Monitoring Your Blood Pressure Could Literally Save Your Life
August 13, 2008 | Leave a Comment
High blood pressure is also known as hypertension and it has been given the nickname of the ’silent killer’. Hypertension can be a fatal condition which develops slowly over a long period of time and most people do not experience any symptoms of the condition at all. As a result of its lack of signs and symptoms, high blood pressure often goes undiagnosed and untreated.
In the United States it was estimated that approximately 50 million adults suffered from hypertension in the early 1990’s. This figure has been on the rise ever since. By the beginning of the 21st century, it was estimated that about 65 million people had high blood pressure and today that number has topped 72 million. This figure means that approximately one out of every three adults in the US now suffers from high blood pressure.
Here is what some studies have revealed:
30% of high blood pressure sufferers are not aware of their condition and are consequently not receiving any treatment for it.
15% of the people know that they have high blood pressure but either they are not getting any treatment for it or they do not bother to follow the recommended treatment.
25% of the people know that they have hypertension but do not presently have their blood pressure under control.
All of this means that about only 30% of the people with hypertension are currently receiving the correct treatment for their hypertension and have it under control.
Even though it has often been said that it is not possible to tell if someone has high blood pressure there are some tell-tale signs that may indicate that you have hypertension. Some of these symptoms include headaches, blurred vision, dizziness and nausea.
High blood pressure is a major cause of death in the US today and it raises considerably the risk from a number of life threatening conditions such as heart failure, heart attack, cardiovascular disease and kidney failure.
Bearing in mind the nature of this condition it is only sensible to monitor things by regularly checking your blood pressure and this can be done by calling on your doctor to ask for a blood pressure check. But this is not always convenient for many people and so an alternative is to simply check your own pressure at home. There are now many blood pressure monitors available which are designed for use at home and they are both simple and quick to use and are also quite inexpensive.
Using your own blood pressure monitor at home means that you can keep an eye on the whole family’s blood pressure giving you considerable peace of mind and allowing you to detect any developing problems early so that they can be easily treated.
Discover the Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure
August 11, 2008 | Leave a Comment
It seems like no matter how much damage we do to our bodies, life provides us with ways to deal with them. Around us, nature offers its natural remedies that we can take advantage of to help control our blood pressure. For many centuries, herbal remedies have been used to cure ailments. While we live in a world where information is widely available, most people still do not know about the power of nature.
Whether you’d like to take herbs to support blood pressure health, or maybe you’d like to maintain healthy blood circulation, there are herbs that can help you. However, in order to take advantage of them, you must learn about them first. Here are some of the most popular herbs used around the world for maintaining a healthy heart.
Hawthorn Berries (Crataegus Oxycantha Monogyna)
Hawthorn has been traditionally used to maintain normal blood pressure levels. This is done by dilating your coronary blood vessels. In order to see optimal results, consumption of up to four weeks may be needed.
Garlic
Garlic has been recognized as a blood pressure lowering herb. Studies have shown that systolic pressure has been reduced by 20-30 mmHg and diastolic pressure by 10-20 mmHg.
Forskolin (Coleus Forskohlii)
This has also been used in Ayurvedic medicine for a long time. Forskolin is known to show a hypotensive and antispasmodic effect. It helps relax your arterial vascular smooth muscle, which then regulates blood pressure levels.
European Mistletoe (Viscum album)
Mistletoe has hypotensive and anti-cancer properties. It is known to possess cardiotonic, hypotensive, antispasmodic, vasodilatory, thymus stimulating, and tumor-inhibiting activity. However, mistletoe’s pharmacological effects have been successfully exposed in animal studies.
Olive Leaf (Olea Africana and Olea Europea)
As the name implies, the source of this extract is from an olive tree. The extract itself contains vasodilators which can help lower blood pressure levels. For over 2 decades, studies have been conducted to prove the effectiveness of this extract. It’s been noted that blood pressure levels were reduced without any side effects.
Black Cumin Seeds (Nigella Sativa)
Cumin seeds have been used in folk medicine for ages. It has been used as a diuretic as well as a treatment for hypotension. Research has shown that the oil extracted from black cumin seeds can be useful in treating hypertension naturally.
