High Blood Pressure Treatment by Drugs, Lifestyle Changes and Natural Remedies

High blood pressure (hypertension) is one of the most common diseases affecting the western world. High blood pressure is usually symptomless whilst slowly damaging the eyes, brain, and kidneys. Many governments have initiated policies to raise public awareness. The aim of this article is to give the person suffering (or who may be suffering) hypertension some knowledge about the condition enabling them to make objective decisions regarding their treatment.

High blood pressure appears not to have a clear-cut cause. It is more common in people who smoke, drink excessive alcohol, are overweight, and are sedentary. However, non-smoking teetotal athletes can suffer from hypertension. Certain ethnic groups have a very high incidence of high blood pressure, with research not revealing any reasons for this.

Drugs (Pharmaceuticals) To Treat High Blood Pressure

ACE (Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme) Inhibitirs: enalapril maleate, captopril, quinapril, lisinopril, amongst others.
Function: to block an enzyme in the bloodstream that produces angiotensin II, a chemical that raises blood pressure by constricting blood vessels.
Side effects: long-term cough, acute swelling of face, lips, and throat.

Angiotensin II Blockers: candesartan, irbesartan, losartan potassium, valasartan.
Function: to block the effect of angiotensin.
Side effects: are rare.

Alpha Blockers: clonidine, prasozin, doxazosin, terazosin.
Function: to chemically block responses to stressors that causeraised blood pressure and heart rate.
Side effects: dry mouth, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, impaired sexual function. Alpha blockers can precipitate dramatic increase in blood pressure treatment if suddenly discontinued.

Beta Blockers: propranolol, betaxolol, carvedilol, atenolol, metoprolol, labetolol.
Function: to block chemical processes that lead to increased heart pressure and heart rate. Often given after a heart attack.
Side effects: tiredness, excessively slow heart rate, impaired sexual functioning. Beta blockers can precipitate dramatic increase in blood pressure if suddenly discontinued.

Calcium-Channel Blockers: amolodipine besylate, diltiazem, verapamil, nifedipine.
Function: to relax blood vessel walls to make them dilate (expand), lowering blood pressure.
Side effects: are constipation, dizziness, nausea, fluid retention.

Diuretics: bendrofluazide, bumetanide, cyclopenthiazide, frusemide, hydrochlorothiazide, indapamide, metolazone, mefruside.
Function: is to stimulate kidneys to excrete more salt and water, lowering blood volume and blood pressure.
Side effects: are low levels of potassium and magnesium, elevations in uric acid, increases in blood cholesterol.

Hypertension Friendly Lifestyle

Hypertension has been shown to be related to many causes. So a change in lifestyle, other than one single thing, often helps someone lower their blood pressure. Three things that research throws up again and again is that people who drink to excess, smoke and are overweight are at a much higher risk of developing high blood pressure. If you eat fewer calories yo will soon start to lose weight, just don't expect to be as thin as Lance Armstrong in two weeks! For the heavy drinker cutting down on alcohol consumption can have many benefits, it will help lower your blood pressure, it will help you lose weight, and it will save you a fortune. Smoking has, for many decades, been known to be generally bad for health. The reason it raises blood pressure is that it causes a constriction (narrowing) of the arteries. If you really can't stop smoking, at least cut down. Research indicates that eating 'empty' calories (refined carbohydrates, sugar, sugary drinks,'junk' food) can be a cause of high blood pressure and contribute to being overweight. Try eating high-fiber foods such as whole grains and raw vegetables. Fibre makes you feel full, so in turn you may actually eat less and lose weight. Eating deep-sea (cold water) fish rich in essential fatty acids (EFA's) such as mackeral, cod tuna, and salmon have been shown to help with blood pressure. It is thought that the omega-3 fatty acid in these relax artery walls and make blood thinner. Eat foods rich in magnesium, potassium, and calcium such as nuts and seeds, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, legumes, amongst others. One area that every professional agrees upon is that engaging in regular aerobic exercise for 30 minutes 3 times per week will help lower blood pressure.

