25.2.

2017 HowtoControlHypertension(HighBloodPressure)NutritionStudies

How to Control Hypertension (High Blood Pressure)

February 1, 2017
ByJillEdwards,MS,CES(http://nutritionstudies.org/author/jedwards/)

OneoutofthreeadultAmericanshavehypertension(highbloodpressure)andnearly20%donotevenknowtheyhaveit. [ 1]
Mostpeoplewhohavehypertensionhavenosymptoms. [ 2] Whensymptomsdooccur,itisusuallywhenbloodpressurespikes
suddenlyandisextremeenoughtobeconsideredamedicalemergency.Hypertensionoccurswhenthepressureinthearteries
becomeshigh,causingthehearttoworkharderthannormaltopumpthebloodthroughoutthebody.

Whats Normal Blood Pressure?

Bloodpressure(BP)ismeasuredusingtwonumbers.Thefirstnumbersystolicbloodpressure,representsthepressureinyour
bloodvesselswhenyourheartbeats.Thesecondnumberdiastolicbloodpressure,representsthepressureinyourblood
vesselswhenyourheartrestsbetweenbeats.Bloodpressureismeasuredinmillimetersofmercury(mmHg).

MedicalprofessionalshavegenerallyagreedthattheupperlimitofthenormalBPis140/90mmHg.IfyourBPisconsistently
abovethatonthreeseparateoccasionsyourhealthcareproviderwilldiagnoseyouwithhypertension.AnidealBPisactually
around115/75mmHgthisiswheretheBPrelatedriskofdeathofheartattackandstrokesisnearzero.But,isitevenpossible
togetbloodpressuresdownthatlow?Itsnotjustpossibleitsnormal,forthoseeatingahealthydietandmakingotherlifestyle
modifications.

Health Consequences of Hypertension

Hypertensionputsyourhealthandqualityoflifeindangerandifleftuncontrolled,highbloodpressure(HBP)canleadto: [ 3]

CoronaryarterydiseaseHBPdamagesarteriesthatcanbecome
blockedandpreventbloodfromflowingtotissuesintheheartmuscle.
Whenbloodcannotflowfreelytoyourheart,youcanexperiencechest
pain,aheartattackorarrhythmias.
StrokeHBPcancausebloodvesselsinthebraintoburstorclog
moreeasily.
HeartfailureTheincreasedworkloadfromhighHBPcancause
thehearttoenlargeandfailtosupplybloodtothebody.
KidneydiseaseHBPcandamagethearteriesaroundthekidneys
andinterferewiththeirabilitytoeffectivelyfilterblood.
VisionlossHBPstrainordamagetobloodvesselsintheeyes.
SexualdysfunctionThiscanbeerectiledysfunctioninmenor
lowerlibidoinwomen.
PeripheralarterydiseaseAtherosclerosiscausedbyHBPcan
causeanarrowingofarteriesinthelegs,arms,stomachandhead,
causingpainorfatigue.
DementiaCanresultfromnarrowingandblockageofthearteries
thatsupplybloodtothebrain.Itcanalsoresultfromstrokescaused
byaninterruptionofbloodflowtothebrain.Ineithercase,HBPmay
betheculprit.

There is nothing I can do because hypertension runs in my family.

Stopthinkingthatnow!Yourbloodpressureismoreaconsequenceofyourlifestylehabitsthanyourgenes.InTheChinaStudy,
Dr.T.ColinCampbellexplainshowgenesneedtobeexpressedinorderforthemtoparticipateindiseaseformation.

Genesgiveusourpredispositions.Weallhavedifferentdiseaserisksduetoourdifferentgenes.Butwhilewewillnever
knowexactlywhichriskswearepredisposedto,wedoknowhowtocontrolthoserisks.Regardlessofourgenes,wecanall
optimizeourchancesofexpressingtherightgenesbyprovidingourbodieswiththebestpossibleenvironmentthatis,the
bestpossiblenutrition.

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Ifyoudohaveafamilyhistoryofhypertensionitisevenmoreimportantforyoutomakelifestylechanges.Wehaveallheardit
before,genesmightbethegunbutlifestyleisthetrigger.

What Can I do to Control my Blood Pressure?

