Herbal remedy for high Blood Pressure?

Does anyone have any advice on taking Drug free alternatives (Herbal) for High Blood Pressure? I got high BP for the 1st time about a year ago. I was getting readings of around 155/100. I experimented with both Diltizem and Bystolic individually, before now taking both of them together at 5mg/Bystolic, and 240mg/Diltiazem per Day. This is helping lower my readings down about 15 points, the last one was 132/92. My AFIB has abated during this time, as I have been Cardioversion free for 15 months now, with only 1 AFIB session that self-terminated. I am not on any Anti-Arrythmics.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/19/2018 07:18AM by The Anti-Fib.

AF - interpreting your request as for non pharma approaches to BP. I wrote this for the son of a friend who was trying to pass a flight physical to become an airline pilot. He did most of this and did lower his BP so he passed. The examining doc was curious about his pink colored urine - his response - doc I like to eat a lot of beets!

From a friend who said this worked well (she's not that big, so you may need more. <[www.amazon.com]. Beet root will increase nitric oxide, a vaso dialator.

Dr told me to take 1/2 tsp (scoop inside) daily
It did the trick
( and increased stamina/energy at workout)!


===========================

Potassium.

In his 2001 book, The High Blood Pressure Solution <[www.amazon.com], Richard Moore MD PhD makes the case that insulin is the culprit as when it is high, it signals the kidney to retain sodium, and excrete it when low. Hence high BP could be looked at as a sodium excretion program. Moore advocates a 4:1 ratio of potassium to sodium on intake. He was caught up in the low fat dogma so his diet is 70% carbs! He didn't see the forest for the trees in his book. Also points out that the fastest way to lower BP is water fasting, p 270-271 in the book. A low carb diet is a way to drop insulin. The work of Dr. Joseph Kraft demonstrated that many are hyperinsulinemic <[www.hippokrati.fi] A proxy for insulin levels is to test for serum ketones. If ketones are >=0.5mmol/L then insulin has to be low. A meter that does this <[keto-mojo.com] This meter will also test for glucose. Learning to eat so as not to spike blood sugar (say an hour after a meal) will also drop insulin spikes.

A guy I follow on FP has a group 50,000 strong where he leads them in long fasts (some as long as 28 days). His motto is fast well, feed well. In any case he is a huge advocate of potassium citrate supplementation (citrate converts to bicarb in the body). N=1 stories in his group are some profound BP drops. <[www.amazon.com] Here is a post he wrote to the group

Quote

"So if you start with 1 gram of potassium a day allow 250mg of sodium as added salt ( remember you are getting some from food )
If you take 4 grams of potassium a day then you allow 1 gram of sodium as salt ( and this is a very nice target and one where you will tend to feel and be AWESOME ) at this level with what you also get from food you can be somewhere approaching the 8 grams intake !
The most potassium I have taken over 30 mins is 6 grams ( test ) I tend to take 4 grams every day ( and sometimes 5 when working out hard ) I ALSO now make sure to add the SODIUM as SALT - with 4 grams of potassium this is 1 gram SODIUM !
IN MY VIEW this is the ideal ratio for keto states ( and I have lots of experience now and so many awesome papers on all aspects )
I personally like the citrate ( but use the bicarbonate too )
so here is the instructions
1 gram => 1/2 teaspoon citrate and 1/8 teaspoon of salt
^^^ somewhere to start for the very cautious but much to little
2 gram => one teaspoon citrate and 1/4 teaspoon of salt
^^ a good place to start and very good for FASTING
4 gram => two teaspoons of citrate and a HALF teaspoon of salt
^^ this is my usual intake ( taken over the morning ) I am 70 Kg - THIS IS ALSO my MOTHERS usual intake she is 87 years old and weighs 48 KG ( she is doing very well with blood pressure of 105/55 )
REMEMBER hunter gatherers can have intakes THREE TIMES THAT !
START with a lower dose fine and work up"

Breathing is also huge. Nasal breathing will also increase nitric oxide Humming while nasal breathing will increase nitric oxide ~16x.. Russian doctor Buteyko cured his own rampant hypertension (220/120 as I recall) with his breathing which led to his life's work on breathing. Making sure you don't mouth and over breathe at night and have any apnea is also important. I've written about breathing here <[www.afibbers.org] can provide more info if interested. Do not do breath holds with hypertension (and as an affiber, as explained in my post).

