Natural Blood Pressure Treatments
Saturday, January 10, 2009
I'm asked all the time if there are better ways to lower high blood pressure than using conventional medications.
I think you need to keep a degree of perspective here - many people do need to take drugs to lower their blood pressure - and would not be safe if they didn't. But there are other approaches you can take.
Natural methods of blood pressure control are now well researched and many of them have been shown to make a big difference to peoples lives. I've known many patients who have been able to reduce the dose of medications they take after using more natural methods - and some have been able to stop their drugs all together.
You should always try these things under the guidance of a doctor of course - and with the help of a blood pressure monitor - but there are real improvements to be had pretty easily for most of us.
As many of you reading this will know - I too have high blood pressure. I used natural treatment methods to reduce my blood pressure by about twenty points and I halved the number of tablets I took each day - and feel a lot, lot better as a result.
Read more about Natural blood pressure treatment here.
I think you need to keep a degree of perspective here - many people do need to take drugs to lower their blood pressure - and would not be safe if they didn't. But there are other approaches you can take.
Natural methods of blood pressure control are now well researched and many of them have been shown to make a big difference to peoples lives. I've known many patients who have been able to reduce the dose of medications they take after using more natural methods - and some have been able to stop their drugs all together.
You should always try these things under the guidance of a doctor of course - and with the help of a blood pressure monitor - but there are real improvements to be had pretty easily for most of us.
As many of you reading this will know - I too have high blood pressure. I used natural treatment methods to reduce my blood pressure by about twenty points and I halved the number of tablets I took each day - and feel a lot, lot better as a result.
Read more about Natural blood pressure treatment here.
Labels: blood-pressure-forum, high blood pressure, natural, side-effects-of-blood-pressure-medications, treat-high-blood-pressure, treatment-for-blood-pressure
The Pressure Point
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
The Pressure Point
New blood pressure discussion forum
For years now, I've had people email me to ask questions about high blood pressure or low blood pressure treatment. I do my best to email back but it can be really difficult to find the time to keep up - and - let's face it, I don't know all the answers.
I think I've hit upon the solution and have created a new discussion forum devoted to blood pressure and its treatment. You can ask questions, reply and share your knowledge or just simply spend time browsing around.
Take a look, join in, you'll love it.
Click here to visit The Pressure Point
New blood pressure discussion forum
For years now, I've had people email me to ask questions about high blood pressure or low blood pressure treatment. I do my best to email back but it can be really difficult to find the time to keep up - and - let's face it, I don't know all the answers.
I think I've hit upon the solution and have created a new discussion forum devoted to blood pressure and its treatment. You can ask questions, reply and share your knowledge or just simply spend time browsing around.
Take a look, join in, you'll love it.
Click here to visit The Pressure Point
Labels: blood-pressure-forum, blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-news, high blood pressure
Nuts Lower Cholesterol
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Eating Nuts Can Lower Cholesterol Levels
Most of us know that a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products will keep us healthy.
But now we should also take a much closer look at the health benefits of nuts.
Until recently, nuts were regarded as a high energy or high fat food and so their consumption was limited or even avoided.
But diet specialists have now shown that nuts are a wonderful wide ranging source of nutrients and protective non-nutrients. Just a small handful of nuts every day will protect your heart and has far reaching benefits on health.
Nuts contain high levels of monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids with a much smaller proportion of damaging saturated fatty acids.
Nuts also contain omega 3 fatty acids, which are important for cardiovascular health and the growth and function of the nervous tissue.
Nuts have other health promoting compounds including plant proteins, dietary fibre (both soluble and insoluble) vitamins like E and niacin, minerals like copper, magnesium, potassium and zinc, plant sterols, and phytochemicals.
There is a long list of health benefits associated with regular consumption of nuts.
There is convincing evidence to show that nuts can modify your cholesterol lipid profile favourably by increasing the good cholesterol, (HDL) and lowering the bad cholesterol (LDL). They also lower total cholesterol (especially in subjects with high cholesterol levels) and may reduce risk of coronary artery disease.
So - what are you waiting for? Go nuts and change your diet today.
