11 Ways to Keep Your Blood Pressure "Just Right" (Feb 21, 2013)
Optimizing Your Health Part 14: Optimal Blood Pressure
Dear Readers,
Imagine for a moment the water pressure in a garden hose. If the pressure is too low, the hose is limp and won't spray. If the pressure is too high, the hose can burst.
Your arteries and veins — the vessels that carry blood throughout your body — work pretty much like that garden hose.
If your blood pressure is too low, your organs don't get the blood they need to function properly (particularly your brain). This can make you feel dizzy and light-headed when you stand up; fatigued throughout the day; and "crash" after exercise.
If your pressure is elevated, the strong rush of blood can damage blood vessels, leading to heart attack, stroke, kidney failure and other diseases.
The best blood pressure is optimal blood pressure — not too low, not too high, but "just right."
If your blood pressure is too low it's likely you'll have one or more of the symptoms I just described. But how can you tell if your blood pressure is too high? Just go to the nearest supermarket or drugstore and use the free sphygmomanometer — a fancy medical name for a machine that reads blood pressure. (It's usually near the pharmacy.)
In my opinion, blood pressure shouldn't be elevated above 140/85. I know that many experts say a much lower level is optimal. But in my practice, I've found that lowering blood pressure below 140/80 is, especially in people with fatigue, more likely to cause side effects, and offers diminishing returns. So at that point, optimizing blood pressure with lifestyle and natural changes is the approach I prefer.
Love & blessings,
Dr. T
Research Briefs
20 Easy Ways to Cut Sugar Intake
In a recent interview with MSN's fitbie website, Dr. T takes us through a number of excellent tips for reducing the unhealthy amount of sugar we unknowingly consume in our diets.
Gazpacho — the New "Medicine" for Elevated Blood Pressure!
A new study of nearly 4,000 people showed that those who often ate tomato-rich gazpacho (a cold soup made with tomatoes, other vegetables, olive oil and garlic) were 27% less likely to develop high blood pressure than those who didn't.
See article at NUTRA Ingredients »
Sweating Is Good For You!
Researchers at the University of Montreal found that either taking a sauna or exercising — activities that make you sweat — can help lower elevated blood pressure. I like the far infrared saunas at High Tech Health.
Dark Chocolate for Lower Blood Pressure
Spanish researchers found that adding dark chocolate (85% cacao) to the diets of people with liver problems helped them overcome low blood pressure.
OM Rx
Researchers in England divided 129 people with elevated blood pressure into two groups: one that was taught yogic meditation, and one that wasn't. Those in the group that meditated had a bigger drop in blood pressure.
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Funny Stuff
Crazy Laws in Ohio
Owners of tigers must notify authorities within one hour if the tiger escapes.
It is illegal to fish for whales on Sunday.
It is illegal to get a fish drunk.
The Ohio driver's education manual states that you must honk the horn whenever you pass another car.
No one may be arrested on Sunday or on the Fourth of July.
It is illegal for more than five women to live in a house.
In Bexley, slot machines can not be installed or used in outhouses.
In Cleveland, it's illegal to catch mice without a hunting license!
In Cleveland, women are forbidden from wearing patent leather shoes, lest men see reflections of their underwear.
In Columbus, it's illegal for stores to sell corn flakes on Sunday.
In Ironton, cross-dressing is against the law.
In Lima , any map that does not have Lima clearly stated on the map cannot be sold.
In Marion, you cannot eat a doughnut and walk backwards on a city street.
In North Canton, it is against the law to roller skate without notifying the police.
In McDonald, your goose may not be paraded down Main Street.
In Oxford, it's illegal for a woman to strip off her clothing while standing in front of a man's picture.
In Paulding, a policeman may bite a dog to quiet him.
In Toledo, throwing a snake at anyone is illegal.
Jacob Teitelbaum, M.D. is one of the world's leading integrative medical authorities on fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue. He is the lead author of eight research studies on their effective treatments, and has published numerous health & wellness books, including the bestseller on fibromyalgia From Fatigued to Fantastic! and The Fatigue and Fibromyalgia Solution. Dr. Teitelbaum is one of the most frequently quoted fibromyalgia experts in the world and appears often as a guest on news and talk shows nationwide including Good Morning America, The Dr. Oz Show, Oprah & Friends, CNN, and Fox News Health.
