Natural Treatment for High Blood Pressure and Hypertension

As for mild and light hypertensive patients, non-medication treatments are recommended while for severe and chronic hypertensive patients, the medicinal treatments should be incorporated with non-medication treatments so as to achieve the most desirable and satisfactory therapeutic effect.

Limit Your Sodium Intake

Salt intake correlates positively with the occurrence of hypertension (high blood pressure). The higher the salt intake in the blood, the higher the blood pressure will be and vise versa. Each additional of 1g of salt intake can lead to an average increase of 2mmHg in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and 1.7mmHg average increase in diastolic blood pressure (DBP). The daily intake of 20g of salt can give rise to a 30% of hypertension. In the Northern part of Japan, people prefer to take 30g of salt per person in a day, and thus the occurrences of hypertension, stroke are significantly higher than those who consume less salt. Their blood pressures are two times higher than the world average level, and thus this place has honored as “Kingdom of Hypertension” and “Kingdom of stoke.” Similarly, people in northeast China have high probability to suffer from hypertension as they consume much salt in their daily diet. Another report also showed that people in the Tibetan region, the Tibet Lhasa tribe has the first ranking of hypertension in the world, as most people there prefer to drink salt tea. On the contrary, people in Jamaica who consume salt less than 2g per day have not shown any complications of hypertension.

Many clinical laboratory experiments have revealed that excessive sodium chloride (salt) intake can worsen the cardiovascular system and the intake of salt is particularly detrimental to the blood viscosity of the elderly, which may finally give rise to the level of blood pressure. Therefore, patients should control the intake of sodium in order to stabilize or lower their blood pressure. Clinical experiments revealed that patients who decreased the salt intake from 10.5g to 4.7g in their diet had shown an obvious average decrease of 4 to 6mmHg in their SBP. For most patients, the daily salt intake should be limited to 6g (3ml of soy sauce equals to 1g of table salt), but for the elderly hypertensive patients, the daily salt intake should be limited to 4g.

World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended the salt intake per person shall not be more than 6g in a day. The salt here includes MSG, soy sauce, and foods that rich in salt content. We can help control the consumption of salt by living with “salt reduction” or “zero salt” strategy in our daily diet to prevent hypertension, and most importantly to curb the rise of blood pressure particularly for those who already have relatively high blood pressure in their existing health condition.

Drink Water Scientifically

Water hardness is closely associated with the incidence of hypertension. Recent studies from Japan and Korea have showed that hard water contains more calcium and magnesium ions, which are important substances to promote and regulate vascular smooth muscle cells systolic and diastolic. In the absence of these substances, our vascular tends to cramp and spasm easily, and finally leading to high blood pressure. Therefore, patients should drink hard water, such as natural spring water, natural mineral water, alkaline water and such. Among the water, alkaline water is the best remedy to treat hypertension according to the data analysis from the Japan sources.

Natural mineral water and alkaline water contain lithium, strontium, zinc, selenium, iodine, and other essential trace elements that benefits human health. Nevertheless, the boiling water may have significantly less of trace elements and minerals and thus it sometimes does not meet the standard of healthy water. Tea, other form of drinks that benefits hypertensive and cardiovascular patients as it contains polyphenols, antioxidants (helps excluding harmful chemical like chromium ion in human body), potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc and trace elements such as fluorine. Therefore, patients are also encouraged to drink 4 to 5g of black tea or green tea a day to promote better health.

Physical and Psychological treatments

Physical treatment is helpful for hypertensive patients. Meditation is one of the methods that hypnosis the brain for thorough relaxation and peace of mind. This in turns helps lowering the blood pressure. Nevertheless, this treatment should be conducted under the guidance of experienced experts or specialists.

The patients should keep their minds in peace and free from any confusions in order to attain psychological balance. Negative emotions not only harm human health, but may also give rise to the level of blood pressure. Therefore, it is always better to go for positive thinking as it helps to improve the blood pressure. The emotion of either “too sad” or “too excited” may indirectly cause the rise of blood pressure, so patients should keep a balanced and tranquility mind by adopting moderate lifestyle.

Maintain Emotional Optimism

Many modern medical researches have showed that worries, sadness, anxiety, irritability, mental disorders and other adverse mental disturbances can increase the secretion of vasoactive substances called catecholamine. These substances can increase the blood pressure, and thus hypertensive patients should control their emotions by excluding any pessimistic thinking. The elimination of mind diffusion and illusion are important to maintain the normal function of nerve center which helps lowering blood pressure.

