Have you been recently told by your doctor that your blood pressure is raised? And he or she may have given you a diagnosis of essential hypertension?
There is a big number of medications for controlling high blood pressure, so your doctor may have already put you on one, or a combination of several. Or your doc may have told you to improve your lifestyle habits and come back in 3 to 6 months. Applause to the second doc!
There is a big number of medications for controlling high blood pressure, so your doctor may have already put you on one, or a combination of several. Or your doc may have told you to improve your lifestyle habits and come back in 3 to 6 months. Applause to the second doc!
High blood pressure is one of the modern-day diseases that is caused by lifestyle. The science of epigenetics estimates that about 80% of all modern diseases are due to our lifestyle - our food preference habits, quality of sleep, levels of stress and amount of physical activity or physical inactivity. Epigenetic factors affect your individual risk of developing diseases, because your gene expression can change due to your diet, sleep, stress levels, exercise, toxins from the environment and other factors. Cardiovascular disease, including hypertension, diabetes type 2, cancers and neurodegenerative diseases, previously thought to have a high inheritance factor, are now shown to be attributed to epigenetic factors.
If you noticed that your blood pressure has recently been raised, there is a number of reasons:
While older age is one of the biggest risk factors for high blood pressure, in 2023 it was estimated that 32% of all the UK population had hypertension, and 3 out of 10 people have high blood pressure undiagnosed. More and more younger people are diagnosed with high blood pressure, last year in the UK among 16 to 24-year olds high blood pressure was present in 7% of men and 4% of women.
If you noticed that your blood pressure has recently been raised, there is a number of reasons:
- Your age - hypertension is more common in people over 60 years old
- You have insulin resistance
- You’ve had poor sleep for some time
- Your alcohol consumption is high
- Your lifestyle is predominantly sedentary
While older age is one of the biggest risk factors for high blood pressure, in 2023 it was estimated that 32% of all the UK population had hypertension, and 3 out of 10 people have high blood pressure undiagnosed. More and more younger people are diagnosed with high blood pressure, last year in the UK among 16 to 24-year olds high blood pressure was present in 7% of men and 4% of women.
Diagnosis of high blood pressure
When it comes to diagnosing essential hypertension, there’s a split in opinions: the American College of Cardiology (ACC) together with the American Heart Association (AHA) diagnose hypertension as systolic measurement of ≥130 mmHg or diastolic measurement of ≥80 mmHg. Their European counterparts, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) define hypertension as systolic blood pressure of ≥140 mmHg and diastolic of ≥90 mmHg. According to Mayo Clinic, blood pressure higher than 180 over 120 mmHg is considered “a hypertensive emergency” or crisis. It is recommended you seek emergency medical help in cases like this.
Your blood pressure can change often, during one day and also in a period of several days. It is proposed that in the elderly blood pressure has a tendency to fluctuate a lot, for the reasons not fully understood.
An Australian study in 2022 showed a potential link between variability in the blood pressure and risk of dementia. The researchers observed blood pressure readings in 70 healthy people aged 60 to 80 years old with no signs of cognitive decline. "We found that higher blood pressure variability within a day and across days was linked with reduced cognitive performance.” The researchers concluded that the association was present in the elderly without any clinical signs of cognitive impairment, which means that fluctuating high blood pressure may serve as an early clinical marker of cognitive decline or dementia.
Your blood pressure can change often, during one day and also in a period of several days. It is proposed that in the elderly blood pressure has a tendency to fluctuate a lot, for the reasons not fully understood.
An Australian study in 2022 showed a potential link between variability in the blood pressure and risk of dementia. The researchers observed blood pressure readings in 70 healthy people aged 60 to 80 years old with no signs of cognitive decline. "We found that higher blood pressure variability within a day and across days was linked with reduced cognitive performance.” The researchers concluded that the association was present in the elderly without any clinical signs of cognitive impairment, which means that fluctuating high blood pressure may serve as an early clinical marker of cognitive decline or dementia.
Complications of high blood pressure
When your heart has to pump blood at a higher rate on a regular basis, this puts pressure on both the heart muscle and blood vessels. As a result, there’s damage to the coronary arteries, increasing your risk of heart attacks, heart failure, blood vessels aneurysm and angina. Increased blood pressure also damages the cells lining the blood vessels, making them less elastic and more likely to narrow, thus obstructing the blood flow. Reduced blood flow can not only limit the blood flowing to the heart, but also the brain and other organs. Having restricted blood flow to the brain can cause mild cognitive impairment and vascular dementia.
Other complications of high blood pressure include irregular heart beat, stroke or TIA (transient ischemic attack or ministroke), damage to the eyes called retinopathy, optic nerve damage, kidney damage, kidney failure, erectile dysfunction, and other.
Other complications of high blood pressure include irregular heart beat, stroke or TIA (transient ischemic attack or ministroke), damage to the eyes called retinopathy, optic nerve damage, kidney damage, kidney failure, erectile dysfunction, and other.
How to manage your blood pressure
One of the leading complications of high blood pressure is considered overweight, obesity, diabetes type 2 - the diseases called metabolic syndrome diseases. While in many medical settings high blood pressure is viewed as a part of the metabolic syndrome range, scientific evidence has long been showing that hypertension develops as a result of having regularly high blood sugar levels or insulin resistance.
