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High Blood Pressure - Hypertension
In 1996/1997 it was estimated that about 1.4 million Canadian men and 1.8 million Canadian women have high blood pressure. 35% may go undiagnosed. High blood pressure can cause stroke, heart attack, kidney failure and aneurysm. It may be associated with insulin resistance/diabetes, obesity, dietary factors, stress and emotional factors, genetics, age, kidney problems, adrenal problems, vitamin D levels, taking certain drugs and exposure to heavy metals among other things. Evaluation to determine the possible cause may allow for discontinuation of medicine.
Testing may include:
- Testing for Essential Fatty Acids. Omega 3 fatty acids are associated with lower risks of coronary heart disease and risk of fatal ischemic heart disease. This blood test identifies if there is any fatty acid imbalances in the system and if there is any inflammation. It also determines if there are excess carbohydrates being consumed. The test allows us to customize the dose of essential fatty acids such as DHA or EPA, which is found in fish oils. Often patients are taking a dose that is far too low to have effect on reducing CHD.
- Salivary cortisol levels can be performed to determine an adrenal cause to hypertension.
- Vitamin D. Low levels cause increased renin which elevates blood pressure.
- Kidney function testing.
- Glucose Tolerance Test and measurement of insulin resistance using the HOMA method determine if blood sugars may be causing hypertension.
- Heavy Metal Analysis. Heavy metals can cause elevated blood pressure. Patients are often surprised to find mercury or lead or other metals in their system. Proper testing using provocative heavy metal testing is the gold standard for determination of heavy metal toxicity. Removing the metals using oral chelation removes metals and can relieve hypertension in those with elevated metals.
- Adrenal function testing. Salivary cortisol levels can be performed to determine an adrenal cause to hypertension.
Many of my patients don’t wish to take commonly prescribed drugs such as Altace, Diovan, Lopressor, Norvasc, Adalat and Avalide. These drugs can cause unwanted side-effects including fatigue, sexual dysfunction and chronic cough. From my experience, natural medicines often produce “side-benefits”, that is, beneficial effects of taking the medicine that weren’t expected. For example, my patients may say that their constipation has cleared or their joint pain has gone away. This is not to say that all natural medicines are always safe, but it is far less common to get side-effects from natural medicines than from prescription meds.
Some treatment options include:
- Nutritional support including dietary counselling, vitamins, minerals and amino acids.
- Herbal medicine. I use a custom formula for hypertension that includes hawthorne, mistletoe and dandelion as a natural diuretic.
- Myer’s push. Some of my patients experience a reduction in their high blood pressure following a Myer’s push perhaps due to an increase in magnesium concentration in myocardial cells which generally exhibit a 10 times greater concentration of magnesium than the extracellular concentration. IV magnesium also causes vasodilation to occur which can drop blood pressure.
- Oral chelation therapy. To rid the body of heavy metals. The use of DMSA chelates or binds metals that are stored in tissues and rids them from the body, effectively removing agents that can contribute to hypertension.
- SomatoEmotional Release for hypertension caused by emotional tension.
- Dietary couselling to reduce high blood pressure.
“Sometime around the mid 1980’s I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and have been on a series of prescription medications ever since. The cause has always eluded me, and my G.P., when asked, stated matter-of-factly, “We’ll probably never know”. Except for a highly stressful 24 year career in investments, I had none of the usual signs or clues pointing to high blood pressure. But it was definitely creeping up over the years.
I visited Dr. Ceaser and we worked on my emotional side for quite awhile using SomatoEmotional Release, which freed me from a series of lifetime sources of high anxiety. He also recommended some effective supplements, notably magnesium glycinate, which relaxes the arteries. Amazingly, it had a series of what Dr. Ceaser calls, unintended side-benefits. Taking it just before bed, I found it resulted in a way deeper sleep than before. Secondly, my periodic leg cramps from exercise disappeared.
But most amazing, my memory and thinking ability rebounded significantly after steadily but modestly declining over the years. (I am 60 years old.). Within weeks, I was solving SUDOKU puzzles that were previously impossible. I eventually started writing instructions on how to do these puzzles for friends.
However, despite all this, my blood pressure persisted at the high end of normal. We decided I should be tested for heavy metal toxicity. The results showed very high levels of lead. I started oral chelation therapy in early January 2009 and am almost half way through. It is a seven and a half month program. Even though I still have 4 months to go, my recent b. p. readings are now averaging 120’s/70’s with the occasional cystolic near 100 and diastolic around 60. We may have found the answer.
According to the research, one important source of lead poisoning is old homes, and specifically renovating them, due to the high lead content in the paint used back then. In 1980, I purchased a house built in 1906 and a year later started a 5 year paint stripping project, removing all the old paint from my entire front hallway, stairs and banister. About 5 years later, my blood pressure started rising. I have no doubt this multi year project, involving physically scraping the paint off with significant dust generation, is the source of my lead poisoning and subsequent high blood pressure.
This was a difficult medical problem to chase down, but Dr. Ceaser had the range of skills, knowledge and tests needed to locate the source. And I also benefited tremendously from the side-benefits I mentioned and in finding greater peace of mind through Dr. Ceaser’s use of SomatoEmotional Release.”
Brian Chesnut
"The Road NOT Taken. Thank Goodness. After one month on Perindopril, a medication prescribed by my medical doctor for newly diagnosed high blood pressure, I developed almost all the unpleasant side-effects cited on the print-out that came with the prescription. When I told of the nasty side-effects (and he is a conscientious medical doctor who will do his best for his patients), he said that he had many patients like me who worry about any pill they put in their mouth. Well, YES ! At my first appointment with Dr. Ceaser he told me that he was sure that he could fix the problem, and he started me on the naturopathic protocol: assessment, purging of heavy metals, re-assessment, vitamin and mineral supplements and periodic check-ups. Within 18 months my blood pressure returned to normal, and I am glad to have avoided the unpleasant side-effect of the commonly prescribed drugs. A bonus in the past 18 months, has been that Dr.Ceaser has an amazing personality: very positive and cordial.”
Steven Park