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High and Low
Blood Pressure
Same cause - different effect
The blood vessels (arteries,
veins and capillaries) have been designed to cope with changes
in their blood volume by opening and closing different vessels.
This is a crucial function of the vessels, because if the
vessels did not close or contract when there wasn't sufficient
volume of blood, then gases would accumulate in the vessels
and cause 'gas locks'.
So contraction and closure of
the vessels at certain times is normal. For example, when
we have just eaten a meal, it is normal for more blood to
be directed to the digestive area, to help with digestion.
During this time, blood to the major muscles in the legs
receive less volume of blood, because that's not a priority
during digestion.
When digestion has taken place,
and less blood is needed in the gastrointestinal region,
circulation to other areas will increase again. This is
why we feel less active immediately after a meal, and ready
for action again after some time has passed.
In his book "Your Body's Many
Cries for Water", Dr F. Batmanghelidj states that this is
a beneficial method the body employs to prioritise the circulation
of blood to any given area - some capillaries open, and
some others close. The order is predetermined according
to a scale of importance of function. The brain, lungs,
liver, kidneys and glands generally take priority over muscles,
bones and skin in blood distribution.
He goes on to say that when
we do not drink enough water to serve all the needs of the
body, some cells become dehydrated and lose some of their
water to the circulation. Capillary beds in some areas will
have to close so that some of the slack in capacity is adjusted
for.
When the body is dehydrated,
because we haven't taken in sufficient water through drink
or diet, the body's blood volume is not sufficient to fill
the entire set of arteries, veins and capillaries.
As a result, the natural capabilities
of the vessels to shut down in order to supply other areas,
are used excessively, which can cause health problems.
So how does
this cause high blood pressure?
When the body has too little
blood volume caused by chronic dehydration, the blood vessels
sharply contract. This ensures that the volume of blood
available fills all open vessels, and doesn't leave room
for gas pockets to accumulate.
But this defensive contraction
of vessels, called vasoconstriction, can become permanent
if the body is suffering from a chronic liquid deficiency,
and the result is chronic high blood pressure (hypertension).
The increase of tension in the walls of the veins is exacerbated
by an increased thickness of the blood, or viscosity. The
body is forced to raise the pressure with which it pushes
the blood through the veins to compensate for the slowdown
in circulation caused by the increased thickness of the
blood.
And low blood
pressure?
While dehydration can in some
cases be responsible for high blood pressure, it can also
encourage the opposite condition, low blood pressure. If
hypertension is characteristic of people whose vessels have
good tone, and contract easily, low blood pressure comes
to those whose vessels are not so well toned, and the ability
of the vessels to contract is weak. Their blood pressure
is lower than average because their blood is circulating
through vessels that are not tight and narrow.
When a person with low blood
pressure becomes dehydrated, the blood volume decreases,
but the vessels cannot reduce their diameter sufficiently
to compensate for the lower blood volume. The blood is thus
circulating in slack, poorly filled vessels, and the blood
pressure falls even lower.
This explains, then, how an
increased consumption of water is one of the keys to treating
both high and low blood pressure.
What can we
do about it?
Those with high blood pressure
should drink more, bring the blood volume back to normal
and allow the vessels to abandon their state of chronic
defensive vasoconstriction. Of course, the consumption of
water should be increased gradually by spacing drinks out
over the course of the day, to avoid overtaxing the heart
or the vessels (or the kidneys).
Those suffering from low blood
pressure need the additional intake of water to compensate
for the weakness of the tone and vasoconstricting capabilities
of the vessels. If the vessels are filled with sufficient
blood, they do not have to contract as much.
So whether your blood pressure
is high or low, you need to drink more water.
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High Cholesterol
Also see
this important article on Statins, and read about its
numerous serious side effects
Co-Q 10 and fish oil
Cholesterol is one of the body's
most important substances, and among other things is used
in the body to make sex hormones (such as testosterone,
oestrogens and progesterone) as well as adrenal gland hormones
which deal with stress, water balance and act as anti-inflammatory
agents. Although cholesterol has the reputation of an unwanted,
even dangerous substance, all cells of the body require
cholesterol because it is an essential constituent of all
cell membranes. Cholesterol is also involved in the metabolism
of carbohydrate, fat and protein, and the skin converts
cholesterol to vitamin D, while the liver converts cholesterol
to bile salts, to digest and absorb fat.
Too low levels of cholesterol
can lead to depression, and even suicidal feelings.
You can see that cholesterol
is not necessarily the villain it is made out to be.
Indeed cholesterol is harmful
only when it's present in excessive amounts.
We don't need to eat cholesterol
in the diet, however, because any shortfall will be manufactured
in the body. Indeed, on average more than half is
produced in the body.
High cholesterol can therefore
be caused by the food we eat, or due to internal, or endogenous,
over production.
Among numerous other functions,
cholesterol is part of the membrane, or walls, of the body's
cells. Its role consists primarily of making the cells impermeable
to certain substances - a necessary function. However, production
of cholesterol can become excessive under certain circumstances.
So how does
this relate to water?
When dehydration causes too
much liquid to be removed from inside the cells, the body
tries to stop this loss by producing more cholesterol and
using it to plug the gaps in the cell wall. This makes the
cell wall less permeable, which in turn prevents too much
fluid loss. But while this overproduction partly remedies
the ill effects of dehydration inside the cell, it also
has the negative consequence of increasing the cholesterol
in the blood stream.
In such cases, regular consumption
of plenty of water limits the production of cholesterol.
Not everyone needs to change their diet in order to reduce
cholesterol, because, as you can see, diet is not always
the cause of high cholesterol.
So how much
water should we drink?
Obviously this will depend on
individual circumstances - a very large person will have
more blood vessels to fill than a very small person.
A hot climate, or lots of intensive exercise will increase
the need for water, and some diets are 'wetter' than other
diets (e.g. vegetables contain more water than bread).
However, an average amount might
be in the region of 2-3 litres of water per day, spread
out over the day (i.e. don't drink a litre in one go, because
that's quite a stress for the kidneys).
Drink more in the mornings and
afternoons and less in the evenings, to avoid being woken
in the night for a bathroom break.
Remember, most other liquids,
including coffee, tea, alcohol and especially soft drinks,
act as diuretics. If you drink these, you will need to drink
even more water than the 2-3 litres, to compensate.
If in doubt, or if you have
been prescribed diuretics by your medical practitioner for
a health condition, we recommend you do two things: first
of all, read Your Body's Many Cries for Water, by Dr F Batmanghelidj,
and also buy an extra copy for your Doctor and insist
s/he reads it too. Then come to an appropriate decision
together with your Doctor.
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