Arjuna Bark (Terminalia Arjuna)
This herb can be found all over india. Those that follow Ayurvedic medicine have used the bark for well over 3 centuries. Studies have been conducted which show its effects on hypertension, coronary heart disease, and congestive heart failure. The great thing about Arjuna Bark is that no side effects have been found.
The Hidden Cause Of High Blood Pressure
August 10, 2008 | Leave a Comment
In this article, I’m going to appeal to your common sense. I beg you to be open minded and not swallow raw, everything the medical business is feeding you.
What do I mean by that?
There is a lot of propaganda going on in the health business. After all, it is a business. And what do they want you to believe?
They use all their effort to talk you into that the only method that works for hypertension is prescription drugs. Yes, they may mention other things like exercising or changing your diet, but that’s only a secondary thing dealt with in a paragraph or two.
And like taking medications for a while wasn’t enough, they also want to keep you on them for the rest of your life. It suppresses the symptoms. Doesn’t cure the illness.
And what do they claim to be the cause for hypertension?
No1 … They don’t know
No2 … Genetic reasons
No3 … Connection to other diseases
And one more time, the treatment…
DRUGS, DRUGS, and again DRUGS!
As you see, even if the medical business admits that they don’t know the cause for hypertension most of the time, they refuse to even discus any other treatment than medications.
But if you apply your common sense, you’ll see in a second what really causes high blood pressure.
You’ve probably been in a situation where your blood pressure ski-rocket, haven’t you? Wasn’t it a very stressful situation you were dealing with when it happened?
When your body raises your blood pressure, it’s actually doing exactly what it should be doing. You see, in a stressful situations, your body jumps into an “Emergency” flight or fight mood.
This is an essential mechanism to deal with dangerous situation. This is the mechanism our forefathers depended on to run away from or fight predators. When you go into the flight or fight mood, your blood pressure rises and your muscles get tense.
There is a big problem with the modern world. We engage in stressful situations like that every day. We’re surrounded by people we don’t know. Some of them may even be murderers or human predators. At best, in every workplace there is someone ready to compete with you and take your job.
Like that wasn’t enough. We’ve the pressure of keeping our standard in the society. And the dread of failing. Worries about money is probably the biggest stress factor known. Money dread kills more people than anything else I know about.
I only take this as an example. It could be anything you’re stressed about that causes you hypertension. Isn’t your mind nagging at you pretty much every day?
That’s the problem. What’s the answer? It’s tough to change the world, but you can take a “focused brake” once in a while!
You don’t have to become a holy master. Giving your mind a few minutes focused pause from the world is enough to allow it to recover and get it in better shape to deal with the stress you’re faced every day. And lower your blood pressure.
Most people who practice my high blood pressure exercises are back to normal blood pressure within a week and totally off any medication. Even those suffering from ski-rocking high hypertension.
You can do the same.
Lose Weight To Live Longer, It’s A Fact!
August 10, 2008 | Leave a Comment
It is a proven fact that there are both physical and mental benefits to be gained when you lose weight. It is a difficult job, but the overall improvement you can expect, in all areas of your life, must not be underestimated.
Check out below the ways in which losing those inches can improve your health:
Lose the weight to lessen your chances of heart disease, high blood pressure and strokes.
Straight away you have a three in one benefit from losing weight. It is a proven scientific fact that heart disease and strokes are one of the primary reasons for disability and death in both men and women, primarily in the UK and the USA. People who are overweight have a higher risk of high levels of cholesterol in their blood stream as well as something called triglycerides (also known as blood fat). Angina, one particularly common type of heart disease, can cause chest pains as well as a decrease in the oxygen pumped to the heart. This illness can keep you on medication for the rest of your life, once it has taken hold. Even breathing itself can become distressing and debilitating.
Sudden death also occurs from heart disease and strokes, and these can strike with very little warning, signs or symptoms.
You can improve matters dramatically by simply reducing your weight, even by only 5 to 10 percent. This would improve you blood pressure, and general heart function, which could add years to your life.