Nutrition
Amountainofstudies,datingbacktotheearly1920s,showthatthoseeatingaplantbaseddiethavelowerbloodpressurethan
thoseincludingmeat,eggsanddairyintheirdiet. [ 4] [ 5] IntheAdventist2Study,whichlookedat89,000Californians,itfound
thatthosewhoonlyatemeatonaweeklybasishad23%lowerratesofhighbloodpressure.Thosewhocutoutallmeatexcept
fishhad38%lowerrates.Thoseeatingnomeatatall,vegetarians,hadlessthanhalftherate.Veganscuttingoutallmeat,fish,
dairyandeggsappearedtohavethrownthreequartersoftheirriskforthissilentkilleroutthewindow. [ 11]

OneofthemostimpressivedietinterventionprogramswasconductedbyJohnMcDougall,MD. [ 6] Thestudyfollowed500
subjectswithavarietyofhealthproblemswhoattendeda12dayresidentiallifestylemodificationprogram.Theyconsumeda
lowfat,wholefoods,plantbaseddietincludingfruit,vegetables,wholegrains,andlegumesandexcludedallanimalproducts
andalcohol.Therewerenorestrictionsonportionsize.Subjectsalsoexercisedandpracticedstressmanagementtechniques.
Within11days,subjectsexperiencedsignificantdropsinbloodpressure.Inmostcases,allbloodpressuremedicationswere
stoppedshortlyafterbeginningtheprogram.Howcoolisthatplantsinsteadofpills!

So,doestheAmericanHeartAssociationrecommenda100%Plantbaseddiet?No,theyrecommendtheDASHdietalowmeat
diet.Whywouldnttheypromoteadietthatwascompletelyplantbased?WhentheDASHdietwasbeingcreated,werethe
authorsjustnotawareofthemountainofresearchonplantbaseddiets?No,theywereaware.TheDASHdietwasdesignedwith
thegoalofcapturingthebloodpressureloweringbenefitsofavegetariandiet,yetcontainenoughanimalfoodstomakeit
palatabletothegeneralpopulation.Theydidntthinkthepubliccouldhandlethetruth.

Intheirdefense,thisiswhattheirthoughtbehindthemessagingwasjustlikedrugsdontworkunlessyouactuallytakethem,
dietsdontworkunlessyouactuallyeatthem.Theythoughtthatnoonewasgoingtoeatstrictlyplantbased.So,iftheywater
downedthemessage,andcameupwithacompromisediet,thenmaybe,onalargescale,theywouldimpactmorepeople.

TellthattotheoverthousandAmericanfamiliesadaythatloseafamilymemberorfriendtohypertension. [ 15] Isntittimethat

westarttellingAmericansthetruth?

Sodium
Evenasmallreductionofsodiuminyourdietcandiminishbloodpressuremeasurementsby2to8mmHg. [ 7] Ingeneral,limit
sodiumtolessthan2,300mgadayorless.However,alowersodiumintake1,500mgadayorlessisappropriateforpeople
withgreatersaltsensitivity.Todecreasedietarysodium,considerthesetips:

Limitprocessedfoods.Onlyasmallamountofsodiumoccurs
naturallyinwholeplantbasedfoods.Mostsodiumisaddedduring
processing.Readthefoodlabelsofanypackagedfood.Bigoffenders
includeanytypeofcornorpotatochip,dietsodas,cannedfoods,fried
foodsandcheese.
Dontaddsalt.Just1levelteaspoonofsalthas2,300mgofsodium.
Useherbsorspicestoaddflavortoyourfood.
Eatathome.ThegroupCenterforScienceinthePublicInterest
foundthat85outof102mealsatpopularrestaurantchainscontained
morethanafulldaysworthofsodium.Someofthemealshadfour
daysworthofsodium. [ 8]

Exercise
Regularphysicalactivity,foratleast30minutesmostdaysoftheweek,canloweryourbloodpressureby4to9mmHg. [ 7]
Consistencyiskeybecauseonceyoustopexercising,yourbloodpressurecancreepbackup.