Most of us know that a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products will keep us healthy.
But now we should also take a much closer look at the health benefits of nuts.
Until recently, nuts were regarded as a high energy or high fat food and so their consumption was limited or even avoided.
But diet specialists have now shown that nuts are a wonderful wide ranging source of nutrients and protective non-nutrients. Just a small handful of nuts every day will protect your heart and has far reaching benefits on health.
Nuts contain high levels of monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids with a much smaller proportion of damaging saturated fatty acids.
Nuts also contain omega 3 fatty acids, which are important for cardiovascular health and the growth and function of the nervous tissue.
Nuts have other health promoting compounds including plant proteins, dietary fibre (both soluble and insoluble) vitamins like E and niacin, minerals like copper, magnesium, potassium and zinc, plant sterols, and phytochemicals.
There is a long list of health benefits associated with regular consumption of nuts.
There is convincing evidence to show that nuts can modify your cholesterol lipid profile favourably by increasing the good cholesterol, (HDL) and lowering the bad cholesterol (LDL). They also lower total cholesterol (especially in subjects with high cholesterol levels) and may reduce risk of coronary artery disease.
So - what are you waiting for? Go nuts and change your diet today.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, diet-and-blood-pressure, heart-attack-risk, high blood pressure, omega-3-blood-pressure
Lose Weight - Lower Blood Pressure
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Body Weight and High Blood Pressure
Are you overweight? Do you have high blood pressure?
Half of overweight people with high blood pressure could have the condition as a result their size.
Italian research has shown that about 50% of overweight adults with high blood pressure between the age of 29 and 65 saw their blood pressure drop after six months on a diet.
This is important because it means that in people with high blood pressure and weight problems - the blood pressure was often due to their extra body weight
The study involved 210 overweight women and men with high blood pressure who had never been treated for the condition.
They were all only moderately overweight and were given an individualised reduced-calorie diet.
About half of the patients were also treated with orlistat, a medicine used with a low-calorie diet to help weight loss.
After six months, 49% of the women and 53% of the men had lost the necessary amount of weight.
It was also found that the blood pressure went down by a significant amount.
The main message from this is that of you are overweight and have high blood pressure then simple weight loss might avoid the need for blood pressure medication.
Are you overweight? Do you have high blood pressure?
Half of overweight people with high blood pressure could have the condition as a result their size.
Italian research has shown that about 50% of overweight adults with high blood pressure between the age of 29 and 65 saw their blood pressure drop after six months on a diet.
This is important because it means that in people with high blood pressure and weight problems - the blood pressure was often due to their extra body weight
The study involved 210 overweight women and men with high blood pressure who had never been treated for the condition.
They were all only moderately overweight and were given an individualised reduced-calorie diet.
About half of the patients were also treated with orlistat, a medicine used with a low-calorie diet to help weight loss.
After six months, 49% of the women and 53% of the men had lost the necessary amount of weight.
It was also found that the blood pressure went down by a significant amount.
The main message from this is that of you are overweight and have high blood pressure then simple weight loss might avoid the need for blood pressure medication.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-treatment, diet-and-blood-pressure, high blood pressure
Will Alcohol Raise Blood Pressure Levels
A high or moderate alcohol intake will raise blood pressure in some people, but the effect may depend largely on age and cholesterol levels says a new study from Japan.
It seems that alcohol affects blood pressure more in men in their fifties or older. The study showed that fifty year olds who drank even moderate amounts of alcohol generally had higher blood pressure than non-drinkers.
In younger men only heavy drinkers showed elevated blood pressure, and even then the effect depended on a man's levels of "good" HDL cholesterol.
In contrast, HDL levels had no bearing on the blood-pressure effects of alcohol in older men.
HDL is the good kind of cholesterol that is known to protect the heart and blood vessels.
The findings suggest that older men's blood pressure is more sensitive to the effects of drinking, but this should not meant that older men should universally abstain from alcohol.
Even though moderate or heavy drinking can boost blood pressure, small amounts of alcohol also have heart-protecting effects.
