High blood pressure (Hypertension) is also known as the ?silent killer?. Hypertension gets the name silent killer because most people don?t feel any warning signs or symptoms. Hypertension often will develop slowly and can cause serious damage to other organs without any experiencing any symptoms. Recently, new guidelines from the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure recommended more stringent measures and created a new category of called pre-hypertension for those with borderline high (130-139/85-89 mm Hg) or normal (120/80). This all came about because new research is showing that the risk of heart disease and stroke can occur at lower blood pressures than we originally believed. Personally, I think this is ?overkill? and another reason to medicate America. I believe that having regular checkups and monitoring Blood pressure is a wise choice, but if this recommendation leads to more people being medicated-count me out. Too often we are alarmists and medicate as opposed to being alarmist and changing our lifestyle(s).
Understanding your blood pressure reading
We often hear that normal blood pressure is 120/80 or below. Now with pre-hypertension being 120-139/80-89 or hypertension being 140/90 or above we need to understand the numbers. The top number (systolic) is the pressure of your blood in your veins and arteries just as your heart pumps. The bottom number (diastolic) is the pressure when your heart is at rest. As we age and the elasticity of your veins and arteries decreases, the top number often will climb while the lower number remains in check. As your arteries become smaller (like your garden hose that gets blocked), it takes more force to get the blood (water) moving. This need for increased force is what I like to call high blood pressure. If you had a squirt gun with a large hole, it would be easy to pull the trigger. If the whole was very tiny, it would take a lot more force to pull the trigger and shoot the water out. Your body is the same way. By relaxing (opening the hole) the arteries your heart will not have to work so hard and you will have lower blood pressure. This is the mechanism of how blood pressure medications work. Of course there are several categories of BP medications (ACE inhibitors, Beta Blockers, Calcium Channel blockers etc.), but the final result is the same-reduced pressure on the walls of the arteries.
Factors that contribute to having Hypertension
Being overweight
Age
Alcohol consumption
Genetics
Learned behavior (My term for genetic links)
Diet (salt intake, caffeine)
Aging
Stress
Insulin Resistance
Mineral Deficiencies (Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium)
Race
What can you do about it?
My belief is that with proper lifestyle, the majority of the cases of Hypertension can be avoided. I am going to use myself as an example. Ten years ago I owned a very successful pharmacy in Virginia. Life was great-my son was just born, it was Christmas and as far as most people would know, I had it great. What most people didn?t know is 3 days before Christmas my blood pressure was 165/110. That is way too high for anyone-especially someone 32 years of age. This didn?t make sense-I ate right, exercised and took great care of my health. So WHY? After a few more days monitoring of my blood pressure (it was still high) I realized there had to be another cause-STRESS! Yes even with everything going great, the stress of owning my pharmacy was taking its toll on my health. I had a choice, take medication or get rid of the stress. So, on December 27th 1997 I decided to get rid of the stress-my pharmacy. I understand that many of you can?t just up and leave your jobs, but my example is one that many need to understand-Lifestyle plays a HUGE roll in your health.
Until you can learn modify your lifestyle, there are several supplements which can help. My new focus is to guide you to combination products that support your health needs. Combination products are designed to give you a synergistic blend of nutrients which target your specific challenge. Synergy is like adding 1+1+1 and getting 5 not 3. There is something to be said for the power in numbers. Using just one ingredient like Garlic to lower your blood pressure might work for some of you, but not all of you. The following are some of the more popular ?single? ingredients you may find in Blood Pressure formulations:
CoQ10
Fish Oil
Calcium
Magnesium
Potassium
Garlic
Fiber
L-Arginine
Hawthorn
Hibiscus
Olive Leaf
Vitamin E
Vitamin C
Taurine
Cayenne
Of all of these single ingredients, two of them stick out as extra beneficial- CoQ10 and Fish Oil. Research with CoQ10 has shown it can significantly decrease blood pressure in about 10+ weeks. Most research uses about 100mg per day. I recommend 60mg chewable tablets and take them two times daily. CoQ10 is naturally occurring in the body and considered a powerful heart healthy antioxidant. As discussed in earlier newsletters, antioxidants can help reduce the potential damage caused by free radicals.
Eating Fish (cold water) is a dietary recommendation from the American Heart Association and the U.S Government as a preventative for heart disease. I prefer using supplements to guarantee I am getting the benefit(s) of Fish but without the toxins found in fish. I use Coromega? packets daily as my source of Omega-3?s from fish oil. Coromega? is not only free of toxins, but is emulsified to prevent burping and aid digestion. I prefer its unique packaging (no light or air touches the product) because it guarantees me the freshest product every dose. There are other great brands like Nordic Naturals and Barlean?s will also give you purified contaminant free fish oil. Dosing for hypertension varies in the research, but most are at levels of 3grams or more of Omega-3s. If you are taking a capsule, it may require 6 or more capsules per day depending on the concentration.
Since I mentioned that synergy is the way to go, let?s take a look at a few combination products I would consider using; BP Manager (Enzymatic Therapy), Blood Pressure Control (Twin Labs), Blood Pressure Factors (Michael?s Health Products), and Heart Response (Source Naturals). Each one of these formulations is unique yet combines similar ingredients that are designed to support health blood pressure levels. There are many other great products designed to help those with Blood Pressure control issues. Consult with your health care provider and/or a store associate for the product that is best for you.
If you plan to lower your blood pressure with lifestyle changes and the use of supplements, remember to work closely with your health care provider. I also recommend home monitoring of your blood pressure. Monitoring your BP is a critical part of your health care. Buying a blood pressure monitor doesn?t have to be expensive and can guide you to a healthier you. Remember, dietary supplements don?t work overnight and therefore your blood pressure will decrease slowly. Using supplements with your medications is not usually recommended and special care should be taken. For those of you using multiple medications to lower your blood pressure, your first goal should be either dosage reduction or medication elimination. You didn?t get High Blood Pressure over night and you won?t eliminate it that way either. Be practical-Natural Medicine works only if you are committed to the program and use commonsense.
Source: http://medicaltips.biz/2011/09/16/lowering-high-blood-pressure-the-natural-way/
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