A cardiologist is urging Americans to take a closer look at their heart health — and to have more informed conversations with their doctors — after a new study revealed significant gaps in public awareness about cardiovascular disease risk.
Dr. Tania Elliott joined Inside South Florida to discuss Coenzyme Q10, its connection to statin medications, and practical steps anyone can take to protect their heart.
What is CoQ10?
Coenzyme Q10 is a compound the body needs to produce energy in muscles. The heart, which is itself a muscle, contains the highest concentration of Coenzyme Q10 in the body.
"Most people think their heart's an organ. But no, it's a muscle. It needs to pump. It needs to be super strong, and Coenzyme Q10 is essential for that," Elliott said.
CoQ10 levels naturally decline with age. They also drop in people who take statins — a widely prescribed class of medication used to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease.
"Statins are super important at lowering high cholesterol levels and reducing risk for heart disease, but an inadvertent consequence is it also lowers CoQ10 levels, and lots of people don't realize that, so that's an important thing to discuss with your doctor," Elliott said.
What the study found
Doctor's Best, a supplement brand, recently conducted a study examining Americans' knowledge of their heart disease risk. The results were striking.
"60% of the survey respondents didn't even know their risk for heart disease, which is fascinating to me and concerning, because it is the number one killer of Americans, and one person dies every 34 seconds from a heart disease-related complication or a heart attack," Elliott said.
The study also found that 50% of Gen Zers — people under the age of 30 — expressed concern about their heart health, with stress cited as the number one risk factor. High stress levels were associated with fatigue and generally not feeling well.
"17% of those Gen Zers who responded to the study were on a statin. So these are people under the age of 30 that are being treated aggressively to lower their cholesterol levels. So you know what? They have a right to be concerned," Elliott said.
Elliott noted that very few survey respondents were aware of the connection between statin use and reduced CoQ10 levels.
Steps to protect your heart
Elliott outlined several steps people can take to reduce their cardiovascular disease risk.
The first is understanding your personal risk level.
"First things first is awareness, right? And understanding, what's my risk stratification? Like, am I very high risk? Am I low risk? Am I somewhere in the middle? And then that can help determine the best therapy," Elliott said.
She encouraged patients to ask their doctors about testing options beyond standard cholesterol checks, diabetes screenings, and blood pressure readings, noting that additional blood tests and imaging studies can provide a clearer picture of cardiovascular risk.
Elliott also stressed the importance of discussing CoQ10 with a doctor, particularly for those on statins.
"One of the most common side effects of being on a statin is muscle aches and pains, right? And so being on Coenzyme Q10 can help with those muscle aches and pains, as can reducing the dosage of the statin. So if you're experiencing side effects, again, have that conversation with your doctor," she said.
Finally, Elliott pointed to the value of physical activity, strength training, healthy eating — and doing all of it alongside others.
"The biggest thing that I'm concerned about is social isolation and loneliness, because that's an independent risk factor for mortality. So use this as an opportunity to take a walk after meals with friends. Do a healthy eating challenge potluck with your friends. Do a strength training class with your friends, right? Do it within the context of community. I think we'll see better outcomes," Elliott said.
For more information, visit doctorsbest.com.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
