Holistic Protocol for High Blood Pressure

Hawthorn Crataegus sp.

Good evening everyone!

Per usual I do my blogging late in the night with a cup of
coffee (this time decaf), paranormal podcast playing
through headphones while mere hours away before I need
to head  into work. I guess you could say the former Tina
​is slowly  making an appearance.

​I have been accepting a few consultations here and there lately as a way of re-emerging myself back into my work as a master herbalist. I felt that this was one specific consultation needed as a blog post because it could benefit many.

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Hypertension and You

According to the CDC, nearly half of the population of adults in the United States have been diagnosed with hypertension. This puts many at risk for heart attacks and strokes. As we would with any illness, we need to understand the possible cause of the high blood pressure in order to better understand it prior to using herbal medicine.
​
There are multiple causes for hypertension:
​

• stress
• genetic predisposition
• diet (including excess caffeine and alcohol)
• lack of exercise
• lack of sleep
• age
• various medications

Your genetics can also be a determining factor of whether you are at risk of developing hypertension. Diabetes, kidney disease (renal hypertension), thyroid disfunction (hypo and hyper), and more illnesses with a genetic influence can be an underlying cause to developing blood pressure issues.

While genetics are still a possibility, for most the main underlying causes of hypertension are lifestyle and diet. Being in a stressful atmosphere or lifestyle can negatively affect your blood pressure levels. Whether you deal with stress on a consistent basis or not, a lack of sleep can heighten your stress levels and lower your threshold to cope - often being a factor in raising blood pressure over time. A poor diet, especially what is considered the "American diet", can also increase the chances of developing high blood pressure. Greasy, fried food, excess salt, caffeine, alcohol, large amounts of red meat, and general lack of nutrition. A lack of physical exercise and weight gain will compound the risks and increases with age.

​Discuss with your primary healthcare provider on the possibility of any of these factoring in as a possibility for your high blood pressure. Also discuss your medications side effects as many medications can run the risk of heightening blood pressure such as certain antidepressants, hormonal birth controls, certain herbal supplements, and pain medications

Holistic Steps to Take

Dietary Habits

A great place to start is your diet. I hate the term "diet" because it tends to come with negative connotation of the struggle to lose weight; your diet is the sum of your eating habits. Do you find yourself more likely to go out for lunch rather than packing it? If the answer is yes, do you lean towards fast food? Are you often using the excuse of not having the time to fix lunch the night before? Perhaps you simply just admit that you find fast food better tasting than healthy.

We all use excuses to find ways around what we need to do. I am not a fast-food kind of gal, but for a long time I found myself swinging by the dollar store on my lunch break to purchase something easy. It was usually a can of garbanzo beans mixed with Italian dressing or the occasional frozen lasagna that caught my fancy. Let's not forget the pile of salt I have dumped on my tomatoes in the past!

​The truth is this: if something truly matters to you then you will find a way to make a change for it.

Increasing the amount of vegetables and fruit in your dietary habits can lessen your hypertension and decrease the risk in those that have yet to develop it. There is a diet that was developed to target hypertension called D.A.S.H. (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and was developed by the National Heart, Lunch, and Blood Institute. This diet is made up of lean meat such as cold-water fish and includes a variety of vegetables (particularly green leafy veggies such as kale), and low fat diary options. The point for it is weight loss, lowering cholesterol, reduce sodium intake, and increase nutrition. For a more comprehensive understanding of the D.A.S.H. diet you can visit DashDiet.org for more, but I'll list examples of healthy options to add to your meals:
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• garlic
• onions
• citrus fruits
• berries
• fish
• broccoli
• beans
• rice other whole grains
• nuts

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While the vegan and vegetarian diets may not be for everyone, people who live by those dietary habits have been shown to have lower blood pressure. Just some food for thought...

Get Active

​Next, you want to become more active. I am not saying run all
the miles and take up cross country cycling. (Is that a thing?
That sort of torture probably does exist...) Perhaps take the
stairs instead of the elevator. Perhaps you can park your
car where all the nice cars are and walk further to the store - I
do it because I like to think that my dinged-up trail blazer
makes the fancy people sweat nervously. The point is to get
more active and increase that metabolism! It also can help
​relieve stress, and speaking of:

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Chill Out

We live in a fast-paced age and it's filled with work-aholics like me. Even if you aren't constantly being driven by the internal motor to constantly be on your feet working you are more than likely still in a stressful atmosphere, you are more than likely dealing with deadlines, family drama, a hectic schedule with societal pressure and a bad memory (oh my gosh did you forget a kid at the store...again?!)

We need to chill out.

​On top of that, many people are having sleeping issues. According to the American Sleep Association, up to 70 million people in the US alone have a form of sleeping disorder. Lack of proper sleep can increase our stress and lower our threshold of coping with it. This can be a supporting factor in the cause of hypertension. With that being said, you should see your doctor if you suspect that your spouse may not be lying about your sleeping problems. I mean, they might be telling the truth about you “breaching like a whale” when you turn over 50 times in the night and are awakened by your snoring.

Hawthorn Crataegus sp.

Herbal Supplements

Here are a two of my favorite herbal supplements that lower high blood pressure.

Hawthorn Crataegus sp.

• Both the flowers and the berries can be used.
  
• Hawthorn is as sedative is effective in lowering blood pressure.
  
• It must be used for at least a few weeks before noticeable effects are seen.
  
• This herb can not to be combined with heart medications or other sedatives.
  
• It is most readily useful as a liquid extract but is available in capsule form.

Garlic Allium sativum L.

• The bulb of the plant is used.
  
• It can be added to meals but also taken in capsule form.
  
• It is also a mild sedative, increasing the body's production of nitric oxide.
  
• In large doses, it can cause heartburn, nausea, and an upset stomach.
  
• This herb should not be taken with other medications with consulting your doctor.
  

Goldenrod Solidago spp.

• The flowers are used in a tea.
  
• As a diuretic, it helps support a health urinary tract.
  
• It has shown signs in studies to lower blood pressure.
  
• It is commonly used for its antibiotic properties.
  

As always, consult your primary healthcare provider before making any large adjustments to your lifestyle and before adding or changing any medications - herbal or otherwise.

Thank you for reading my posts and stay tuned for an update blog post on what I've been working on behind the scenes with Survival Ember, a podcast, and finally the return of classes and select products in the apothecary (like these herbal Detox and Weight Loss Aid capsules below).

​See you again soon, everyone!

https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/facts.htm#:~:text=Nearly%20half%20of%20adults%20in,are%20taking%20medication%20for%20hypertension.&text=Only%20about%201%20in%204,have%20their%20condition%20under%20control.

https://www.cedars-sinai.org/health-library/diseases-and-conditions/h/high-blood-pressure-hypertension.html

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/high-blood-pressure-hypertension/causes/

https://www.sleepassociation.org/about-sleep/sleep-statistics/#:~:text=Sleep%20Disorder%20Statistics%3A,once%20in%20the%20preceding%20month.

https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?contenttypeid=19&contentid=Hawthorn

The Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine, Third Edition. Murray, Michael T. (N.D.) ;Pizzorno, Joseph (N.D.)