Family Therapy

Every hypertensive patient should schedule for healthy living lifestyle by adopting appropriate diet, exercise and relaxation. Patients should not wear tight pants, shorts, trousers, and clothes with their collars or buttons tightly tied up, tightly tied necktie or tightly tied zip, as this situation may constrain the blood vessels and thus elevating the blood pressure. Patients should attempt in their endeavors to avoid constipation or passing gas as this consequence will increase abdominal pressure, and may later cause the sudden rise of blood pressure. During hard defecation, patients can use laxative pills to help for smooth bowel movement; nevertheless, this is not encouraged. The appropriate way is to increase foods high in cellulose to assist in the bowel action.

Adequate exercise, long-term and persistence walk, jogging, Taijiquan, cycling and swimming can decrease blood pressure. Adequate and proper rest can eliminate excessive tension too. Patients should bear in mind that excessive tension, stress and fatigue can cause elevated blood pressure. Therefore, in order to avoid pressure, stress and body fatigue, patients should learn to control their tempers by concentrating more efforts on resolving their problems. Qigong and Yoga are good practices for hypertensive patients to get better rest. Smoking and excessive drinking are not good for the health of hypertensive patients.

Patients should avoid having sexual intercourse with their partners if their blood pressures are abnormal and not stable. Patients should not expose under the direct sunlight for too long. Patients should monitor the blood pressure timely with a measuring device at least once or twice in a week. The first elevated blood pressure reading is not an appropriate indicator of hypertension, so patients need to get 4 to 5 blood pressure readings within a day in order to obtain its average reading that helps monitoring the condition of their blood pressure. Prior to any measurements, patients should calm themselves by taking 15 minutes rest. Patients should avoid bending over while reading or watching television as this action will oppress the blood vessels to constraint and subsequently causing cerebral vascular disturbances, ischemia, hypoxia, and sometimes may prone to unexpected accidents.

Music is a good remedy that can regulate the body’s nerve function. However, fast-pace, quick and loud music can lead to the tense of peripheral nerves, vascular dementia and disturbances, blood circulation disorders, resulting in the surge of blood pressure. Therefore, patients should keep their ears to slow-pace and soft music to maintain the normal blood circulation. Speakers should not be placed too close and music should not be turned on too loud to avoid vascular disturbances. Patients are not encouraged to wear headphones or spend too much time in front of the television, video games or computers as this may oppress the peripheral blood vessels and nerves, worsen the blood circulation that leads to high level of blood pressure.

Chinese Medicine Treatment

Chinese medicine acupuncture, massage, and Chinese herbs have good effects towards high blood pressure. In Chinese herbal medicine, Peony root, Eucommia, Prunella vulgaris and wild chrysanthemum are commonly used to treat hypertension.

Adequate Calcium Supplementation

Generally, hypertensive patients have shown low intake of calcium. Some studies have proved that daily intake of 800mg of calcium rich foodstuffs are useful in treating hypertension. According to another clinical research conducted in Korea, hypertensive patients who have the supplementary of 1000mg of calcium for eight consecutive weeks, have showed a significant decrease in their blood pressures. Hence, patients should increase the calcium intake by consuming calcium rich foodstuffs so that their blood pressures can be improved. In short, the increase of diet high in calcium is an effective measure to prevent or reduce the occurrences of high blood pressure.

Patients are encouraged to take at least 1g of calcium per day in their daily diet for a healthy blood pressure. Foods that rich in calcium include soybean, sunflower seeds, walnuts, peanuts, dates, seaweed, kelp, etc.

Adequate Mmagnesium Supplementation

Some studies have proved that daily intake of 300mg of magnesium is useful in the treatment of hypertension. A variety of vegetables include seeds, nuts, beans, peas and dark vegetables are rich in calcium and magnesium. Celery benefits the patients as it has great medicinal property to reduce the stress of vascular walls. Other foods that beneficial hypertension include Chinese wolfberry, liensinine, tomatoes, hawthorn, onions, kelp, wakame (Japanese green, dried seaweed) and Konbu (Japanese black, dried seaweed).

Adequate Iron Supplementation

Studies found that hypertensive patients have lower iron content in their bloods. The supplementary of iron in adequate amount helps lowering blood pressure besides preventing anemia. Iron-rich foods are peas, black fungus, kelp, seaweed, etc.

Increase the Appropriate Amount of Potassium

It has been proved scientifically that potassium has a property of antihypertensive effect. It was reported that daily intake of 5 to 7g of potassium can reduce the blood pressure from 4 to 9mmHg. Another research on animal found that the increased of potassium intake though did not show a decline in blood pressure, it does prevent stroke, ventricular hypertrophy, reduce the incidence of renal function, or any hypertension related induced mortality symptoms. Thus, patients with hypertension should take appropriate amount of potassium daily. In accordance to the daily supplementary of potassium, Japan researchers suggest patients to include fresh organic vegetables and fruits, particularly bananas to ensure daily body requirement for 3,000 to 4,000mg of potassium, in order to help reducing blood pressure. Other good sources of potassium are beans and dark green leafy vegetables. For the sake of health, patients should include plenty of organic fruits and vegetables in their daily diet.