LimitAlcohol
Nomorethanonedrinkadayforwomenandformenolderthanage65,ormorethantwoadayformenage65andyounger. [ 7]
Onedrinkequals12ouncesofbeer,5ouncesofwineor1.5ouncesof80proofliquor.

Drinkingmorethanmoderateamountsofalcoholcanraisebloodpressuresignificantly.Itcanalsoreducetheeffectivenessof
bloodpressuremedications. [ 7] Evenatlowerlevelsofconsumption,theregularconsumptionofalcoholelevatesbloodpressure,
withestimatesthattheattributableriskfordevelopinghypertensionfromalcoholis16%. [ 9] However,thisislargelyreversible
within24weeksofabstinenceorasubstantialreductioninalcoholintake.

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DoNotSmoke
Cigarettesmokingisacardiovascularriskfactorandsmokingcessationisapowerfullyeffectivelifestylemeasureforthe
preventionofalargenumberofcardiovasculardiseases. [ 13] Notonlydoessmokingimmediatelyraiseyourbloodpressure
temporarily,butthechemicalsintobaccocandamagetheliningofyourarterywalls.Thiscancauseyourarteriestonarrow,
increasingyourbloodpressurechronically.Secondhandsmokealsocanincreaseyourbloodpressure. [ 14]

StressManagement
Stresscancausehypertensionthroughrepeatedbloodpressureelevationsorbystimulationofthenervoussystemtoproduce
largeamountsofhormonesthatconstrictthebloodvesselsandincreasebloodpressure. [ 10] Factorsaffectingbloodpressure
throughstressincludewhitecoathypertension,jobstrain,socialenvironment,andemotionaldistress.Wecannotalwayschange
ourstressors,butwecanchangethewaywemanagethosestressors.Thefollowingstrategiesarehelpfultohelpcombatthe
effectsofstress:

Learnrelaxationtechniques.Meditation,progressivemuscle
relaxation,guidedimagery,deepbreathingexercises,andyogaareall
powerfulstressbusters.
Strengthenyoursocialnetwork.Connectwithothersbytakinga
class,joininganorganization,orparticipatinginasupportgroup.
Manageyourtime.Themoreefficientlyyouareabletojugglework
andfamilydemands,theloweryourstresslevel.Donotbeafraidto
askforhelpfromyourspouse,family,friends,coworkersor
neighbors.
Trytoresolvestressfulsituations.Dontletstressfulsituations
fester.Holdfamilyproblemsolvingsessionsandusenegotiationskills
athomeandatwork.
Nurtureyourself.Trulysavoranexperience:forexample,eat
slowlyandreallyfocusonthetasteofeachbite.Takeawalkoranap,
treatyourselftoamassageorlistentoyourfavoritemusic.

You Have The Control

Mostoftheburdenofhypertension,andrelatedmedicalconditions,islargelypreventableorreversiblethroughlifestyle
changes.Attemptingtoreducehighbloodpressurewithmedicationmaynotbeaseffectiveaslifestyleapproaches,astheydo
nottreatthecause.Eventhoseonbloodpressureloweringdrugscangetafurther78%dropinriskbyeatingandliving
healthfully. [ 12]

Theavailablescientificevidenceaccumulatedinthepast30yearscollectivelyindicatesthatthewidespreadadoptionofawhole
foods,plantbaseddiet,alongwithmaintainingahealthyweight,notsmoking,andexercisingregularlycanmakehypertensiona
diagnosisofthepast.Truehealthisaprocessofoptimallivingwithcontinualimprovementinouractionsovertime.Nomatter
ourageorourclinicalcondition,wecanallstrivetoeatbetter,movemoreandthinkmorepositively.Wehavethepowertotake
controlofourhealth.

References
1. https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fs_bloodpressure.htm
2. http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HighBloodPressure/
3. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/high-blood-pressure/
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22230619
5. http://plantbasedresearch.org/search/node/hypertension
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8522729
7. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/high-blood-pressure/
8. https://cspinet.org/
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16922819
10. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9894438
11. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21983060
12. http://nutritionfacts.org/video/more-than-an-apple-a-day-preventing-our-most-common-diseases
13. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20550499
14. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/basics/risk-factors/con-20019580
15. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2013 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released
2015. http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html . Accessed on Feb 3, 2015.

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