Natural Remedies To Treat High Blood Pressure

Dandelion: Taraxacum officinale: is a popular remedy for fluid retention. By increasing urine flow dandelion also helps lower blood pressure. Dandelion benefits from not causing potassium loss, which pharmaceutical diuretics usually do. Make sure that if you use dandelion leaves that they have not been treated with pesticides.

Garlic: Allium sativum: has been used for 1,000's of years for many conditions. To get the best from garlic, 3 cloves should be eaten raw everyday. The same effect can be achieved by taking garlic gel capsules.

Reishi: Ganoderma lucidum: is a mushroom. Scientific studies have shown that reishi lowers blood pressure. The mushroom itself is nearly inedible and is usually taken in capsule form.

Hawthorn: Crataegus spp: lowers blood pressure by relaxing and dilating artery walls. Hawthorn can take many weeks or months to show any effect.

Hypercet: is a proprietary blend of many natural ingredients including the following active ingredients. Calcium A recent article by Christopher Ott describes the many ways calcium protects your health, including the role it plays in protecting your heart.

Gene Spiller, PhD, the Director of the Health Research and Studies Center says, "In fact, your calcium intake may be almost as important to blood pressure as your sodium intake," He is co-author of Calcium: Nature's Versatile Mineral (Avery, 2000)

Spiller also said, "An adequate supply of calcium helps muscles-including your heart muscle-do their work of contracting and relaxing. Calcium also appears to help your nervous system regulate the level of pressure in your arteries."

Calcium is a naturally occurring mineral with no known side effects.
Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body, and is essential to good health.

A diet high in green leafy vegetables such as spinach, whole grains, nuts, and some legumes supplies magnesium. Tap water can be a good source, if the water is "hard." "Soft" water contains fewer minerals.

Magnesium is a naturally occurring mineral with no known side effects

Malic Acid
"An apple a day keeps the doctor away." There's more truth in that old saying than you might think. Malic acid is derived from tart apples and grapes, and is an essential part of the magnesium support team.

Malic acid is an important part of the Krebs cycle, a series of chemical reactions carried out in the living cell, and is used by the body to increase ATP, an enzyme that supports muscle health, reduces muscle stress, and assists to improve energy levels in the body. Malic Acid is a naturally occurring substance with no known side effects.

Citric acid, although acid in its fresh form (lemon and limes) transforms during metabolism into alkali. This is helpful to your blood. Our American diet tends to be overly acidic from coffee, sodas, alcohol, and certain proteins. An acidic condition tends to be more inflammatory. Citric acid is essential to the Krebs cycle, Citric acid, together with malic acid, are involved with complex chemical actions, resulting in the production of carbon dioxide, and its removal from the cells. Citric acid is also used as a natural preservative to maintain freshness of many products, and serves this role, as well, in the Hypercet BPF. Citric Acid is a naturally occurring substance with no known side effects.

Glycine is a non-essential amino acid found naturally in beans, brewer's yeast, dairy products, meat, seafood, nuts and whole grains. It's involved in the production of glucose in the liver. Glycine is plays an important role in supporting healthy blood in your body. It is involved in the manufacture of nitrogen to process many other amino acids, and usefulin the processing of hemoglobin, glutathione, DNA, and RNA. It helps with brain function, and is important for a healthy prostate gland. Glycine is a naturally occurring substance with no known side effects.

It has been shown that there can be many causes of high blood pressure, not just one. Treatment is similar in that a lifestyle switch is usually better than a pharmaceutical cure. For the non-smoking, teetotal athlete who suffers hypertension the pharmaceutical may be the only way left open. For the rest of us who may be a little overweight, drink a little too much (I include myself in this group!), or smoke, have options available. Take some natural remedies, take a little more exercise, eat a little healthier, cut back on the cigarettes, and cut back on the booze. Try to change one thing at a time, within a few months your lifestyle could be dramatically more blood pressure friendly.