Many research papers in the past 30 years showed that most people with insulin resistance and high concentrations of fasting insulin have hypertension, and that hypertension is a result and not a cause for the metabolic syndrome diseases, that include being overweight, having increased fasting glucose, and dyslipidemia.
The possibility that insulin resistance and the resulting hyperinsulinemia are not the consequence of high blood pressure, but instead result from a preexisting condition, was observed by several researchers who noted an abnormal glucose metabolism in the offspring of hypertensive people who themselves did not have hypertension.
Many research papers in the past 30 years showed that most people with insulin resistance and high concentrations of fasting insulin have hypertension, and that hypertension is a result and not a cause for the metabolic syndrome diseases, that include being overweight, having increased fasting glucose, and dyslipidemia.
The possibility that insulin resistance and the resulting hyperinsulinemia are not the consequence of high blood pressure, but instead result from a preexisting condition, was observed by several researchers who noted an abnormal glucose metabolism in the offspring of hypertensive people who themselves did not have hypertension.
What is insulin resistance?
Insulin resistance is one condition that is present in all of metabolic syndrome diseases and it is most often the starting point at which the body’s metabolism starts getting derailed. A large body of research from clinical and experimental studies recently has shown that insulin resistance is the cause of some forms of hypertension.
When you consume the foods that are converted into blood sugar - glucose - the pancreas has to release the hormone insulin, which then helps glucose to be uptaken into the cells. Overtime, if one’s diet is rich in foods that constantly involve glucose + insulin cycles, the cells become resistant to insulin. Insulin resistance is born. As glucose cannot find the avenue for the absorption into the cells, as a result there’s a constantly higher levels of sugar present in your bloodstream. This damages blood vessels, making them fragile and stiff, reacting in increasing your arterial pressure.
Insulin resistance is often present months and sometimes years before a person is diagnosed with either prediabetes or diabetes 2.
When you consume the foods that are converted into blood sugar - glucose - the pancreas has to release the hormone insulin, which then helps glucose to be uptaken into the cells. Overtime, if one’s diet is rich in foods that constantly involve glucose + insulin cycles, the cells become resistant to insulin. Insulin resistance is born. As glucose cannot find the avenue for the absorption into the cells, as a result there’s a constantly higher levels of sugar present in your bloodstream. This damages blood vessels, making them fragile and stiff, reacting in increasing your arterial pressure.
Insulin resistance is often present months and sometimes years before a person is diagnosed with either prediabetes or diabetes 2.
How do I know if I have insulin resistance?
Insulin resistance may not give you any symptoms, but here are its telltale signs to spot:
- You have regular sugar cravings
- You have central belly fat
- You feel sleepy, lethargic after a carbohydrate-rich meal (such as pasta, rice, bread)
- You may feel constantly tired, especially in the morning on waking up
- You have night sweats
Managing your high blood pressure
While medications for hypertension are used in many medical settings, the success of reducing high blood pressure lies in you changing your lifestyle habits for the better. Most doctors will advise you to start exercising, change your diet to include more vegetables and fruit, reduce levels of stress and start sleeping better. All this advice is solid and helpful, however, it may often feel like too much to be handling at the same time.
My advice to you is start by changing your diet. Tackle insulin resistance, by which you not only will help lower your blood pressure, you will also lose weight, improve your cholesterol and feel so much more energetic to be able to include exercise or exercise more later on you go along.
Insulin is produced when you consume foods that are converted into glucose by the body. Hence, first you’ve got to remove sugar and sugar-added foods from your diet. Refined carbohydrates (such as foods made from white flour - bread, baguettes, flat bread, crackers, etc.), white rice and pasta raise our blood sugar as rapidly as sugary foods do. Thus, cut out or reduce consumption of these foods swapping them for their healthier whole grain versions.
I have created REVERSE INSULIN RESISTANCE DIET PLAN, which gives you a full list of foods to remove and the foods to increase in your diet to get rid of insulin resistance, reduce your blood pressure to normal levels and prevent other complications of the metabolic syndrome diseases, such as diabetes 2 or fatty liver disease.
To get my plan, go here.
My advice to you is start by changing your diet. Tackle insulin resistance, by which you not only will help lower your blood pressure, you will also lose weight, improve your cholesterol and feel so much more energetic to be able to include exercise or exercise more later on you go along.
Insulin is produced when you consume foods that are converted into glucose by the body. Hence, first you’ve got to remove sugar and sugar-added foods from your diet. Refined carbohydrates (such as foods made from white flour - bread, baguettes, flat bread, crackers, etc.), white rice and pasta raise our blood sugar as rapidly as sugary foods do. Thus, cut out or reduce consumption of these foods swapping them for their healthier whole grain versions.
I have created REVERSE INSULIN RESISTANCE DIET PLAN, which gives you a full list of foods to remove and the foods to increase in your diet to get rid of insulin resistance, reduce your blood pressure to normal levels and prevent other complications of the metabolic syndrome diseases, such as diabetes 2 or fatty liver disease.
To get my plan, go here.
When you start balancing your blood sugar levels, one ‘side effect’ will be a lot of energy that you will have on a daily basis, the energy will seem to have come as if ‘from nowhere’. This blog post does not permit me to explain the mechanisms here, but all my clients and patients are in awe how quickly it takes the body to start producing boundless energy. It is a win win.
Stay healthy, be joyful!
Love,
Katya