Overcoming high Blood Pressure.. how to

[readerb]

I'm looking to find people that have or had a problem with High Blood Pressure, and hope to learn what you did to combat it. I'm especially interested in finding ways to treat the problem without the use of meds. A change in diet? Cutting down on salt & trying to incorporate more grains into my diet.. is there anything else? I know exercise would help (I'm trying) yet am coming to accept that its going to be a snails pace for me in this area. Theres got to be something 'else' that I can do to..

I've got another doc appointment next week & if its still up there, he says its time for meds.. so feedback on this is most urgently wanted and needed. I feel way to young to have this happening.

Thanks in advance for any and all input.. know that its deeply appreciated.

 

[tropicalfish]

I've had to deal with this same thing. I was told to avoid MSG, OTC meds that contain ibuprofen, diet soft drinks, preservatives, sugar substitutes, soy sauce, and baking soda to name a few. I must wash all canned vegetables before cooking. Don't drink soft water from the tap.

I was told to eat a diet high in fiber, plus I take Oat Bran capsules, and plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. On my own I started taking Coenzyme Q-10, 100 mg daily, 400 iu vitamin E, 500 mg Hawthorn Berries, Vitamin C, and a Vitamin B-6 capsule daily.

Parsley, rosemary, cayenne, garlic, and onions are also good for high blood pressure. I think one of the best things a person can do is cut back on the salt. I was totally amazed at the amount of salt that was in different products when I investigated. Sometimes it is really hard to not put that little dab of salt on something when you are used to it. And, sometimes I fudge a little. LOL If I can think of anything else I'll post it.

Here are a couple exerpts from the following link that are very informative.
http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document/html/chapter8.htm

Reducing salt intake is one of several ways that people may lower their blood pressure. The relationship between salt intake and blood pressure is direct and progressive without an apparent threshold. On average, the higher a person's salt intake, the higher the blood pressure. Reducing blood pressure, ideally to the normal range, reduces the risk of stroke, heart disease, heart failure, and kidney disease.

Another dietary measure to lower blood pressure is to consume a diet rich in potassium. A potassium-rich diet also blunts the effects of salt on blood pressure, may reduce the risk of developing kidney stones, and possibly decrease bone loss with age. The recommended intake of potassium for adolescents and adults is 4,700 mg/day.

Individuals With Hypertension, Blacks, and Middle-Aged and Older Adults. Some individuals tend to be more salt sensitive than others, including people with hypertension, blacks, and middle-aged and older adults. Because blacks commonly have a relatively low intake of potassium and a high prevalence of elevated blood pressure and salt sensitivity, this population subgroup may especially benefit from an increased dietary intake of potassium. Dietary potassium can lower blood pressure and blunt the effects of salt on blood pressure in some individuals. While salt substitutes containing potassium chloride may be useful for some individuals, they can be harmful to people with certain medical conditions. These individuals should consult a healthcare provider before using salt substitutes.

Good Luck!

 

[Salal Sue]

Also trying to lower mine! Walking a mile a day, taking garlic pills, eating a banana every day for potassium, chewing green tea gum, and drinking a small glass of pomagranate juice. I'm down 5-10 points only and have been working on this 3 weeks. Watching caloric intake to take some extra weight...

One of my herbal books has a warning on the pomagranate so need to study more.

 

[readerb]

Thanks so much for the input, I'm putting into effect as much as I can right now.. I've bought 5pds of bananas & picked up a bunch of fresh fruits & veggies at the farmers market this weekend (even a few things I've never seen/tried before - ought to be interesting to see what I can do with them). As long as fresh is available, I want to try & take advantage of them at their peak (+ before salt).

I've got some of those vitamins already on hand TropicalFish, just need to start taking them (this is another part of my problem & concern, I'm so bad about taking pills of any kind) .. going to visit that website you recommended, right now!

Thanks again to both of you..

Salal, please let us know what comes of your pomegrante search, I remember it being especially good for something - just can't remember what at the moment.

Oops, a PS: I came across a site over the weekend that has some great info on the DASH Eating Plan, it was designed for people w/HBP.. The link below also contains a PDF file booklet (you can print out for free) thats got lots of helpful information + a meal guide & a few recipes: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/dash/

If I come across anything else I'll be sure to share it too.

 

[Salal Sue]

readerb and Tropical how are you doing with your blood pressure? I had a wonderful surprise today when I took mine at Safeway. 138 over 67!!! For weeks it had stayed in the high 150s (sometimes even lower 160s) over 90s.

Gradually the upper number came down to the 140s for several weeks and now 138!!!

I have made profound changes in my lifestyle.

For breakfast I have iced coffee (3/4 1% milk) sweetened with splenda. (If I have hot coffee I'm used to eating something with it)...but if it is iced, I sip it with a straw and don't need anything with it. I may experiment later with flavorings.

I have two little lunches; usually rice cakes with peanut butter and for the second a glass of pomegranate juice with a banana and half cup of walnuts.

I snack on either deli roasted chicken or turkey.

Then a supper of either vegetables from the garden, a diet frozen dinner or a shake made in the blender with ice, organic milk, oatmeal, yougurt and a banana.

I also take garlic pills, green tea, calcium with magnesium and zinc, and a pomegranate pill. I don't put added salt on anything.