The reader who suffers with high blood pressure should now have some more knowledge about their condition and the different therapies available to them, enabling them to make objective choices in their own treatment.

Low Level Laser Light Therapy In The Treatment Of Hair Loss

INTRODUCTION

Low Level laser Light Therapy (LLLT) is an internationally accepted name for biostimulation with low energy lasers in order to achieve therapeutic desired effects. Traditionally, LLLT falls under the realm of Physical Medicine, which uses stimulation therapy to activate the body's natural defense mechanisms. When LLLT is the stimulus, the treatment modality is known as PHOTOBIOSTIMULATION.

LLLT has been indicated in sports medicine, physical/manual medicine, dermatology and neuroendocrine disorders in human and animal patients. The anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties of LLLT, as well as its effect on collagen formation, are good indications for LLLT in traumatology, surgery and dentistry, especially after major operations.

LASER

The word Laser is actually an acronym which stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Laser generates extremely pure light, i.e. light of one wavelength, not of an entire spectrum like a light bulb. The light emitted is highly organized in flow (It may help to think of laser as a single malt scotch and not a "blend" of different wavelengths of light). Laser can be any wavelength of light, visible or invisible, high energy or low energy.

In 1917, Albert Einstein introduced his basic theory for stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. This theory was verified by Landberg in 1928, but at the time there were no practical possibilities for producing a functional laser. In 1951, Fabrikant, a Russian physicist submitted a patent application and subsequently published a paper on laser in 1959.

Mester, a Hungarian scientist, was the first to publish a series of articles in 1960 on the biostimulatory effect of LLLT on cell cultures. In 1963, he published the results of animal experimentation which showed that re-growth of epithelium over skin lesions was faster if the lesion was irradiated with1 Joule per square centimeter. Higher doses did not give any better effect. In fact, if the dose was increased many-fold the result was the opposite. Wound healing was inhibited.

In 1965, Laor and his team found that laser irradiation (LLLT) stimulated the rate of healing burns and mechanically induced wounds.

PHYSICS 101

A Laser is a device which produces electromagnetic radiation in the light band. Electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy flux which has properties of both a wave and a particle. These Wave-Particles are called PHOTONS.

Photons have a certain amount of energy (E) which unifies these two properties of waves and particles. Energy (E) is proportional to the mass of the photon (m) according to Einstein's famous equation:

E=mc2

Energy (E) is also proportional to the frequency (f) of the photon according to the equation:

E=hf

Since f x wavelength equals c (speed of light), it follows that f=c/wavelength. Substituting above, E is proportional to 1/wavelength, or the Energy of a photon is INVERSLEY PROPRTIONAL to its wavelength.

Thus, the BIGGER THE WAVELENGTH OF A PHOTON, THE SMALLER IS ITS ENERGY.

When a PHOTON hits an object, what happens to its energy? If the photon (light) reflects from the surface of the object, the photon retains its energy. If the photon is transmitted further (beyond the object), it likewise retains its energy. If the photon gets absorbed by the object however, its energy is delivered to the atoms and molecules of the object.

Depending upon the wavelength (and hence the energy) of the absorbed photon, several scenarios may occur. This absorbed energy may result in heat oscillations, i.e. the atoms/molecules become hot, if the energy is low. If the absorbed energy is higher, the atoms and molecules of the object can become excited and/or ionized. If the energy absorbed is high, it can cause the break up of chemical bonds in the atoms/molecules of the object and result in the formation of new compounds.

Laser light then, consists of photons of a specific wavelength, i.e. PURE LIGHT, and hence, a specific energy level, which can interact with a given object. The results of that interaction are dependent upon this specific wavelength (energy level).

MEDICAL LASERS

There are many different types of medical lasers available, but they can be classified into two main groups:

HIGH POWER LASERS cut coagulate and evaporate tissue. These are also known as Surgical Lasers because they replace the scalpel of the surgeon. These lasers produce photons (light) of high energy.

