Friday, February 17

Nine Natural Ways to Lower Your Blood Pressure

By Bernie Noe, ND

High blood pressure is typically a silent disease, producing few or no symptoms while increasing the risk for heart attack, stroke, vision problems and kidney disease. There are two basic types of high blood pressure, also known as hypertension: primary (essential) and secondary. Secondary hypertension has an identifiable cause such as kidney disease, adrenal tumors or drugs, although this type is relatively rare compared to the much more prevalent primary hypertension. Primary hypertension is considered to have no identifiable cause. However, from a naturopathic perspective most people with primary hypertension do have an identifiable cause – diet and lifestyle.

All of the following are known risk factors for high blood pressure. Addressing these factors can lower blood pressure in many people.

Reduce salt– Too much salt in the diet causes the body to retain water, which raises blood pressure. About one-third of people with hypertension are salt sensitive and will see a reduction in blood pressure when they reduce their salt intake. Salt (or sodium) is found in most processed foods, especially soups, sauces, cheese and chips – all nutrition labels indicate sodium amounts. People with high blood pressure should limit their daily intake of sodium to less than 1500 mg per day (the average American consumes 3300-4200 mg daily).

Reduce alcohol– While alcohol in moderation,may lower the risk of heart attack and stroke, alcohol in excess can raise blood pressure. In general, men should limit alcohol to two drinks per day or less and women to one per day or less. Those with high blood pressure may benefit from further reductions.

Quit tobacco– In addition to raising blood pressure, tobacco raises the risk of heart attack and stroke in other ways, including by increasing the risk of forming blood clots.

Increase physical activity– In addition to raising blood pressure, lack of physical activity tends to cause weight gain and inflammation, both of which are risk factors for heart attack and stroke. The minimum guideline for physical activity is 30 minutes daily of moderate intensityexercise. Optimal is 45-60 minutes per day.

Increase fruits and vegetables— Fruits and vegetables are high in potassium and fiber, both of which lower blood pressure.Countless studies have found that those with the highest intake of fruits and vegetables are at the lowest risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, diabetes, most cancer, and many other chronic diseases. The minimum intake is 5 servings per day, while optimum intake is 8-10 servings per day.

Decrease sugar and flour— High glycemic foods such as sugar and flour can increase blood pressure, in addition to raising cholesterol, weight and inflammation. All of these are risks for heart attack and stroke. Those who have high blood sugar, high triglycerides, low HDL (good) cholesterol or are overweight are especially likely to benefit from this. Added sugars such as dessert, soda and maple syrup should be eliminated and all grains should be whole grains and consumption limited to once daily.

Lose weight– Being overweight tends to increase blood pressure, cholesterol and inflammation, all of which are risk factors for heart attack and stroke. Physical activity, avoiding sugar and flour and eating lots of fruits and vegetables are great ways to promote weight loss.

Decrease caffeine– Studies on the impact of caffeine on blood pressure are mixed. Some people with high blood pressure may benefit from reducing caffeine intake.

Avoid food allergens— In some people, food allergies may contribute to high blood pressure. Blood allergy testing, which is available through most naturopathic physicians, is an easy way to determine if you are allergic.

The DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stopping Hypertension), which combines many of the recommendations listed above, has been shown to reduce systolic blood pressure by 10 or more points. In addition to the above dietary and lifestyle factors, nutrients such as coenzyme Q10, L-arginine, magnesium, and vitamin C and a variety of herbal medicines including rauwolfia can be effective at lowering blood pressure. For most people with primary hypertension, however, addressing the dietary and lifestyle factors listed above will be adequate to lower blood pressure.

Dr. Bernie Noe is a licensed Naturopathic Physician in the state of Vermont and a graduate of Bastyr University in Seattle, Washington. He is the president of Green Mountain Wellness Solutions in Montpelier, Vermont.

Dr. Noe is a three-time winner of the Vermont Governor’s Gold Medal Worksite Wellness Award for his innovative “Jump Start to Better Health” wellness program for the Vermont Automobile Dealers Association. He is a past officer of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians and past-president of the Vermont Association of Naturopathic Physicians.

Tuesday, February 7

What is your Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA)?

I am wondering what nutrients I need to take daily and I found this website that asks me for my age and gender and automatically computes for my recommended daily intake.


It says: 


Here are the recommended dietary allowances (RDA), according to the US Food and Nutrition Board (FNB), for nutrients for a male, age = 39 years.

Click on our list of nutrients which includes all vitamins and minerals. Each link gives a description of sources, benefits, 3D pictures and the problems that deficiency may cause. 