Labels: alcohol-and-blood-pressure, diet-and-blood-pressure, high blood pressure
New Test Predicts Heart Attack Risk
Friday, September 28, 2007
Heart Attack Risk
A new quick and painless test could save your life.
An ultrasound scan on the carotid arteries, the small blood vessels that run along either side of your neck can give insight into the health of your whole vascular system.
Ultrasound of the carotid arteries allows doctors to measure the thickness of those arteries and the thickness predicts how likely you are to have a stroke, heart attack or sudden death.
A new quick and painless test could save your life.
An ultrasound scan on the carotid arteries, the small blood vessels that run along either side of your neck can give insight into the health of your whole vascular system.
Ultrasound of the carotid arteries allows doctors to measure the thickness of those arteries and the thickness predicts how likely you are to have a stroke, heart attack or sudden death.
Carotid ultrasound is a test that shows how thick the carotid artery walls are as well as how much blood flows and how fast it travels through them.
Ultrasound waves - the same ones used in imaging the fetus in a pregnant woman - are used to make an image of the arteries. This image can be used to find out if there is an abnormality or blockage of the carotid arteries that could lead to stroke.
The test is simple and reliable and - when combined with a full assessment of other risk factors and preventitive factors - can predict your risk of heart attack or stroke. Treatment can be started at an early stage - early enough that it might well save your life.
The test is simple and reliable and - when combined with a full assessment of other risk factors and preventitive factors - can predict your risk of heart attack or stroke. Treatment can be started at an early stage - early enough that it might well save your life.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-treatment, heart-attack, high blood pressure
Treat high blood pressure
Monday, September 24, 2007
Treat High Blood Pressure
By the nature of a large site like this I tend to find that the older articles get a bit lost over time.
So - if you're interested -here are a few of the highlights from previous months and years of writing about high blood pressure treatment.
Firstly, and this article about your blood pressure reading was one of the first I published on the subject, you might like to read about what those blood pressure numbers actually mean. Discover the difference between the upper and the lower numbers and learn why they're written the way they are.
Next, take a look at this piece about weight loss and blood pressure. Discover why weight loss can help with blood pressure treatment.
If you have very high blood pressure then you'll be interested in this article and lastly for now, check out this section about combined medication to treat high blood pressure
I'll write these review highlight sections from time to time so check back again or sign up for my regular newsletter.
Stay well.
By the nature of a large site like this I tend to find that the older articles get a bit lost over time.
So - if you're interested -here are a few of the highlights from previous months and years of writing about high blood pressure treatment.
Firstly, and this article about your blood pressure reading was one of the first I published on the subject, you might like to read about what those blood pressure numbers actually mean. Discover the difference between the upper and the lower numbers and learn why they're written the way they are.
Next, take a look at this piece about weight loss and blood pressure. Discover why weight loss can help with blood pressure treatment.
If you have very high blood pressure then you'll be interested in this article and lastly for now, check out this section about combined medication to treat high blood pressure
I'll write these review highlight sections from time to time so check back again or sign up for my regular newsletter.
Stay well.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-treatment, diet-and-blood-pressure, high blood pressure, treatment
A Vaccine Against High Blood Pressure?
Sunday, September 23, 2007
A vaccine against high blood pressure
Can a simple vaccine jab protect you from stroke and heart disease?
Researchers think they have developed a vaccine to control high blood pressure. The vaccine is derived from a protein found in limpets and the hope is that it would need a course of just three jabs, with a booster every six months.
The commonest way of treating blood pressure at the moment is with pills, but they can cause side-effects and some patients simply stop taking them.
Now Protherics - a British drug company - says its vaccine will make it much easier for people to control their blood pressure.
The jab, which has been successfully tested on people, uses the limpet protein to attack a hormone called angiotensin, which is produced by the liver. This is similar to the way that medicines like lisinopril, ramipril and perindopril work.
People who have tried the new vaccine have suffered few side-effects, although one in ten did complain of a brief, flu-like illness. Ideally, patients would be given an initial course of three injections, with a week or fortnight between each jab. A booster shot every six months, or even once a year, would keep blood pressure low.
