How Nitric Oxide Effects the Four Essential Body Processes

There are four essential processes that function in your body and they can work in either a positive or negative way. These processes are vascular tone, coagulation, inflammation, and oxidation. Nitric oxide therapy can often make the difference on whether each of these processes can be beneficial or not.

Vascular Tone: This is the ability or your arteries and blood vessels to expand or contract with each beat of your heart. If you have high blood pressure it means your arteries are constricted or you have other blockages. This also limits your natural production of nitric oxide and ultimately this could result in a heart attack or stroke. By supplementing your diet with nitric oxide (NO) you help promote the flexibility and vascular tone resulting in lower blood pressure.

Coagulation: In normal circumstances coagulation or clotting is an essential body function. If you cut yourself the clotting function causes blood platelets to stick together and stop the bleeding. The negative side to coagulation occurs when your blood vessel walls have been damaged perhaps due to the accumulation of plaque. Blood platelets will begin to accumulate at this spot as they would with any injury. The problem occurs when these platelets break loose and cause a blockage down stream where the blood vessel is narrower. This can cause a stroke or heart attack.

Nitric oxide helps the blood flow freely throughout the arteries and vessels keeping them clean and free of debris. It also helps breakup plaque and platelets preventing the formation of clots.

Inflammation: This is a process that can take many years to develop and over time will cause atherosclerosis which is the accumulation of plaque on the walls of the arteries. On the positive side, inflammation is the way your body fights infections, however, when inflammation is chronic and involves the arteries this can create conditions like atherosclerosis.

Here’s why sufficient levels of nitric oxide is vital in preventing arteriosclerosis. If the cells on the inner surface of your blood vessels are damaged this allows other types of cells to imbed themselves in the smooth muscle layer of the vessel. These cells release chemicals creating plaque which eventually will restrict blood flow. As the amount of plaque increases it can become brittle and break off. These pieces can create a logjam in the arteries of the brain and heart causing a stroke or heart attack. Nitric oxide therapy can help prevent the buildup of plaque and reduce the likelihood of a life threatening cardiovascular event.

Oxidation: Oxygen, of course, is essential for life itself, however, when the body uses oxygen, it creates by products from the oxidation process which can be either beneficial or harmful. Without oxidation our cells would not be able to burn glucose giving us energy.
On the downside when oxidation occurs it produces byproducts called free radicals. These free radicals cause problems by neutralizing nitric oxide. This, in turn, can contribute to cardiovascular disease and the aging process.

Nitric oxide can lower the effect of oxidative stress that contributes to cardiovascular disease. However, its effectiveness can be reduced by the presence of free radicals in the body. Antioxidants will hunt down and destroy these free radicals keeping them from neutralizing nitric oxide.