Fitly named the "silent killer," high blood pressure, or hypertension, can cause damage long before it's detected. In more than 90 percent of cases, the exact cause of hypertension is unknown, says physician Julian Whitaker. Sometimes, your risk of developing it increases due to factors beyond your control, such as age, gender and race. More often, however, dealing with controllable, lifestyle-related risk factors can help you to significantly reduce your blood pressure.
Hypertension Criteria
Ideally, your blood pressure, or BP, readings should be lower than 120/80 mm Hg, which represents a systolic pressure of 120 and a diastolic pressure of 80. Systolic pressure is the pressure your heart generates when it contracts, while diastolic pressure applies to the resting heart. The Family Practice Notebook website defines hypertension as BP exceeding 140/90 mm Hg. BP readings between 120/80 and 140/90 mm Hg would place you in the pre-hypertension category.
Dietary Approaches
In the late 1990s, scientists developed the DASH diet to help patients lower their BP. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. This low-sodium diet resembles the Mediterranean diet and has the following key features: high in fruits and vegetables; low in dairy, animal meat and saturated fat; high in nuts, seeds and beans; and low in snacks and sweets. Physician David Rakel notes that, in hypertensive individuals, the DASH diet lowers the systolic BP by an average of 11.6 mm Hg and the diastolic BP by 5.3 mm Hg within a few weeks.
Minerals, Supplements and Water
Minerals are essential for general health as well as for heart and muscle function. According to physician Julian Whitaker, important minerals that can help you lower your BP are: magnesium, calcium, chromium, vanadium, zinc and selenium. Many nuts, seeds and vegetables are mineral rich, but you may also take multivitamin and mineral supplements. Additional recommended nutritional supplements include: co-enzyme Q10, omega-3 fish oil, garlic, the amino acid arginine and hawthorn. Making sure you drink enough clean water is also important for proper BP regulation, says Dr. Whitaker. Eight to ten eight-ounce glasses per day is the minimum recommendation.
Exercise
The 2006 "Harvard Medical School Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure" reports study findings showing that regular aerobic exercise lowers systolic and diastolic pressures by an average of 11 and 9 mm Hg, respectively. What's more, physical exercise can help reduce your BP whether you are overweight or normal weight. According to physician Herbert Benson, a good exercise program should include aerobic activity, strength training and flexibility. Talk to your doctor before embarking on a new exercise program, especially if you have hypertension or heart disease.
Other Risk Factors
You can eliminate or control certain risk factors in order to lower your BP. Examples include: obesity, smoking, heavy drinking, caffeine use and chronic stress. According to the 2006 "Harvard Medical School Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure," hypertension and excess weight go hand in hand. Therefore, losing weight would help reduce your BP. Regular exercise can help you lose weight and manage stress. Regarding alcohol use, Dr. Benson defines excessive drinking as having three or more drinks per day.
Pharmacological Treatment
Hypertensive people may need medications in addition to lifestyle changes. To illustrate why, Dr. Benson explains that, beyond a BP of 115/75 mm Hg, every 20-point increase in systolic pressure and 10-point increase in diastolic pressure doubles your risk of health problems such as heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and premature death. According to a 2008 issue of the "Primary Care" journal, BP levels above 180/110 mm Hg constitute hypertensive crises and require oral or intravenous medications. If your hypertension results from an underlying medical condition, the disease will first have to be treated in order to reduce your BP.
Alternative Therapies
In spite of the lack of consensus in the medical literature, EDTA, or ethylene diamine triacetic acid, chelation remains a popular alternative therapy for high BP. In "Reversing Hypertension," physician Julian Whitaker also describes a less known procedure called enhanced external counter-pulsation, or EECP. The goal of EECP is to improve your blood flow, thereby lowering your BP. It does so by squeezing the blood from your lower limbs through what looks like pantyhose or a wet suit.
References
- "Reversing Hypertension"; Julian Whitaker, M.D.; 2000
- The Family Practice Notebook: Hypertension Criteria
- "Integrative Medicine"; David Rakel, M.D.; 2007
- "The Harvard Medical School Guide to Lowering Blood Pressure"; Herbert Benson, M.D.; 2006
- "Primary Care" journal; Christopher J. Hebert, M.D. and Donald G. Vidt, M.D.; Volume 35 (3); 2008