George

Here's one report by Michael Murray, ND.
[doctormurray.com]
[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

How's your insulin level? It's known that those chronically high insulin levels cause weight gain, premature aging and high blood pressure. Various herbals are found effective in managing insulin which helps control blood pressure and glucose. I have a report that I can send you. If interested, send me a PM.

Also one about pomegranate study that shows it clears arteries and lowers blood pressure.
Blood Pressure Lowering Properties: The intervention resulted in significant improvement in blood pressure: the patient's systolic blood pressure was reduced 7%, 11% ,10%, 10% and 12% after 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of pomegranate consumption, respectively, compared to values obtained before treatment. Pomegranate's ability to reduce systolic blood pressure indicates it has a healing effect on the endothelium, or the inner lining of the artery which fails to relax fully in heart disease; a condition known as endothelial dysfunction.

I also have an archived Blaylock Wellness Report that is on Natural Remedies for Hypertension I can share.

Jackie

AF, this may or may not work for you, but I have found this product to be helpful: MegaNatural-BP.

--Lance

Here's another natural remedy - Nattokinase. Indicates improvement in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure.. .plus improved circulation to smallest capillaries and by reducing fibrin level - reduces clot risk.

The benefits start almost immediately as NK works quickly. Many archived posts here discuss the best brands and dosing of Nattokinase.

Jackie


Hypertens Res. 2008 Aug;31(8):1583-8. doi: 10.1291/hypres.31.1583.

Effects of nattokinase on blood pressure: a randomized, controlled trial.
Kim JY1, Gum SN, Paik JK, Lim HH, Kim KC, Ogasawara K, Inoue K, Park S, Jang Y, Lee JH.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of nattokinase supplementation on blood pressure in subjects with pre-hypertension or stage 1 hypertension.

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 86 participants ranging from 20 to 80 years of age with an initial untreated systolic blood pressure (SBP) of 130 to 159 mmHg received nattokinase (2,000 FU/capsule) or a placebo capsule for 8 weeks. Seventy-three subjects completed the protocol.

Compared with the control group, the net changes in SBP and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were -5.55 mmHg (95% confidence interval [CI], -10.5 to -0.57 mmHg; p<0.05) and -2.84 mmHg (CI, -5.33 to -0.33 mmHg; p<0.05), respectively, after the 8-week intervention. The corresponding net change in renin activity was -1.17 ng/mL/h for the nattokinase group compared with the control group (p<0.05).

In conclusion, nattokinase supplementation resulted in a reduction in SBP and DBP. These findings suggest that increased intake of nattokinase may play an important role in preventing and treating hypertension.

PMID: 18971533
DOI: 10.1291/hypres.31.1583

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

Perhaps--except maybe for those on warfarin and those with thyroid issues--we could add natto itself as a natural support for blood pressure, calcification, etc., assuming there's a Japanese food market in one's neighborhood.

See: Natto - The World's Stinkiest, Healthiest Food.

--Lance

I have used olive leaf extract with great results. The active ingredient is oleuropein. The formula I use provides 150 mg of oleuropein. I also us this formula to help me sleep.
Here are some helpful links:

Oleuropein Dosage Guidelines

My Olive Leaf Extract

Persons with bradycardia should probably use this product with care.

Thanks for the replies. Alot of new stuff to sort through, This helps give me a starting point, I feel overwhelmed.
I think my Insulin is OK, but my Blood Sugar hasn't really been tested in 20 years. I have had the Lab Blood test done 3-4 times this last year, but I never fast for it like your supposed to. At times my Blood Sugar has tested low in the evening hours, as I have tested it using a little Machine that I have.

Also good reference about the NA/K+ balance. I need to re-asses this, as my diet has changed in the last year.