It is not known how much the vaccines will cost but they are not expected to be much more expensive than current blood pressure tablets, some of which cost just a few pence a day.
In time, the vaccine may be given to ward off problems in young men and women with a family history of heart disease.
Some blood pressure tablets already available work by targeting angiotensin, either by cutting production of the hormone or by stopping it from working properly. But many people stop taking the daily tablets simply because there are no obvious signs that they are boosting their health.
Can a simple vaccine jab protect you from stroke and heart disease?
Researchers think they have developed a vaccine to control high blood pressure. The vaccine is derived from a protein found in limpets and the hope is that it would need a course of just three jabs, with a booster every six months.
The commonest way of treating blood pressure at the moment is with pills, but they can cause side-effects and some patients simply stop taking them.
Now Protherics - a British drug company - says its vaccine will make it much easier for people to control their blood pressure.
The jab, which has been successfully tested on people, uses the limpet protein to attack a hormone called angiotensin, which is produced by the liver. This is similar to the way that medicines like lisinopril, ramipril and perindopril work.
People who have tried the new vaccine have suffered few side-effects, although one in ten did complain of a brief, flu-like illness. Ideally, patients would be given an initial course of three injections, with a week or fortnight between each jab. A booster shot every six months, or even once a year, would keep blood pressure low.
It is not known how much the vaccines will cost but they are not expected to be much more expensive than current blood pressure tablets, some of which cost just a few pence a day.
In time, the vaccine may be given to ward off problems in young men and women with a family history of heart disease.
Some blood pressure tablets already available work by targeting angiotensin, either by cutting production of the hormone or by stopping it from working properly. But many people stop taking the daily tablets simply because there are no obvious signs that they are boosting their health.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-treatment, high blood pressure, treatment, vaccine-for-blood-pressure
Omega Fatty Acids Lower Blood Pressure
Omega 3 Fatty Acids and Blood Pressure
Alter your diet and lower your blood pressure
A diet rich in nutrients called omega-3 fatty acids can help lower a person's blood pressure. Foods rich in Omega 3 include fish and nuts.
A new large study looked at diet and its relation to blood pressure in 4,680 men and women, ages 40 to 59, who lived in Japan, China, Britain and the United States.
They all provided in-depth details about their diets and alcohol consumption, gave urine samples and had their blood pressure measured twice at each of four study visits.
The people who ate diets rich in omega-3 fatty acids had slightly lower blood pressure, on average, than people who ate diets with less of the nutrient, the researchers reported in the American Heart Association Journal Circulation.
"With blood pressure, every millimeter counts. The effect of each nutrient is apparently small but independent, so together they can add up to a substantial impact on blood pressure," said Dr. Hirotsugu Ueshima of Shiga University of Medical Science in Otsu, Japan.
"If you can reduce blood pressure a few millimeters from eating less salt, losing a few pounds, avoiding heavy drinking, eating more vegetables, whole grains and fruits (for their fiber, minerals, vegetable protein and other nutrients) and getting more omega-3 fatty acids, then you've made a big difference," Ueshima said in a statement.
When it comes to omega-3 fatty acids, not all fish or nuts are equal. Fatty fish such as trout, salmon and mackerel are rich in this crucial group of nutrients.
Walnuts, flaxseed and canola oil are also good sources of omega-3 fatty acids and people who got their omega-3s from these sources had just as much benefit as those who get them by eating fish, the study found.
Omega-3 fatty acid intake has also been linked to better brain development and a lower overall risk of cancer and heart disease.
Alter your diet and lower your blood pressure
A diet rich in nutrients called omega-3 fatty acids can help lower a person's blood pressure. Foods rich in Omega 3 include fish and nuts.
A new large study looked at diet and its relation to blood pressure in 4,680 men and women, ages 40 to 59, who lived in Japan, China, Britain and the United States.
They all provided in-depth details about their diets and alcohol consumption, gave urine samples and had their blood pressure measured twice at each of four study visits.