LOW LEVEL LASERS stimulate cell function. The effect is not thermal as in the case of surgical lasers. These non-surgical therapeutic lasers are certified Class 3A by the FDA. The energy produced by the photons of these lasers is low and does not have a thermal component that can cause injuries to users and/or operators. This low level energy does not alter molecular structures, but STIMULATES the body's mechanisms to REPAIR AND HEAL itself.

Low level (energy) laser light photons are absorbed by the chromophores within the cells. This induces increased production of cellular energy in the form of ATP, which leads to normalization of cell function, pain relief and healing. These effects are especially striking in areas of the body where cells are under stress.

The photo-energy from these low level lasers is low and remains a long way below the levels needed for ionization of the atoms and molecules of the cells. Thus no induction of cancer growth has been linked to these lasers. The risk of eye injury is almost non-existent, but goggles are recommended.

LLLT FOT HAIR LOSS (ANDROGENETIC ALOPECIA)

What type of laser device would benefit patients with androgenetic alopecia? The devices being promoted must be safe for use. They must be effective to meet the manufacturer's claims. The consumer must know what he/she is buying, and the device must not expose the consumer to undo risks.

The therapeutic factors in choosing a laser are as follows:

(a) The wavelength of the light is important as it determines penetration depth in the target tissue. For example, red light at 670 nanometers penetrates greater than other lasers close to the red spectrum. Since wavelengths of 670-690 nanometers support the oxidation processes, it is believed that the 670 nanometer wavelengths show better efficacy in therapeutics than lower wavelength lasers.

(b) For hair applications, the first and most significant condition in choosing laser wavelength is depth penetration, which should be sufficient to target hair bulbs typically resting at 5-6 mm depth.

(c) Visible red light at a wavelength of 660 nanometers penetrates tissue to a depth of 8-10 mm so that the entire hair organ will be covered to a depth just beyond the hair bulb. Visible red light could theoretically be effective in the entire scalp and might include wounds, cuts, scars, folliculitis, etc.

(d) There is the question of continuous wave vs. pulsed operation of the laser. Pulsed operation has been shown to stimulate tissue repair and regeneration to a greater degree than continuous wave operation. Pulses have been shown to stimulate cellular activity. Pulses can regulate biologic rhythms or cycles. Finally, pulsed operation exhibits greater anti-inflammatory effects than the continuous mode.

The GOAL of LLLT is to increase the circulation of the blood to the follicle area and to stimulate the hair organs (nerves, muscles and growth centers of the follicle). The effects of LLLT to stimulate, enhance or speed up the normal life cycle and production cycle of the exposed hair follicles is presently being studied and will fast become the science by which this technology will be judged:

In 1996 Pontien published a Microcirculation study with the Laser Hair Care Device and showed an increase in blood flow.

In 2005 Weiss and McDaniel showed that photo modulation using visible light can alter the expression of genes associated with the stimulation of hair growth. They described it as more of a "minoxidil-like" effect.

EFFECTS OF LLLT

The physics of laser light, along with its known properties, led the way to a practical application for low energy lasers in medicine. Various studies have confirmed these properties on the living organism. Taken together, the data points to the following effects of low level laser light on the scalp:

(1) Increased scalp blood flow and microcirculation by 20-30%
(2) Increases nutrient supply to enhance hair growth
(3) Stimulates and accelerates hair growth
(4) Stops the progression of hair loss
(5) Repairs and improves hair shaft quality
(6) Reduces excess levels of skin 5 alpha reductase and DHT which contribute to genetic thinning
(7) Relieves scalp conditions such as psoriasis, seborrhoeic dermatitis, itchy/scaling scalp (anti-inflammatory properties)
(8) Normalizes sebum production (also increases production in under activity and dryness and decreases production in over activity or greasiness)
(9) Reduces tight, tender scalp

These effects also make LLLT excellent adjunct therapy for pre-operative and post-operative Hair Restoration procedures.