Lance - The soy and thyroid concern typically involves the auto-immune thyroiditis forms… Hashimoto’s and Graves.
Even though I had thyroid problems, I wasn’t reactive to the nattokinase supplement I used for many years… apparently because I don’t have a true soy allergy or a sensitivity or autoimmune issues. I’ve not tried natto food since finding an organic, safe US source in this area is not possible.

I had hypothyroidism that presented with thyroid nodules which resolved over time by using Iodine supplements and the nattokinase for reducing the clot risk... I've always had Bp below the standard 120/80... so that wasn't a concern... but perhaps over the years the supplemental helps stabilize that as well.

Jackie

Lance,
That video is very off putting because natto is nothing like disgusting or smells anything like rotten socks, maybe the natto I get from New Zealand is different than your American natto but I wouldn't expect so.
I wouldn't say it's delicious but the best way i have found to eat it is put 40gms on a slice of pre buttered toast and sprinkle Cajun seasoning on top and have it with a cup of tea. BTW the natto must be stirred about 50 times with a folk first.

Jackie,
I have been taking natto now for about 2 months and except for an afib event a couple of weeks after starting I have had nothing.
Also my blood pressure is steady around 120/70.
I will make a more in-depth report when I have gone 3 months without afib.

Colin

Colin:

What was your BP before you started on natto?

Liz

Liz

It varied from 120 to 140 not sure of the lower number, 70 or 80 I think.
It seems to be more like 115 to 125 now. To be honest I haven't really taken a lot of notice, it's just that I happen to take my blood pressure about once a week and it's been down arround 120 / 70 lately.

I had an experience yesterday which would have normally put me into afib. I did some very physical work for about 5 hours, after which i noticed my heart rate was 105 ppm and wouldn't come down, it took about 4 hours for it to come back to normal (below 70). Usually under that circumstance i would go into afib and I didn't . I am putting that down to the benifets derived from natto food.

Colin



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/23/2018 06:03PM by colindo.

Hi Colin - that's great news... but not at all unexpected. Good for you.

Since the natto helps reduce the arterial stiffness that promotes elevated blood pressure, it's not at all surprising..and that's supported in the literature. My Bp is typically around 116/68.... and I'm quite sure that all my years of taking NK supplements helped keep away arterial stiffness... as that figure has remained constant since I started keeping track of that when the AF began back in 1995. I began taking NK several years before my first ablation in 2003. Regrettably, have stopped due to Eliquis.

Glad you are doing so well.
Best to you,
Jackie

Thank you Colin for your response to my question. But actually your BP numbers before Natto were pretty good.

Liz

Colin,

Yes, I admit that the video about natto I chose was not the most illuminating. Sorry 'bout that. However, your recipe for natto and tea is a keeper. Thanks!

--Lance

I was around 190 pounds. This wasn't the first time that happened. I dropped down the first time to 165. This time I approached it differently. I knew that fasts were good for the system so I decided to go on 2 fasts per week. My fast days are Monday (after the weekend) and Thursday (before the weekend). That doesn't mean I pig out on the weekend. My calorie count is usually averages about 750 calories a day when I eat. After starting the program I began reading up on diets and found that this program is called the "longevity diet." Researchers have been able to extend the lives of laboratory animals quite longer with this program. Well, to finish the long story: My BP was around 150-160/75. The last BP check a couple of months ago at the doctor it was 136/66. My weight is usually 155-160 pounds. But then, the best way to take BP is via the ambulatory means over a 24 hour period. That taken at the doctor's office tends to be much higher than it actually is. You BP at home is generally less than the doctor's office but still not quite accurate.

A study done in Australia in 2010 with 8500 patients found that after taking the BP through ambulatory means when the BP was taken by the nurse the BP was 19 points higher. When the doctor took the BP it was 27 points higher. The only way to actually get a good measure of the BP is to wear the ambulatory cuff over a 24-hour period. Many doctors are finding out the best way to measure the BP is with the ambulatory cuff. Even when you take your own BP you can get an incorrect reading because you can get anxious by just taking the BP. The fact is so many things beside doctors and nurses can raise BP. So, it is difficult to even take your own BP. That is why ambulatory BP readings are the best.