Amino acid:  A biochemical building block that is connected in chains to form proteins. It consists of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen.  Some amino acids contain also sulfur.

Angina pectoris:  A condition of the heart marked by sharp chest pains and a feeling of being suffocated.  It is usually a symptom of coronary heart disease brought about by a diminished supply of blood to the heart muscle.

Angiographic:  Of or having to do with angiography.

Angiography:  Injection of a contrast agent into the blood vessels and following X-ray examination of the blood vessels.

Anti-coagulative:  Preventing blood clotting.

Antioxidant: Any substance that prevents oxidation by scavenging oxygen or other aggressive agents.

Anti-oxidative: Preventing oxidation and thus damage through oxidation.

Arrhythmia: An irregular heartbeat.

Arterial: Of or having to do with an artery or arteries.

Arteriosclerosis: A progressive thickening and hardening of the walls of the arteries causing a decrease or loss of circulation.

Arteriosclerotic deposits: Arteriosclerotic plaques.

Arteriosclerotic plaques: Swellings within the artery walls which narrow the artery and thus restrict the blood flow. The swellings are composed of deposited fibrin, lipoprotein(a), calcium, and arterial muscle cells.

Artery: Arteries are the tubes through which all parts of the body are supplied with fresh blood containing oxygen and vital nutrients.

Ascorbic acid: Vitamin C.

Balloon catheter angioplasty: An artificial widening of an artery from its inside by means of a tube with an expandable balloon.

Biochemical: Of or having to do with biochemistry.

Biochemistry: The chemistry of living organisms.

Biosynthesis: The formation of a compound by the chemical union of simpler compounds in a living organism, for example the formation of a protein by the chemical union of amino acids.

Blood vessel: The blood tubes, either supplying blood loaded with oxygen and nutrients to the cells throughout the body (arteries), or returning unloaded blood to the heart and to the lungs (veins).

Bypass surgery: Bridging a narrowed or blocked part of a heart artery by inserting a piece of vein cut out of one leg. These added pieces will themselves frequently become narrowed or blocked after some time as arteriosclerosis develops also in these veins.

Capillary: Any of the smallest blood tubes in the body with a very slender, hairlike opening.

Carbohydrate: Sugar and starch are carbohydrates.  Potatoes, wheat, rice, and corn contain much starch.

Cardiac: Of or having to do with the heart: cardiac disease, cardiac arteries.

Cardiomyopathy: This medical term means “heart muscle disease”.  Please see “congestive heart failure”.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD): A progressive thickening and hardening of the walls of the arteries (arteriosclerosis), including the arteries supplying the heart, which decreases circulation in the heart muscle.  A loss of circulation in one ore more heart arteries causes a heart attack.

Cell: The extremely small, basic unit of living matter of which all plants and animals are made.  A human body contains approximately 50 trillion cells.  The human body has blood cells, muscle cells, nerve cells, and other kinds.  Cells vary in size and shape but are generally microscopic.  Their diameter is 10 to 50 micrometers (millionth of meters).  The cells are the biochemical factories of the body assembling and dismantling thousands of different substances.

Cell membranes: The walls of the cells.

Cellular: Of or having to do with cells, concerning the cells, in the cells, etc.

Cholesterol: Cholesterol, a wax-like colorless substance, is one of the most important biochemical building blocks in the body, the biochemical foundation for a huge number of substances without which your body would not be alive.  Cholesterol plays a vital part in the structure of every cell (the basic living unit of the body), is a key molecule for building and maintaining the brain cells and all other cells of the nervous system.  Too little cholesterol also appears to be related to the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, cholesterol is the mother substance for the body’s production of a large number of vitamins and hormones.  For example, all female and male sex hormones are made from cholesterol being responsible for fertility, muscular strength, and potency.

Collagen: A fibrous protein that provides stability and strength to blood vessels, bones, cartilages, eyes, heart, skin, teeth, tendons, and, in fact, essentially to all parts of the body.

Congestive: With congestion, with a blood congestion, with retention of blood in the heart.

Congestive heart failure (CHF): Heart failure or congestive heart failure or cardiomyopathy (meaning “heart muscle disease”) is a deficiency disease of the heart muscle characterized by decreasing contractive performance, enlargement of heart chambers, and impaired blood circulation in different organs of the body including the kidneys.  The symptoms are shortness of breath, edema and exhaustion.  More than 15 million people worldwide suffer from this disease.

Connective tissue: At least 30 percent of the tissues in the body do not consist of organs, such as lungs, liver, kidneys, etc., but of a network of strong collagen and elastic (elastin) fibers forming the connective tissue or extracellular matrix. This is the structural tissue that holds your body together, maintains its form, maintains the form of the organs and holds them in place. Connective tissue is also the main building material of the artery walls, which gives the arteries stability and elasticity and thus keeps them healthy. Moreover, throughout the body, the connective tissue transports nutrients from the capillaries to the cells of the organs, transports waste products from the cells to the capillaries and lymphatic vessels, acts as a macromolecular filter protecting the cells against pollutants and has vital defense functions against invaders, such as bacteria or viruses.

Contract: To make smaller; shrink; shorten: to contract a muscle.

Contractility: The ability of the heart muscle to contract and thus pump blood through the blood tubes of the body.

Contractive: Of or having to do with contraction.

Coronary arteries: The blood vessels (tubes) supplying the heart muscle with fresh blood, including oxygen and nutrients.

Coronary artery disease (CAD):  Progressive arteriosclerosis in the coronary (heart) arteries causing a decrease of circulation in the heart muscle.  A loss of circulation causes heart attack.

Coronary heart disease (CHD): Progressive arteriosclerosis in the coronary (heart) arteries causing a decrease of circulation in the heart muscle.  A loss of circulation causes heart attack.

Diastolic blood pressure: The diastolic pressure is the pressure in the arteries when the heart is relaxed.

Diuretic: Any drug extracting water from the body in order to remove edema from legs, lungs, etc.  Diuretics leach out also vital nutrients.

Edema: An abnormal accumulation of watery fluid in the tissues or cavities of the body, often causing visible swelling.

Endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF): The endo-thelium cells produce one molecule of EDRF from one molecule of the amino acid L-arginine.  EDRF is nitric oxide.  It is used as a messenger substance.  It effects are: relaxation of the arterial walls thereby increasing the arterial diameter, increasing blood circulation, and reducing high blood pressure.

Endothelial: Of or having to do with the endothelium.

Endothelium: The inner coat of an artery consisting of cells, named endothelium cells.

Enzyme: An enzyme is a protein that serves as a biochemical tool.  Numerous enzymes exist in the biochemical ‘tool box’ of an organism.  There may be as many as fifty thousand different kinds of enzymes in a single human body.  The building of strong muscles, maintaining smooth elastic hair, nails and skin, detoxifying alcohol and other aggressive substances, killing bacteria, obtaining energy from food, in short, every biochemical process in the body that enables the body to live is performed by enzymes.

Epidemic: Noun: The rapid spreading of a disease so that many people have it at the same time.  Adjective: Affecting many people at the same time, widespread.