by Marcey Klein BS, CNC
Recently I got my blood pressure checked (which is normally in good range) and it was actually high! This is a slight concern for me because high blood pressure does run in my family, and it can be an indicator of heart disease later on in life since the higher pressure on the arterial walls weakens them with time making you more susceptible to heart attack or stroke.
One of the best things to take for high blood pressure is magnesium which is supposed to relax the blood vessels, and hawthorn berry, which is a heart adaptogen. I have recently learned that olive leaf extract is also very effective as well. I do take magnesium, but I may be one of those people who need extra. Hibiscus tea, dark chocolate, and coconut water (high in potassium and electrolytes) are nice things to take as well. Raw carrots and celery are high in potassium and electrolytes, and celery is a natural diuretic.
Sodium from refined salt causes your body to hold on to water that in turn increases blood pressure. I think this is where I went wrong. I have been making these delicious homemade soups with lots of vegetables and lots of salt from the bouillon that I was using. In fact, the day of my blood pressure test, I had a large bowl for breakfast, and I had a large bowl the night before. I actually felt my heart beating that day from the extra sodium. Another direction I went wrong is not doing enough cardiovascular exercise. I do ride my bike to work and I do light workouts here and there, but nothing like I used to when my blood pressure was always in check. We need to sweat, and we need to strengthen our hearts by exercising ideally five times a week for a half hour each time. I’m going to start by doing it three times a week and possibly work my way up. I had a great workout session a few days ago and took my blood pressure, and it was in the normal range. So, I think exercise is a miracle drug.
For breakfast I have been having a garden burger with sprouts, carrots, and half a squash or a can of rinsed tuna. I’m trying to eat as wholesome as possible. For the base of my soups, I’m going to switch to a concoction of spices like turmeric, garlic, onion powder, and nutritional yeast. I got used to the salt from the bullion, it was just so easy to make a quick soup this way. Ideally, saving your veggie scraps in your freezer and then simmering them for 20 minutes or so makes a nice, mineral rich veggie broth, and bone broth is a great nourishing base for soups too. Less refined foods is a must, less salty condiments, less salty snacks and more whole fresh foods will go a long way in keeping our hearts healthy.
Higher blood pressure than normal is just our body’s way of telling us we need to adjust something in our diet or lifestyle, and adding in supplements will provide that extra punch to our health. We should take control of our health, it will empower us physically, mentally, and spiritually.