(Note: nutrients with a star indicate Adequate Intake or AI because no RDA can be established)




Nutrients
Needed
My Essentials
900 mcg
3750 IU
90 mg
112.5 mg
5* mcg
3.75 mcg
15 mg
16 IU
120* mcg
15 mcg
1.2 mg
1.8 mg
1.3 mg
1.95 mg
16 mg
10 mg
1.3 mg
1.95 mg
foliate   
400 mcg
250 mcg
2.4 mcg
3.6 mcg
pantothenic       
5* mg
22.5 mg
30* mcg
75 mcg
550* mg
25 mg
1,000* mg
68.34 mg
chromium   
35* mcg
.075 mg
900 mcg
.5 mg
fluoride       
4* mg
n/a
150 mcg
56 mcg
8 mg
n/a
420 mg
75 mg
2.3* mg
1.25 mg
45 mcg
.013 mg
700 mg
n/a
55 mcg
51 mcg
11 mg
5.025 mg
4.7* g
As Iodide & Vit C
1.5* g    
n/a
2.3* g
n/a



Do you want to know What your RDA is?
Know more about the My Essentials?

Monday, February 6

Your Liver Has a Schedule to Follow

Be Good to Your Liver
The liver is the largest single gland in the body. It is located on the right side of the abdomen under the lower ribs and just under the diaphragm which divides the chest from the abdomen. Liver performs a number of important functions in the body. When the liver is healthy it works very smoothly.

Causes of Liver Damage
Most of the foods we eat are stored in the liver, after having been digested and absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. The liver has another very important function, that of detoxifying or destroying many harmful poisons and even certain medicines that are taken into the body for other purposes. When the liver is sick these functions are impaired and soon the whole body suffers. Not only does the liver store food materials, it also produces bile, a golden-yellowish liquid that is needed for the absorption of fat from the intestine. Another important substance produced in the liver is cholesterol, part of which passes into the bile. It may even form stones in the bile ducts and gall bladder under certain conditions.

The main causes of liver damage are:
  •      Sleeping too late and waking up too late are the main cause.
  •         Not urinating in the morning.
  •         Too much eating.
  •         Skipping breakfast.
  •         Consuming too much medication.
  •         Consuming too much preservatives, additives, food coloring, and artificial sweetener.
  •         Consuming unhealthy cooking oil. As much as possible reduce cooking oil use when frying, which includes even the best cooking oils like olive oil. Do not consume fried foods when you are tired, except if the body is very fit.
  •         Consuming overly done foods also add to the burden of liver. Veggies should be eaten raw or cooked 3-5 parts. Fried veggies should be finished in one sitting, do not store.

 We should prevent this without necessarily spending more. We just have to adopt a good daily lifestyle and eating habits. Maintaining good eating habits and time condition are very important for our bodies to absorb and get rid of unnecessary chemicals according to "liver functioning schedule."

Liver Functioning Schedule
  •         Evening at 9 - 11pm : is the time for eliminating unnecessary toxic chemicals (de-toxification) from the antibody system (lymph nodes).This time duration should be spent by relaxing or listening to music. If during this time one is still in an unrelaxed state such as socializing, drinking, eating out, this will have a negative impact on health.
  •          Evening at 11 PM - 1 AM: is the de-toxification process in the liver,and ideally should be done in a deep sleep state.
  •          Early morning 1-3 AM: de-toxification process in the gall, also ideally done in a deep sleep state.
  •          Early morning 3-5 AM: de-toxification in the lungs. Therefore there will sometimes be a severe cough for cough sufferers during this time. Since the de-toxification process had reached the respiratory tract, there is no need to take cough medicine so as not to interfere with toxin removal process.
  •          Morning 5-7 AM: de-toxification in the colon, you should empty your bowel.
  •          Morning 7-9 AM: absorption of nutrients in the small intestine, you should be having breakfast at this time. Breakfast should be earlier, before 6:30am, for those who are sick. Breakfast before 7:30am is very beneficial to those wanting to stay fit. Those who always skip breakfast, they should change their habits, and it is still better to eat breakfast late until 9 -10am rather than no meal at all.
      Sleeping so late and waking up too late will disrupt the process of removing unnecessary chemicals.
      Aside from that, midnight to 4am is the time when the bone marrow produces blood. Therefore, have a good sleep and don't sleep late.

 I have downloaded this article in the past but can not find it's website anymore. It's heading says Knowledge Based Software.


(