking Wenxin Granules as directed by the doctor will be more symptomatic and much more useful than taking a bunch of health supplements.

I also met a 27-year-old Internet girl who occasionally felt flustered after staying up late for a week, so she stocked up a bunch of Wenxin granules to drink as "heart-protecting tea" at home. In fact, she had sympathetic nerve excitement caused by disordered work and rest. She adjusted her work and rest for a week and took half an hour to run every day. The flustered condition disappeared on its own, and she didn't need to take medicine at all. There are also many people who regard Coenzyme Q10 as a "heart-protecting drug" and continue to stay up late and eat and drink after taking it. It is really a waste of money. The prevention of heart disease has always been a systematic project. Work, rest, diet, and exercise are the root. Supplements or drugs are just icing on the cake and cannot completely eliminate your unhealthy life.

In short, there is really no need to worry about which one of the two is better. The one that suits your situation is the right one. If you are not sure, don't buy blindly from online posts. Calling a regular cardiologist and asking the doctor is more reliable than searching for a long time for popular science. After all, when it comes to protecting the heart, safety is the first priority.