Hypertension GWilkerson11/13/2014 Disease
What is it? From Mayo Clinic: High blood pressure (hypertension) High blood pressure is a common condition in which the force of the blood against your artery walls is high enough that it may eventually cause health problems, such as heart disease. You can have high blood pressure (hypertension) for years without any symptoms.
Symptoms Most people with high blood pressure have no signs or symptoms, even if blood pressure readings reach dangerously high levels.
Causes There are two types of high blood pressure. Primary: Some people have high blood pressure caused by an underlying condition. Secondary: Some people have high blood pressure caused by an underlying condition. This type of high blood pressure, called secondary hypertension, tends to appear suddenly and cause higher blood pressure than does primary hypertension.
Risk factors Risk factors include age, race, family history, obesity, inactivity, being overweight or obese, using too much salt, using tobacco, too little potasium in the diet, too much alcohol, stress or too little Vitamin D (hormone). Michael Gerber, M.D. in his article titled hypertension A plant-based-diet can help prevent hypertension. This may be because many plant-foods contribute to prevention and treatment of hypertension, such as beans, watermelon (especially yellow), and cocoa. Spirulina might also help with high blood pressure, but it is not recommended. Alkaline water machines are a scam, but DIY extremely dilute baking soda-water may help reduce hypertension. Dark green leafy vegetables may be especially helpful, due to their high nitrate levels. John McDougall, M.D. article, High Blood Pressure (Hypertension) Blood pressure rises naturally in response to a clogging of your blood vessels in order to deliver oxygen and nutrients to your body. The pharmaceutical industry’s answer is to inhibit the natural mechanisms of the body, causing the pressure to fall. Again, from a Kaiser Permanente article:
Nutritional Update for Physicians: Plant-Based Diets Definitions of Plant-Based Diets The presented case is a dramatic example of the effect a plant-based diet can have on biometric outcomes like blood pressure, diabetes, and lipid profile. The reduction in HbA1C from 11.1% to 6.3% in 3 months is much better than would be expected with monotherapy with metformin or daily exercise. The improvement in blood pressure observed over a 4-month period with few medications is also rarely encountered in clinical practice and is likely related to a low-salt diet and avoiding red meat. Because the patient was not obese and did not have significant weight loss with the diet, the dramatic improvements appear to be related to the quality of his new diet. From Julieanna Hever, the Plant-Based Dietitian comes this article: How a plant-based diet can reduce hypertension and prevent Stroke : Experts say that nutrients found in plants are associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline in old age, and that food sourced from plants is one of our best natural allies to help prevent stroke. Scientist T. Colin Campbell, PhD, coauthor of “The China Study,” cited a publication from the well-known Framingham Study which had researchers concluding that for every three additional servings of fruits and vegetables a day, the risk of stroke could be reduced by 22%. Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease and affects almost one-third of the U.S. adult population. In 2009–2010, nearly 82% of adults with hypertension were aware of their status, and nearly 76% were taking medication (2). Despite considerable improvement in increasing the awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension, undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension among minority groups remains a challenge. This report presents survey results for 2011–2012 on the prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension. Statistical Fact Sheet 2013 Update High Blood Pressure In the U S, about 80 million (1 out of 3) adults have high blood pressure. Data from NHANES 2007–10 showed that of those with high blood pressure, – 81.5 percent are aware they have it – 74.9 percent are under current treatment – 52.5 percent have it controlled – 47.5 percent do not have it controlled Hyperaldosteronism This is what I have and what caused the high blood pressure leading to the stroke in April 2004. Hyperaldosteronism
Hyperaldosteronism can be defined as excessive levels of aldosterone which may be independent of the renin-angiotensin axis (primary hyperaldosteronism) or due to high renin levels (secondary hyperaldosteronism). Adrenal adenoma: • This is known as Conn’s syndrome. It was first described in 1956 by Dr Jerome Conn, an American endocrinologist, who discovered an aldosterone-secreting adenoma in a 34 year-old patient who had a long history of periodic cramps associated with occasional complete lower limb paralysis. • Adrenal adenoma accounts for more than 80% of all cases of hyperaldosteronism. • Adenomas are usually unilateral and solitary. Adrenal hyperplasia: • In bilateral adrenal hyperplasia (BAH) the adrenal cells become hyperplastic, resulting in excessive secretion of aldosterone. This accounts for 15% of all cases of hyperaldosteronism. • There is also a much rarer recognised entity of unilateral adrenal hyperplasia, which is treated by adrenalectomy. Well, I still have both of my adrenals. I have no blood pressure meds anymore. I take less than 1/8th of the originally prescribed spironolactone. A Dr. at the VA clinic in Fort Worth, Texas told us “it never goes away, it is for life!” Bet Me!!! Ok, maybe it doesn’t go away… so explain my drastically decreased meds and near normal blood pressure readings! Conclusion
Hypertension is very treatable with a plant-strong diet and an amount of exercise. For most blood pressure problems it is highly related to our fuel intake and heart disease. This Hyperaldosteronism, on the other hand, I don’t know what caused it. It could have been exposure to Agent Orange while I was off the coast of Viet Nam on a tin can during the early ’70s. I am beginning to suspect it may be from consuming GMO ‘foods’ prior to my blood pressure starting to rise in 2003. This could open up a whole new bag of worms to ‘prove’ with an attorney. http://www.plant-strong-health-blog-by-gary.com/hypertension/