TREATMENT PROGRAMS

In developing treatment programs with LLLT one must first consider whether the treatment will be administered with a Class 3A laser machine, with a hand held laser device, or with both.

The larger Class 3A Laser Machine is a patented cool laser which creates a soft halo of light around the scalp. The light is delivered from multiple rotating laser positions designed to increase blood flow to the scalp. There are 30 diode lasers rotating in a half sphere around the head delivering pulsed low laser energy to the scalp. This requires twice weekly or more visits to the clinic. The use of adjunct products, including a vasodilator, is recommended. FDA approval for the use of this laser for hair loss is pending.

The hand held laser comb is a hand held wand-like instrument with laser light ports arranged across its surface like the teeth of a comb. It is used at home 3 to 4 times weekly for 10-15 minutes per use. It is easy to use and convenient for the patient, so compliance is high. FDA approval for its use for hair loss is pending. It is accepted as a medical device in Canada. This allows advertising to make therapeutic claims about the hand held laser device such as its ability to increase the strength of scalp hair in men and women, its ability to prevent scalp hair loss in men and women, and its ability to cause re-growth of scalp hair in men and women.

Studies with the hand held laser comb have reinforced these claims:

In 2003, Martin Unger showed that LLLT has been found to have biomodulating effects on human hair and hair follicles. 97% of the patients studied had some benefit in improvement of hair characteristics, stabilization of hair loss or hair re-growth (defined by Unger as an increase of hair count by 11% or more from baseline).

Santino and Markou, in 2003, studied 35 patients (28 males, 7 females) with androgenetic alopecia on the LaserMax Comb. The treatment regimen was an every other day application of the comb for 5-10 minutes for 6 months. The results showed that, all patients considered, 93.5% of patients had a hair count increase and 78.9% had an increase in hair tensile strength.

There are ongoing FDA trials for men and women with thinning hair. These individuals undergo two treatments per week with the hand held laser comb for 6 months. All of the details of the trials are not available but preliminary results show that in men, 10% had stabilization of both frontal and vertex hair loss, 84.6% had re-growth of some hair in the frontal area and 82.8% had re-growth of some hair in the vertex. In women, 100% had stabilization of hair loss in the vertex, 87.5% had stabilization of hair loss in the frontal area, 75% had re-growth of some hair in the frontal area and 96.4% had re-growth of some hair in the vertex. Thus far, no side effects or eye damage has been reported.

CANDIDATES FOR LLLT

Based upon the information thus far and the various clinical trials in progress, a potential list of candidates for LLLT for hair loss is as follows:

Men and women between the ages of 18 and 65

Thinning to moderate hair loss

Patients ineligible for hair Restoration Surgery due to early stages of hair loss

Women experiencing diffuse or general thinning including the sides and the back

Pre and Post operative hair restoration.

There are three general categories of user experience with LLLT as regards to hair loss. 45% of patients will see positive results after 8 weeks of treatment, 45% will see positive results after 10-16 weeks of treatment and 10% see improvement after 16 weeks.

Finally, to give an idea of the types of laser programs that exist, the Hair Restoration Group has three different programs. Patients choose a program based upon specific needs.

The IN-CLINIC PROGRAM consists of 46 sessions of LLLT over 12 months with three cappilliscope readings to measure hair density. The AT HOME AND IN CLINIC PROGRAM utilizes the hand held laser comb three times a week for ten minutes at home with 12 monthly LLLT sessions in the clinic. Finally, there is a POST-OPERATIVE LLLT PROGRAM consisting of 2 twenty minute sessions of LLLT per week for 8 weeks. The patients undergoing post-operative LLLT notice that healing is accelerated, scarring is minimized (especially in the donor area), graft growth is accelerated, graft appearance is improved and post-operative swelling does not occur.

Copyright Notice

All rights, including copyright, in the content of this article by
Richard P. Giannotto, MD, are owned or
controlled Transitions International Group.