L-carnitine reduces the risk of death by 27% in heart attack victims

This paper was published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings 2013 Apr 15. pii: S0025-6196(13)00127-4

 

Study title and authors:

L-Carnitine in the Secondary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Dinicolantonio JJ, Lavie CJ, Fares H, Menezes AR, O'Keefe JH.

Wegmans Pharmacy, Ithaca, NY. Electronic address: jjdinicol@gmail.com.

 

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23597877

This paper evaluated the effects of L-carnitine compared with placebo or control subjects on heart health and death rates in patients who had had a heart attack. The paper was a  meta-analysis of 13 controlled trials which included 3,629 subjects.

The analysis found:
(a) Compared with placebo or control subjects, L-carnitine was associated with a 27% reduction in all-cause death rates.
(b) Compared with placebo or control subjects, L-carnitine was associated with a 65% reduction in ventricular arrhythmias (life threatening abnormal rapid heart rhythms).
(c) Compared with placebo or control subjects, L-carnitine was associated with a 40% reduction in the development of angina.
(d) Compared with placebo or control subjects, L-carnitine was associated with a 15% reduction in heart failure.
(e) Compared with placebo or control subjects, L-carnitine was associated with a 22% reduction in myocardial reinfarction (recurrence of heart attack).

This study reveals that L-carnitine is associated with a reduction in death rates in heart attack victims.

The richest food sources of L-carnitine are beef, lamb and pork (beef contains 81 mg per serving). Foods of plant origin have little or no L-carnitine, (avocados are one of the highest at 2 mg per serving).