I had read a warning about pomegranate but haven't been able to find it again. It does seem to help. It is expensive but not as expensive as medication would be.

Anyway, had to share this as I didn't know if I could do it. Now I'm wondering if the bottom number is getting too low at 67...anyone know?

How are you both doing?







l

 

[Herbmountain]

The frozen dinner and store deli meat is loaded with sodium. You might want to make some of your own roasted chicken and turkey. Just bake chicken breasts with Mrs. Dash seasoning. Four chicken breasts at 375' for 45 minutes. The chicken will last for 3-4 days in the fridge.

As for bannanas for potassium? You would need 10 bannanas a day to get the equivalent of one herbal potassium or you can go the pharmacy and get potassium gluconate. I take one am and one pm each day. They act as a diuretic real fast. That is why they are good for hypertention and high blood pressure. It takes the water load down and makes it easier on the heart.

All the suggestions Tropical Fish made were excellant. I would also add some omega 3 and 6 oils to the list.

Exercise? It fixes so many things.

 

[Salal Sue]

Um-m didn't know there was so much difference between a banana and a herbal potassium pill. Off to get some tomorrow.

You are right about doing my own chicken. I've been buying the roasted whole chickens. My husband can't stand the smell of poultry cooking and refuses to eat any, so to keep peace......When he travels I make the recipe for Mexican chicken with orange juice and cinnamon that was posted in the kitchen; it is yummy.

 

[Satanta]

leeches.

 

[Herbmountain]

Well then start buying really expensive Salmon. He might opt for the chicken and turkey when he gets wind of the food bill. Sheesh. Your health is more important than him not liking the smell of cooking bird. The salmon will give you the omega fish oils and this helps too.

 

[Salal Sue]

Satanta, EEEK! My blood pressure is waay up again! Now THAT is really "natural medicine"!!

Herbmountain, good suggestion--love salmon (the real kind, not fish farm)!

 

[Synap]

Potassium cloride (salt substitute) works pretty well in place of regular salt.

And the 'sugar alcohols' (mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, lactitol, isomalt, maltitol and hydrogenated starch hydrolysates (HSH)) are a good sub for reg sugar.

 

[MissTina]

If and only if you should have to go on meds even for a short period of time ask your Dr. about Vasotec and I take the Generic which is Enalapril Maleate 10mg. It was what I was given during my last pregnancy and it worked so well after the pregnancy I requested that I stay on it. It's an older drug and about 1/10 the cost of the more recent discoveries. Of course my Dr. wanted to put me back on some expensive new med but I talked him out of it. The old standby of "I really don't have the $ right now". It works great and I only take one every other day conserve the rest and have my meds filled so that I've constantly got at least a months supply in reserve. If my BP should go up and it does from time to time I get back on it regularly until it lowers. I was diagnosed at age 16 with borderline high and have had to be on meds full time since I turned 31 or 32.

 

[Herbmountain]

Vasotec? I haven't heard of that one since I was a vet tech. That's what we used on the animals.

 

[MissTina]

Vasotec? I haven't heard of that one since I was a vet tech. That's what we used on the animals.

Reminds me of my vet having me give my white dog pepto bismal one time. He had a pink streak for weeks running around his mouth.
I've been on it successfully for 6 years now, the vasotec, not pepto bismal.

 

[readerb]

readerb and Tropical how are you doing with your blood pressure?

Hi Salal Sue..

Since I last posted, my doctor put me on Benicar.. I've been reluctant at using it but needed to do something (for the time being) to get my BP down at least a little & this is doing that. My last reading was 128/83 which is still high, yet an improvement over what it was prior to the meds - unfortunately I was in a rather high stress situation since then - taking care of my Mom (who had surgery & has run into other complications) & haven't had a chance to recheck it. Next week I see the dr again & will see how its going. In the meanwhile, I've been working on improving my eating habits - using the DASH diet as a resource and been walking (which is sometimes good, sometimes so-so) and doing a bit more research.

I recently came across a book: "Control High Blood Pressure WITHOUT Drugs" by Robert Rowan & am reading it now.. we'll see what he recommends.

So glad you're BP is coming down Sue, thats great news! You are also doing great with your eating habits! I'm so happy for you.. keep the course & you're going to get a shiny gold star on your medical records. With the change in eating habits, how are you feeling? Have you tried Wheat Germ in your blender shakes yet, if not you may want to.. its good. I'm also using it as a sprinkle over yogurt w/bananas & either blueberries or strawberries. Its more like a treat than a meal, its that good.

Love all the other input too & thank-you HerbMountain for the reminder about Salmon.. it might be a good candidate for a dinner this weekend. Need to get scootin here, just noted the time. Thanks all!

 

[Smoke]

I was on blood pressure medicine and decided to start exercising and lose weight, down 50 pounds and no longer need my med, still have a lot of weight to go though. I just love to eat, I also don't use salt in any cooking, everything has enough salt in it anyhows.
Dave

 

[mzkitty]

Been trying to reduce my own BP for the past 6 months ever since I got sick. Took my dr's advice and lost about 35 pounds, and it brought my BP down a lot; however, over the holidays it seemed to creep back up again. Someone here gave me the Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine to read today, and included was this handy hint for reducing high BP: eat 4 stalks of celery a day. I tried it and an hour or so later both parts of my BP measurement were way down to just about normal levels. Cute, huh?