High blood pressure? (hypertension) question.? Any insight welcomed?

I will try to relate my wife's experience as good as I can. My wife is 62 years old.

For the past 5 or 6 years she has suffered from isolated systolic hypertension where only the upper number is high but the lower diastolic reading is normal. For most of this time her systolic readings were in the 140 to 150 range and her doctor did not feel that medication was warranted. However last year the reading crept up even though she had been trying natural means to lower her blood pressure. In December her systolic pressure was 169 and so the doctor decided that it was time for medication and gave her a prescription. We looked up the side effects and she decided that she would rather not take it. So we renewed our search for something natural again, although I must say that I was at my wit's end.

We have both been following a nutritarian diet for 16 months as is outlined in the book, EAT TO LIVE, by Joel Fuhrman, MD. Dr. Fuhrman says that if diet does not resolve blood pressure issues the next thing after losing all the weight you should lose is to adopt an exercise routine that includes interval training. Well, my wife did lose 45 pounds but could still lose another 10 or so. We both exercised quite well until we went on vacation in October and just did not get back into it afterward. Dr. Fuhrman also said that if the interval training did not resolve the issue that fasting would but to do any type of extended fasting could require a physician's supervision.

Since January 1st there were a couple of other things my wife started doing. She started adding one tablespoon of chia seed to her smoothie once a day, usually in the morning. [She also takes one tablespoon of fossil shell flour] She tries to eat fresh celery, tomatoes or beets everyday as well as they are all suppose to be good for blood pressure. She went to a naturopathic physician and has been taking 3 herbal/homeopathic supplements as a result. MusclEase plus Life Extension's Stress Relief and one other supplement that she carries in her purse. She also started taking Astaxanthin which we get from Swanson Vitamins. She started on 4 mg once a day and about 3 weeks ago doubled it to 8mg once a day. Also between October and December she took 7000 IUs a day of vitamin D. She had her blood levels checked in December and they were at 70ng per ml which is well within the normal range. Now she takes only 2000 IUs for maintenance. she plans to cut back on the astaxathin as well soon. Also during this entire time of more than 18 months we both avoid all processed foods and dairy and only rarely eat red meat and when we do it is either wild caught venison or beef raised without hormones or antibiotics. We generally have a smoothie for breakfast or oatmeal but go out for eggs twice a month. We only eat ice cream 2 or 3 times a year. The only juice my wife has is pomegranate which she puts 8 ounces in her smoothie. Instead of juice we eat the whole fruit or vegetable with all the fiber. If we eat out and there are no healthy vegetarian selections on the menu we will order seafood but never anything fried and we avoid all oil including olive oil. Oils are not complete foods.

Any or all of these things could be what worked BUT something worked! Whether it was one of them or the combination thereof who can be sure? Last week when we checked her blood pressure it was at 124/65. We could not believe it so we took it a second time and got the same exact reading. It hasn't been this low in years. I should also mention that the day before her blood pressure was this low, we did fast for the entire day having nothing but water all day.

A lot of these things, you can do on your own but some may require running by your doctor. For instance there are warnings on some sites that advise persons on blood pressure meds not to take astaxathin without checking with their doctor. So a word of caution is in order.

the links below should be of interest.

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How old are you? Dr. Frank has outline the current prescribing guidelines. If you are aged below 55 and non-black, the first line drug of choice is actually an ACE inhibitor or Angiotensin II receptor antagonist. If you are black and/or aged >55, we tend to use ca channel blockers or a thiazide diuretic. I don't know which category you fall into. Now thiazide diuretics can cause dehydration is high dosage, but this is rarely a problem. Just ensure you drink adequate fluids and there shouldn't be an issue. Also, it won't raise your cholesterol levels. ======================================... EDIT No ignore the water nut above. There are even quacks in the cardiology section. I can't get away from these people. Anti hypertensive therapy with diuretics is very effective. They decrease blood volume and venous pressure which decreases cardiac filling and decreases ventricular stroke volume and cardiac output, which then leads to a fall in arterial pressure. Long term use of diuretics result in decreased systemic vascular resistance, for reasons that are less than clear but that helps sustain the drop in arterial pressure. Water nut said, "It's good that you understand how diuretics cause dehydration, because dehydration is what causes high blood pressure." No, dehydration will cause LOW blood pressure. This is due to the intravascular space being depleted of fluid. "Those soft drinks, coffee and other water alternatives that people are so hooked on act like a diuretic and pull out as much as 50% more water then they provide. " No, they are mild diuretics, providing you drink adequate water daily, tea, coffee, etc is of no consequence. "Contrary to what the medical community wants you to believe, salt does not cause high blood pressure - it regulates the blood pressure." No, salt in normal amounts causes no problems and is vital for normal bodily functions; it's EXCESS salt that we advice you cut out. If your salt levels are too high, your body will retain too much water and the volume of bodily fluids increases. There may be a link with excess salt and high blood pressure. The difference between the medical community and the water nut is that we have data that directly correlates with that we have said. He has none. This "treating the root cause of all disease" is common with quacks. They like to claim that CM only treats the symptoms. This is nonsense. The water nuts suggestion will neither treat the cause OR the symptoms. He's advised you that "none" would be the best option, neglecting to mention that poorly controlled hypertension is a major risk factor for heart disease and cardiovascular event. Absolutely disgusting.