Approximately 86 million Americans have some form of heart disease and millions more are close to getting heart disease.

This is one of the reasons why many people are looking to dietary supplements like L-arginine and L-citrulline for heart health. This amino acids offer hope when most people think the only option for prevention and support is through medication.

Of course, it’s critical to follow your doctor through any treatment. But it’s also important to understand how you can get additional support when it comes to the health of your heart.

What Do Amino Acids Have to Do With Heart Health?

Amino acids work in many ways to support functions within the body. The amino acids l-arginine and l-citrulline uniquely support the health of the heart by increasing the molecule nitric oxide. And both l-arginine and l-citrulline work in their own way to increase nitric oxide levels.

What is L-arginine?

Arginine, also known as L-arginine, is an amino acid that helps the body build protein. L-arginine is found in red meat, poultry, fish, whole grains, beans, dairy products, nuts and soy. One of the biggest benefits of L-arginine is its ability to improve blood flow and circulation because it is converted into nitric oxide (NO), which is a vasodilator that causes blood vessels to open wider. Consequently, nitric oxide improves circulation. When people don’t have enough NO in their arteries, their risk for heart disease is higher. Nitric oxide also keeps blood pressure within a normal range by signaling blood vessel muscles to relax, expand and let blood through, while also preventing clots and plaque from forming.

Heart health benefits of L-arginine are:

• Improves circulation by promoting better blood flow
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Fights coronary artery disease
• Helps with chest pain or angina by preventing blood clots
• Lowers inflammation and high cholesterol
• Improves blood vessel health
• Enhances athletic performance and endurance
• Aids in erectile dysfunction

What is L-citrulline?

Citrulline, also known as L-citrulline, is a non-essential amino acid that was first found in watermelon. Other foods that contain citrulline are pumpkins, cucumbers, and gourds. It is nonessential because the body naturally produces it. After citrulline is consumed, some of it is converted into arginine, which is another amino acid mentioned above that is converted into nitric oxide.

Some heart health benefits of L-citrulline are:

• Helps to widen blood vessels thus improving blood pressure and blood flow
• Decreases blood pressure, especially in people with high blood pressure
• Reverses erectile dysfunction via increase of blood flow
• Improves oxygen usage in muscle tissue to enhance exercise performance and endurance

Taken together, L-arginine and L-citrulline supplementation is a safe means of providing the body arginine. This dynamic combination can increase the natural production of nitric oxide for better general heart health, reduce your chances of having a heart attack or stroke, increase endurance during exercise and enhance your love life, all without the potential side effects of pharmaceutical drugs.

Note: if you are currently taking a blood pressure drug, other heart medication, or Viagra, please talk to your doctor before using L-arginine or L-citrulline.

Discover the best heart health supplements available with l-arginine and l-citrulline