The people who ate diets rich in omega-3 fatty acids had slightly lower blood pressure, on average, than people who ate diets with less of the nutrient, the researchers reported in the American Heart Association Journal Circulation.
"With blood pressure, every millimeter counts. The effect of each nutrient is apparently small but independent, so together they can add up to a substantial impact on blood pressure," said Dr. Hirotsugu Ueshima of Shiga University of Medical Science in Otsu, Japan.
"If you can reduce blood pressure a few millimeters from eating less salt, losing a few pounds, avoiding heavy drinking, eating more vegetables, whole grains and fruits (for their fiber, minerals, vegetable protein and other nutrients) and getting more omega-3 fatty acids, then you've made a big difference," Ueshima said in a statement.
When it comes to omega-3 fatty acids, not all fish or nuts are equal. Fatty fish such as trout, salmon and mackerel are rich in this crucial group of nutrients.
Walnuts, flaxseed and canola oil are also good sources of omega-3 fatty acids and people who got their omega-3s from these sources had just as much benefit as those who get them by eating fish, the study found.
Omega-3 fatty acid intake has also been linked to better brain development and a lower overall risk of cancer and heart disease.
Labels: blood-pressure-treatment, diet-and-blood-pressure, high blood pressure, omega-3-blood-pressure, salt and blood pressure
Seven Weird Ways to Die Young !
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Seven Weird Ways to Die Young
What advice would you give to a non married, pessimistic pop star who has recently lost weight and lowered their cholesterol level by taking vitamin supplements?
Easy - stay in bed until after lunch of course !
We all know lots of tips about staying healthy and get advice from every TV chat show and billboard. But check out these weird facts if you want to (or want not to ) die young!
Here's how to make sure you die at an early age - hint ... the more of these tips you follow the better (or worse, depends how you look at it)
What advice would you give to a non married, pessimistic pop star who has recently lost weight and lowered their cholesterol level by taking vitamin supplements?
Easy - stay in bed until after lunch of course !
We all know lots of tips about staying healthy and get advice from every TV chat show and billboard. But check out these weird facts if you want to (or want not to ) die young!
Here's how to make sure you die at an early age - hint ... the more of these tips you follow the better (or worse, depends how you look at it)
- Remain pessimistic at all times
A 70-year long study of personality traits shows that pessimism is a risk factor for early death, especially among men. Pessimism can also be linked to increased risk for sudden
death from accidents or violence. Compared with individuals with a more cheerful and optimistic outlook, pessimists were more likely to die from accidents and violence (including suicide). A pessimistic way of seeing the world in which people catastrophize about bad events, predicts untimely death decades later.
So cheer up - you'll be dead soon! - Eat too many vitamins
Scientists at Copenhagen University found that people taking supplements which contained vitamins A and E and beta carotene were found to have a five per cent greater risk of dying than those who were not taking them. The research analysed the results of several studies involving over 180,000 people into the benefits of vitamins A, E, and C, along with beta carotene and selenium. Another Big Mac anyone? - Become a famous popstar
Rock and pop stars are more than twice as likely as the rest of the population to die an early death. The findings are based on more than 1,050 North American and European musicians and singers who shot to fame between 1956 and 1999. All the musicians studied were featured in the All Time Top 1,000 albums, selected in 2000. The albums chosen covered rock, punk, rap, R&B, electronica and new age genres. How long the pop stars survived once they had achieved chart success and become famous was compared with the expected longevity of the general population.
In all, 100 stars died early between 1956 and 2005. The average age of death was 42 for North American stars and 35 for European stars. When compared with the rest of the population in the U.K. and the U.S., rock and pop stars were about twice as likely to die early and even more likely to do so within five years of becoming famous. - Lose weight too quickly
Overweight people who are otherwise healthy may increase their risk of dying by intentionally losing weight, according to provocative research involving twins in Finland.
The research found that those who were overweight who lost weight on purpose were about 86 percent more likely to die for any reason over the next 18 years compared with those whose weight remained stable. Chocolate cake - yes please ! - Watch your diet too closely
Although a high cholesterol level is bad for you - bizarrely enough, a low cholesterol is worse.