Weight loss prevents diabetes.
Diabetes is a very common illness nowadays, but nevertheless, it a serious one that can put your life in jeopardy. The way that you lead your life can become hugely affected because the complications that result from having it are numerous and far reaching and can cause problems throughout your entire body. Both types of diabetes (type 1 and type 2) are linked with being overweight.
To those who already have diabetes, getting some regular exercise and losing some of that excess weight could help in controlling your blood sugar levels, as well as continuing with the medication you may be currently taking.
Do a little more exercise each day. Even just going for a steady walk (or run if you are a little fitter) will help your fitness levels improve, but please do build up slowly. When you get that blood pumping it will help you to burn of those unwanted pounds.
Reduce your risk of cancer. Lose weight!
For women, there are a number of cancers that are particularly affected by obesity. Being overweight can increase your chance of getting cancer of the overy, breast, uterus, gallbladder and colon. This has been proven by scientists and should be taken very seriously.
Men who are overweight are more likely to get cancer of the prostate, rectum and colon.
Weight loss reduces or eliminates sleep apnoea.
This can be a frightening condition, especially for your partner. If you are overweight, and generally lying on your back to sleep, your excess weight causes your windpipe to close up which means that you stop breathing for a few moments. This doesn’t last for too long but, do take notice here, this can eventually lead to heart failure.
Reduce your weight, reduce your pain from osteoarthritis.
When carrying extra weight, the strain on your joints can be multiplied by two or three times. These joints, particularly the knees, hips and lower back, need to carry you around for many years, so it is vitally important to look after them as much as possible. Although osteoarthritis is a painful disease, weight loss can make you much more comfortable in terms of pain, and can keep you more mobile for many years to come.
Before you read this article, I am certain that you knew already that it is not easy to lose weight. Hopefully you now have the information that shows just how important it is, both in terms of quality of life and quantity of life to get that excess weight off, and enjoy life, whatever your age.
A Proactive Approach is the Best Treatment for Heart Disease
August 9, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Emory University Hospital continues its strong commitment of addressing heart disease before its development by guiding patients to a healthier way of life for themselves and the ones they love. Due to this commitment, Emory University now offers a comprehensive Preventive Cardiology Clinic through their Heart & Vascular Center.
Individuals who have a history of heart attacks in their family, are overweight, have high blood pressure, or exercise less than a couple of times a week or have high cholesterol levels, are very likely candidates at risk of a heart attack. Cardiac rehabilitation is the best form of prevention and is the key to stopping the number one killer of Americans. For existing heart patients, a medically supervised program is designed to help them recover quickly and improve their overall physical and mental functioning.
Emory University Hospital offers a variety of programs designed for those who are at risk for heart disease, or may already have it, or simply want to learn more about it. Extensive information is available on Emory’s website on these programs including classes and other informative links on how one can start getting healthier today. High risk individuals should call 404-778-2850 at Emory immediately to schedule the most important doctor’s appointment of their life.
Counseling is an integral part of any successful cardiac rehabilitation program. At Emory Cardiac and Vascular Center, counseling provides the patient with an understanding of heart disease and with ways to properly manage it. Additionally, counseling on nutrition and the appropriate use of medications is provided.
With counseling, a patient is helped in modifying risk factors, such as high cholesterol, smoking, high blood pressure and others. At Emory Heart and Vascular, programs include the means to beginning an exercise program, supplying information on physical limitations and lending emotional support to the patient.
Cardiac rehabilitation is not only worthwhile in the prevention of heart disease, but it may also help in managing diabetes, osteoporosis in women, particular types of cancer, and even chronic low back pain. Even those who are not at risk may find the information useful for promoting overall good health, boosting energy and losing weight.
The Emory Heart & Vascular Center is committed to providing clinically excellent cardiovascular patient care, promoting overall heart health, pioneering innovative clinical research, and training the best heart specialists in the world. The Center is consistently recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top heart and cardiovascular health centers in the country. In addition, many of Emory’s cardiologists and surgeons are consistently recognized as Atlanta’s Top Doctors by Atlanta Magazine and as America’s Top Doctors.