Medical reports from multiple sources revealed that the appropriate increase of the dietary ratio of potassium and sodium (or called K-factor in scientific term) will assist hypertensive sufferers to reduce the entire dependence on drugs or medication. Modern medical research has shown that when K-factor is achieved at three and above, human internal organs can function well. When the K-factor drops to three and below, or even as low as 1 to 1.5, the prevalence rate for hypertension will increase. Most plant-based foods have properties of K-factor in the 20 and above which are good diets for hypertensive patients. Other good sources of K-factor include bananas, persimmons, apples, jujube or any other foods that have K-factor 50 and above. These foods are the best food remedies help lowering blood pressure.

Quit Drinking Alcohol and Smoking

Tobacco and alcohol are two main risk factors for hypertension, which increase the complicated heart disease symptoms and cerebrovascular disease. Drinking liquor can cause the risk of glucocorticoid catecholamines, which further causing angiotensin impact, vasopressin and the role of aldosterone by influencing the mobility of the membrane and subsequently contributing to high blood pressure. Wine or liquor may reduce the responsiveness of patients towards the drugs. Also, drinking liquor may affect on medication as well as the difficulty in blood pressure control. Therefore, hypertensive patients are advised to strictly control alcoholic drinks. The daily alcohol volume should be lower than 50ml. For male, the daily alcohol intake should limit from 20 to 30ml, while for female is from 10 to 15ml. A small volume of red wine benefits the health but excessive drinking can lead to arteriosclerosis and increased hypertension-related complicated symptoms. Patients should also control consumption on low content alcoholic drinks.

Epidemiological survey has found that heavy smokers have a significant increased in the incidence of hypertension, and coronary heart disease which may cause sudden death. Studies have shown that smoking of one cigarette can increase 5 to 20 beats/ minute of human heart rate, accompanying with the increase of 10 to 25mmHg in systolic blood pressure (SBP). This situation happens because tobacco or cigarette contains nicotine, a chemical substance that stimulates central nerves and sympathetic neurological system that accelerates the heart rate. The secretion of great amount of adrenal catecholamite causes arterial contraction, and thereby leading to high blood pressure. Additionally, nicotine stimulates chemical receptors within the blood vessels and thus causing high blood pressure. Besides that, long-term smoking facilitates atherosclerosis, thickening the blood vessels gradually, and resulting in vascular sclerosis. As tobacco or cigarette has substantial amount of carbon monoxide (CO), a chemical substance that can reduce the oxygen content in the blood vessels resulting the shortage of oxygen within the internal vascular membrane. In contrary, the oxygen content in the lipid-containing plaques on the innermost layer of the artery wall increases substantially, accelerating the formation of thickening and hardening artery wall or atherosclerosis.

Therefore, it is always a good practice for patients to quit alcohol and smoking.

Exercise Constantly and Efficiently

Regular and constant exercise can enhance cardiovascular system, normalize and stabilize the systolic and diastolic blood vessels, increase appetite, promote gastrointestinal peristalsis, prevent constipation, improve sleep, reduce the blood sugar and lipids concentration in the bloodstream.

A research by a Harvard University showed that a regular exercise with at least three times a day, or 20 minutes to spend for gymnastics or sports, was found effectively improving the blood pressure situations. Chinese scholars proposed elderly people or patients to do qigong and tai chi as these form of physical movements have proved to improve the conditions of hypertensive patients. WHO in its report in 1992 suggested that jogging and walking are the best and most appropriate form of exercises for hypertensive patients. By maintaining the tranquility, peace, concentration and internal organs relaxation one can help improving his blood pressure. Therefore, patients should participate in sports, such as dancing, walking, jogging, cycling for the sake of their health.

Patients are encouraged not to do any form of exercises straightaway or immediately while getting up from the bed as this may lead to insufficiency blood supply particularly in the brain and heart, and in some cases may prone to unexpected situations such as myocardial ischemia. Therefore, people with high blood pressure should relax themselves for 5 to 10 minutes on bed before doing some light exercises. And the volume of the activities should be increased gradually according to the health condition of the individual respectively.