A huge study in Austria showed that high cholesterol was predictive of death from coronary heart disease but low cholesterol results in increased all-cause mortality. Low cholesterol showed significant associations with death from cancer, liver diseases, and mental diseases. - Stay single
People who don't get married are much more likely to die young. A large research study showed some amazing findings. The researchers found that never-married people, compared with their married peers, are five times more likely to die of infectious disease, twice as likely to die in accidents, homicides, or suicides and nearly forty percent more likely to die of heart disease - Get up too early in the morning
It's official (hurray) - rising before 5 a.m. is very bad for your health.
A study conducted in Japan has found that early risers have a higher risk of medical conditions that can lead to heart attack and stroke. People who habitually rose before 5 a.m. had 1.7 times greater risk of high blood pressure and were twice as likely to develop hardening of the arteries as those who got up 2 to 3 hours later, researchers found.
So - what should you do with this information if you want a long life?
It's a no brainer really - stay in bed all day with your partner, eating junk food and slobbing out while avoiding vitamins or healthy stuff at all costs. Stay cheerful and don't be seduced by a large deal from the recording industry. Stick to all that and you'll live forever .... how cool a life would that be?
Labels: blood-pressure-treatment, high blood pressure, low-blood-pressure, salt and blood pressure
Salt and Blood Pressure in Children
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Salt and Blood Pressure in Children
High salt diets in children lead to raised blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke later in life.
A new large research study showed that for each extra gram of salt eaten there was a 0.4mmHg (millimeters of mercury) increase in systolic blood pressure. This means that ten extra grams of salt a day would increase the upper blood pressure number (called the systolic blood pressure) by 4 mmHg
This is an important finding which confirms that eating too much salt increases blood pressure in childhood.
The differences in systolic blood pressure between children with higher and lower salt diets may appear small, but making reductions of this order in childhood is likely to translate into lower levels of blood pressure in adult life, with reduced risk of developing heart disease and stroke and potentially huge gains in public health being possible
The advice to parents is to read the labels, especially in foods where you wouldn't expect a lot of salt, such as cereals. Try to avoid high blood pressure in children by reducing their salt intake.
The Food Standards Agency in the UK recommends that younger children receive less salt than older ones.
Children aged from 1 to 3-years-old should have a maximum of 2gm salt per day,
Children aged from 4 to 6-year-olds should have a maximum of 3gm,
Children from 7 to 10 year-olds should have a maximum of 5gm and for 11 and older it should be 6gm at the very most.
They also recommend that babies never be given extra salt on their food.
These figures are maximum daily recommendations, and parents should strive to have less than that, if possible.
What you do now in terms of your child's salt intake could shape their health record for the rest of their lives.
High salt diets in children lead to raised blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke later in life.
A new large research study showed that for each extra gram of salt eaten there was a 0.4mmHg (millimeters of mercury) increase in systolic blood pressure. This means that ten extra grams of salt a day would increase the upper blood pressure number (called the systolic blood pressure) by 4 mmHg
This is an important finding which confirms that eating too much salt increases blood pressure in childhood.
The differences in systolic blood pressure between children with higher and lower salt diets may appear small, but making reductions of this order in childhood is likely to translate into lower levels of blood pressure in adult life, with reduced risk of developing heart disease and stroke and potentially huge gains in public health being possible
The advice to parents is to read the labels, especially in foods where you wouldn't expect a lot of salt, such as cereals. Try to avoid high blood pressure in children by reducing their salt intake.
The Food Standards Agency in the UK recommends that younger children receive less salt than older ones.
Children aged from 1 to 3-years-old should have a maximum of 2gm salt per day,
Children aged from 4 to 6-year-olds should have a maximum of 3gm,
Children from 7 to 10 year-olds should have a maximum of 5gm and for 11 and older it should be 6gm at the very most.
They also recommend that babies never be given extra salt on their food.
These figures are maximum daily recommendations, and parents should strive to have less than that, if possible.
What you do now in terms of your child's salt intake could shape their health record for the rest of their lives.
Labels: high blood pressure, salt and blood pressure, treatment
