The Indications are High Blood Pressure causes artery blockage

[Guest guest]

" JoAnn Guest " <jguest

Mon Oct 14, 2002 4:46 pm

The Indications are that High Blood Pressure

causes artery blockages

 

 

 

 

Dick - The Indications are:

High Blood Pressure causes

artery blockage

 

 

 

<I have been taking 4 grams of Vit C, 4 g of Lysing, 2.5 g of

<Proline, and 2 g of Niacin a day for 3 months, so it doesn't seem

<that my blood vessels would

<be clogged.

 

Dick,

 

As the blood pressure goes up, the heart muscle must work harder

to push blood throughout the body.

Just as with other muscles in the body, the heart can compensate for

the extra work by getting bigger and stronger, but over the years,

the heart basically gets worn out.

 

Two things usually happen to the heart as a result:

 

" First, hypertension accelerates atherosclerosis

by stressing and damaging the inside lining of the arteries,

promoting plaque formation. "

 

" Since the heart is working harder, it requires a greater blood

supply. Too much plaque

can slow or stop the supply to the heart,

resulting in a heart attack. "

 

" Second, hypertension damages the capillaries throughout the body,

including the heart muscle.

As a result, the muscle cells don't get

the oxygen and nutrients they need as easily, and the heart doesn't

beat as strongly.

Slowly the heart chambers begin to dilate

in an attempt to maintain the blood pressure, but eventually this

fails.The heart becomes enlarged, floppy and ineffective in pumping

blood, and the result is congestive heart failure. "

 

This important info is taken from the book,

" Aging without Growing Old " ,

by Judy Lindbergh McFarland

and her son, Douglas McFarland M.D.

 

So basically, the high blood pressure contributes to artery blockage

in the long run! This tends to become a vicious cycle unless one

gets the proper nutrients to control it.

 

 

Vitamin C and Niacin are very beneficial for heart and artery

problems, however I think that their benefits are vastly

overstated in heart and blood pressure problems.

 

 

 

 

 

" Importance of Dietary Potassium against Stroke.

A study by Kay-Tee Khaw, M.D. and Elizabeth Barrett-Connor, M.D.,

found that a high intake of dietary potassium protected people

against stroke and stroke-related deaths.

 

In fact,they found

that " as little as one extra serving of a potassium-rich food, such

as a fruit or vegetable, may reduce the risk of stroke death by up

to 40 percent. " These researchers based their findings on a study of

850 men and women in an affluent community in southern California.

During the twelve years covered by their study, 24 stroke-related

deaths occurred. These individuals were all found to have

significantly lower potassium intake than survivors and individuals

who died from causes other than stroke.

 

They also found the relationship between dietary potassium and

stroke mortality was independent of blood pressure, as it also was

of obesity, cholesterol level, cigarette smoking, alcohol and blood

sugar. They found that a lack of potassium intake was the

independent risk factor in these stroke-related deaths. "

 

One does not

need to take a very big leap of logic to conclude that an increased

intake of potassium lowers the risk of stroke, and a decreased

intake raises the risk!

 

 

 

Monitoring Potassium to sodium ratios can be effective in managing

your blood pressure levels!

 

Sodium to Potassium RATIO

A one-year study headed by James C. Smith, Jr. Ph.D., a chemist at

the USDA's Agriculture Research service found that the 28 men and

women in their study ate too much table salt (sodium chloride) and

not enough potassium, exceeding the safe and adequate daily ratio

recommended by the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C.

That ratio is 600 mgs of sodium for 1,000 mg of potassium. The

adults in this study were consuming 1,300 mgs of sodium daily for

every 1,000 mgs of potassium.

 

Recommended Range

As a matter of general information, a teaspoon of table salt

contains about 2,500 mg of sodium. The recommended range of

potassium is between 1,900 mg and 5,600 mg daily.

Vitamin and mineral supplements, by FDA regulation, are only allowed

to contain 99 mgs of potassium. To take a higher amount you need a

prescription. How silly this seems when a medium-sized banana

contains approximately 630 mg of potassium.

 

" When people consume a high level of potassium in their diets, they

excrete more sodium in their urine. But when the opposite is true,

they retain excess sodium in fluids surrounding cells in the body,

Urinalysis can determine if your potassium and sodium intakes are

out of balance, and if either is too high or low. "

 

 

If you are using a diuretic (herbal or otherwise), or are on blood

pressure medication, you may need a physicians prescription for

extra potassium. It would be wise to have your potassium levels

monitored regularly. Remember, when potassium is lost by a diuretic,

so is magnesium. You may need to supplement this mineral also!

 

I'm glad to hear that you are taking the magnesium oxide.

IMO magnesium is one of the most helpful for both the heart and HBP.

 

The exact mechanism is not yet

completely understood, but it is thought that magnesium helps drop

blood pressure by regulating the entry-exit process of calcium in

the smooth muscle cells of the vascular network.

In combination,

magnesium and calcium appear to help the blood vessels contract and

relax properly!

The interaction of magnesium and calcium gives the

calcium the ability to get where it has to in the cells. Then,

magnesium facilitates calcium in getting to the right place where it

has a relaxing effect.

 

Some Interesting Facts below!!

 

Intakes of potassium and vitamin A were lower in people

with higher blood pressure, while *cholesterol* intake was not

consistently different.

 

 

 

Calcium should be balanced with approximately half as much

magnesium. (Note: Some researchers say the ratio should be equal.

Watch for further studies related to this.) And of course, potassium

must be taken for additional benefits.

 

You should include a complete mineral formula which provides:

 

Selenium, zinc, copper, chromium, iodine, boron, manganese,

potassium and vitamin E. It would also be important to include a

complete " stress " vitamin B-complex. You should check the potencies

of your vitamin and mineral formulas to see if they are adequate.

 

 

Regards, JoAnn

 

JoAnn Guest

angelprincessjo

Friendsforhealthnaturally

http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Hypertension.html