Strophanthus: The Insulin of the Heart. Strophantus is an effective approach for angina, unstable angina and heart attack prevention. Such a medicine already exists and has been both widely used and sorely overlooked during the past century. Strophanthus seeds contain the active ingredient referred to as g-strophanthin in Europe and ouabain in the US. Ouabain is a copy of a hormone made by our own adrenal cortex, and it has many functions that are useful in dealing with heart disease. Used as the main treatment for the prevention of MIs in Germany for many decades, ouabain has been shown to support the parasympathetic nervous system, improve the micro-circulation and convert the lactic acid in the myocardial tissue into pyruvate, which is the preferential fuel of the heart. With the conversion of lactic acid into a nutrient for the heart cells, the cycle of pain and subsequent necrosis of the myocardial tissue is broken. In the majority of cases, the individuals will experience relief from their angina as well as improvement in heart function.