For a healthy blood pressure, exercise should be carried out 30 minutes for each practice five times a week. Before doing exercise, patients should warm up their bodies for 10 minutes. For each ending section of exercise, patients should relax their bodies for 10 minutes to avoid vascular constriction and muscle cramp. Experts recommend exercise to be done by calculating a heart rate. Its formula is (170 – age) times/ minute. For example, people who are 65 years old, their exercise rate is 105 beats/ minute (170 – 65 = 105). Patients may also calculate the volume of exercise for each ending section of exercise with a pulse count. Its formula is pulse rate multiplying 4 plus 10% of the pulse rate. For example, people with pulse rate 30, their exercise rate is 132 times / minute ([30 x 4] + [120 x 10%] = 132.)

While doing exercise, few things to bear in mind as follows:

1. Do not go for aggressive and tiring exercise but the exercise should be done step by step and its volume should increase gradually according to the health condition of the individual respectively
2. Do not over exercise or overexert muscles for each physical activity
3. Pay attention to the surrounding temperature. Do not ever attempt to exercise when the whether is either too hot or too cold to prevent the outbreak of stroke
4. Wear clothes that are appropriate, comfortable, cotton-made materials, high ability to absorb sweat and water, and appropriate sport shoes
5. Do exercise only in the safe places such as open space, field, park, but not in the roadway or narrow path
6. Avoid doing exercise while fasting as this will cause hypoglycemia (low blood glucose). Exercise should be carried out 2 hours later after the meal.
7. Stop any form of physical exercises, if one feels uncomfortable or sick
8. Stop any form of physical exercises, if one finds pain in certain parts of the body or if ones experiences any discomfort feelings or complicated symptoms
9. Do not go for exercise while empty stomach or 1 hour later after the meal
10. Do not stop aggressively or immediately while doing exercise. Patients should follow the proper procedure to cease the physical exercise to avoid muscle cramp and pain.

Weight Control

A national survey conducted by the United States found that overweight is the culprit of hypertension. Another research done by Japan Research Team revealed that obesity is the major risk factor for hypertension. Japanese researches discovered that 80% of the hypertensive patients have a decline in blood pressure after undergoing a period of food therapy. In conjunction to this research, Chinese medical experts pointed out those hypertensive patients can improve their conditions by adopting an appropriate diet to control their weight. The weight control is essential to maintain patients’ normal blood pressure, obesity, heart rate, plasma uric acid, blood glucose and cholesterol. Additionally, weight control is effective to lower blood pressure while reducing insulin, as the reduced weight helps to inhibit rennin sympathetic and aldosterone.

The simple calculation for the standard weight is as follows:

Height should be in the normal range of height (measured in cm) -105 ± 10% of the body weight. Any value exceeds this range is considered overweight.

As for the males with obesity below ± 10%, the daily calorie intake should maintain at 2000 kcal (kilocalories), while for women is 1,800 kcal.

As for the males with obesity around the range of ±20%, the daily calorie intake should maintain at 1,700 kcal, while for women is 1,500 kcal.

As for extremely high obese men, the daily calorie intake should be in the range of 1100 to 1400 kcal, while for women is in 1000 to 1200 kcal.

The simplest way to calculate standard weight is based upon the formula of body mass index (BMI) as follows:

BMI = body weight (kg) / height (m) 2

• Example: weight = 72kg, height = 175cm (1.75m)
• Calculation: 72/ (1.75)2 = 23.51

BMI = body weight (in pounds) / [height (in inches)] 2 x 703

• Example: weight = 150 lbs, height = 5′5” (65”)
• Calculation: [150 / (65) 2] x 703 = 24.69
• Note: BMI ≥ 25 is overweight, and BMI ≥ 27 is obese.

Table shows standard values for overweight and obesity according respectively to the height.

Appropriate eating habits

An appropriate diet will help to keep blood pressure steady. It is recommended to go for vegetarian. This is because meat consumption promotes an increase in uric acid, which has been identified as factor that increases the workload of heart, liver and kidneys.

The diet should contain high vitamins, high fibers, high calcium, more vinegar, but low fat, low sugar, low salt and low cholesterol. The staple food should include coarse food grain such as miscellaneous grains, brown rice, and corn but fewer intakes in refined rice and noodles, sugar and salt. Besides that, patients should restrict their diets on eating sweets, lollipops, chocolates, ice cream, cakes, biscuits and any other sweetened or baked desserts, foods high in energy and trans-fat while watching for their weight. The intake of heat should calculate according to their work, physical needs and living conditions, and then reduces the heat ratio from 15% to 20% in the daily meal.

