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Blog: On Health. On Writing. On Life. On Everything.

High Blood Pressure – Low Blood Pressure

A new study to answer the question: Which is the optimal blood pressure goal? has been terminated prematurely because it became statistically overwhelmingly clear that lower blood pressure targets will save lives. That is a great outcome of a study: The clear-cut benefit of lower blood pressure. Not that it is all news: In medical school I already learned this medicine pearl: People with low pressure live for a long time, but they will feel lousy often – from dizziness and lack of energy. People with high blood pressure feel on top of the world – until they drop dead of stroke or heart attack. It is good to know that our recent blood pressure goals have been set too high. If you have high blood pressure, or borderline high blood pressure, get ready for your doctor to put you on medication, or increase your anti-hypertension pills. But the question is: Why do I read one report after the other about this blood pressure study, and all the commentators remark on how important it is to increase medications – and not a single commentator mentions that there are ways to lower your blood pressure without pills - naturally? There are! You don’t have to take pills for the rest of your life; they can have serious side effect – one of the least seems to be impotence (erectile dysfunction), which is obviously a minor problem for the prescribing physician, but may make your life thoroughly miserable. Here, if you want to go the natural way: • End your hot showers always with a short (20 to 30 seconds) cold shower. Don’t do it yet if your blood pressure is uncontrolled high. But if you are on a pill, reasonably controlled, to can make this a daily habit. If a cold shower feels too harsh, wash yourself down with a cold facecloth twice a day in front of the sink. • Get yourself a cheap step counter and walk more. The step counter is not really necessary, but is a great motivator. Walk more stairs, too. • Also, walk on uneven surfaces whenever you have an occasion. Walking the beach, hiking, and walking barefoot have all been shown to lower blood pressure. One study showed that walking barefoot on pebbles is especially effective. Why is that so? The more uneven the terrain is, the more muscles you use, and the greater is the relaxation effect. • Get enough sleep. Sleep deprivation leads to more stress, and stress increases blood pressure. Aim for being in bed around ten pm. Read for a few minutes, then sleep in darkness, with open window, whenever possible. Grandmother’s advice that sleep before midnight counts double sort of bears out in modern circadian rhythm studies. • Meditate if your stress level is high. Or do woodworking, or play a musical instrument – any hobby that absorbs your attention wholly and makes you happy has a good de-stressing effect. Even just listening to soothing music lowers your blood pressure. • Drink enough water. Salt does not seem the main culprit (but it does not hurt to ditch all processed foods – which are notoriously high in salt), but not drinking enough is. Aim for very light yellow urine. Dark urine shows that you are dehydrated (unless there is a kidney/bladder problem). • Keep your relationships in order. I am all for a good fight if it is necessary. But an unhappy relationship will break your heart – with or without high blood pressure. • Reduce screen time – TV, Twitter, telephone and Internet. All overexcite your brain. Be yourself – find quiet time often. • Eat a diet high in vegetables and herbs. Plants contain thousands of chemical compound which all conspire to keep your blood pressure low. Eat meat but only organic (or from a farmer whose agricultural practices you trust). Have plenty of good fats like organic olive oil, coconut oil, cultured butter – fat is not the enemy. • Slowly move toward your ideal weight by eating less sugars and starches. Avoid artificial sweeteners, too. • And if you insist on a pill, let it be herbs (it may be advisable to work with a good herbalist – or a doctor who know herbs): o Stinging nettle o Linden o Olive leaf o Yarrow o French Lavender o Cinnamon o Cat’s claw o Hawthorn o Celery seeds o Garlic o Cardamom o Basil And so many more! Some may go into your food as spices when you cook. Actually, cooking every evening from scratch might be the best course you could take: It will relax you after work and absorb your attention – and it will heal you body that gets high blood pressure from the pressures and habits of modern life. In 95 percent, hypertension is a lifestyle issue; only in five percent, a serious medical diagnosis (kidneys, endocrine) can be made. If high blood pressure stems from wrong lifestyles, I suggest we replace it with better, healthier, more joyful lifestyles. Read More 
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Your Doctor Knows

An new study shows that physician and nurses (and other healthcare personal) use more alternative methods than the general population. Uh? Seems your doctor knows more than she lets on to you. Why are physicians not generally using more alternative methods for their patients if they have found out that they work for themselves and their families? Time! It takes much more time to discuss better nutrition, movement, herbs, acupuncture, cold water, relaxation techniques, yoga, meditation, sleep hygiene and many more than just handing out a prescription. You might improve your own healthcare if you initiate a talk with your doctor, asking for alternatives before taking a pill mindlessly (but mind that sometimes the pill might be the right answer for your problem - let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater; we needs both sides of medicine!). Just ask a simple question like this: "What would you do, if it were you, Doc?" Read More 
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Five-Minutes Meditation

This is the height of holiday stress. Here a fast stress reliever: • Choose a quiet corner • Turn egg timer on 5 minutes • Sit with crossed legs on the floor on a cushion; or on a chair • Keep your back straight - let the top of your head touch Heavens • Hands: palms-up and open on your knees • Closed eyes • Breathe in and out slowly – always start with exhaling (counting regularly might help the beginner) • Do not move at all except keeping your back straight • Empty your brain from thoughts and outside disturbances • Pay attention to your sensations: breathing, aches, itches, fears, etc.: • Let them happen. • Stop when the clock rings • Go on with your day with renewed energy and purpose. The Five-Minutes Meditation is useful when • you are stressed out • your emotions overwhelm you (anger, sadness, anxiety, jealousy, etc.) • you are tempted to binge out on food (perfect to do before each meal in obesity, for instance) • you suffer with sleeplessness - just do it before retiring to bed • you are listless and bored and procrastinating • you have high blood pressure • you have pains - instead of taking pills For really learning to meditate, there are good programs, groups, and courses available. Do not attempt to increase the time above 5 minutes. Citation "Meditation is not about feeling a certain way. It's about feeling the way you feel. It's not about making the mind empty or still, although stillness does deepen in meditation and can be cultivated systematically. Above all, meditation is about letting the mind be as it is and knowing something about how it is in this moment. It's not about getting somewhere else, but allowing yourself to be where you already are. If you don't understand this, you will think you are constitutionally unable to meditate. But that's just more thinking and, in this case, incorrect thinking at that." "But to stay at it for even five minutes requires intentionality. To make it part of your life requires some discipline. " (From: Jon Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go, There You Are). Read More 
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