The total fat should less than 30% of total calories, while protein intake should account for about 15% of the total calories. Additionally, the patients should eat more whole grains, cereals, miscellaneous mixed grains, fresh vegetables, fruits, soybean products, black fungus, seaweeds, but cut on meats, fish, crab, prawn, squid and other animal-based proteins in order to obtain essential trace elements, vitamins, cellulose and enzymes. Patients should avoid taking oily, sugary, spicy, charred and fried foods. Tea, coffee, or coca-cola or any other concentrated caffeine, alcoholic and carbonated drinks are not encouraged for hypertensive patients.

Use non-salt seasoning or sea salt (but Korean bamboo salt is recommended) to increase the delicious of food. Eat less processed, canned food and foods that contain more sodium, preservative and artificial coloring. The intake of protein (plant-based is recommended) should keep to 1gram for each kg of body weight per day. For example, people with 60kg of body weight should take 60g of protein per day, in which plant-based protein occupying of 80%. Adequate intake of protein helps improve flexibility and permeability of vascular vessels, increase urinary sodium excretion, and thereby lowering blood pressure. Nevertheless, hypertensive patients with renal dysfunction should strictly restrict protein intake in their daily diet.

The consumption of oil should come from plant sources such as soybean oil, rapeseed oil, grape seed oil, sunflower oil, corn oil and olive oil. Avoid animal-based oil but use vegetable oil while cooking as the latter is found useful in reducing cholesterol, extending platelet cohesion, inhibiting the formation of thromboxane to prevent stroke, increasing microvascular flexibility due to its linoleic acid property that help preventing cerebral vascular sclerosis and rupture, and other hypertension related complicated symptoms. Apart from this, patients should take polysaccharide sugar (complex carbohydrates, such as starch, corn) instead of monosaccharide sugar (simple carbohydrates, such as glucose, fructose and sucrose) as the latter may easily cause the rise of lipids in the bloodstream.

Eat three regular meals a day and do not over eating and drinking. The plan for daily meal should base upon this menu:

250 to 350 g of carbohydrates (equivalent to 6 to 8 ratio of staple food), 400 to 500g of fresh organic vegetables, 100g to 200g of fresh organic fruits (preferably red apple, one to two a day to provide your body with essential trace elements such as iron, potassium and magnesium), 20 to 25g of cooking oil (preferably olive oil, or grape seed oil), 250g of low fat milk, meats include animal brain and internal organs, chickens, fish, egg yolk, sea foods and other animal protein products should limit to 100g, 100 g of tofu and soy bean products for three servings each.

The recommended foods for healthy blood pressure are as follows:

Preferable foods:

• Carbohydrate: unbleached brown rice, red brown rice, vermicelli, noodle and flour, yam, porridge, pueraria extract powder (Lobed kudzuvine root), soft beans, etc.
• Protein: less fatty foods, low fat dairy products (such as milk oil, yeast milk, yogurt, ice cream, cheese, etc.), soybean products (tofu, soybean meal and drinks, bean curd, soy extract powder, Japanese natto, etc.)
• Fats: plant-based oil, small amount of low fat butter, low fat salad dressing, low fat mayonnaise, etc.
• Vitamins and minerals: vegetables (spinach, cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, lily root, pumpkin, eggplant, cucumber, mushroom, beet root, etc.), fruits (apples, peaches, oranges, pears, grapes, watermelons, grapefruits, plums, dates, etc.), seaweed, kelp, walnuts, almonds, etc.
• Others: black tea, green tea, milk yeast drinks, etc.

Not Preferable Foods:

• Carbohydrate: sweet potato (food that produce abdominal gas), dry beans, biscuits, pie, cakes, pizza, foods enrich with artificial coloring, seasoning and preservative, etc.
• Protein:fatty foods (bacon slices, cow, beef, mutton, crab, prawn, pork, steak, fish meats particularly tuna, herring and whale, etc.), processed meats (sausage, nugget, burger meat, etc.)
• Fats: animal-based oil, charred and grilled meats, animal protein products, etc.
• Vitamins and minerals: hard fiber vegetables (such as bamboo, maize, bamboo shoot), vegetables with strong irritant and stimulant (mustard, onions, parsley, shallot), water spinach (high in sodium content), etc.
• Others: spices (pepper, mustard, curry powder, chili), alcoholic beverages, coffee, concentrated tea, carbonated beverages, salted foods (such as salted vegetables, salted eggs, salted fish and meat, soy sauce cooked foods, pickles), canned foods, etc.

Remarks:

If you follow closely the suggestions in this article, I assure you that you will be rewarded with better health and life. I do hope that you enjoy reading this article. Please feel free to leave your comments if you have any ideas, suggestions, or specific health concerns. This article is aimed at helping patients to live healthily and happily. Good luck!

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