https://youtu.be/4JNbyJfliLY

“normal” blood pressure [Hypertension]was accepted as whatever your age was plus 100. So a twenty-year old was expected to have a BP no higher than 120/80. A forty-year old, 140/90. And if you were 60, a top number of 160 was considered perfectly acceptable. But medicine changes its mind more often than most of us change our socks.

If your blood pressure is high and you are on medications, I recommend the following:
1. Measure your blood pressure twice a week after taking deep belly breath and record the value in a book.
2. Follow the wellness IQ on this website to improve your eating and drinking habits.
3. Increase your exercise to improve your cardiovascular function by brisk walking daily.
4. If your blood pressure reading is high during your doctor visit, this is due to white coat syndrome.
5. Stay taking your medications until your blood pressure becomes stable then you can gradually reduce your medications by working with your health care provider. Taking medications indefinitely is not recommended.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 3 American adults (about 70 million people) have high blood pressure. About half have uncontrolled high blood pressure, which increases your risk for a number of serious health problems, including:

Heart disease
Stroke
Kidney disease
Cognitive decline, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
Globally, more than 1 billion people struggle with high blood pressure, and prevalence has nearly doubled in the past four decades.

Overall, men tend to have higher blood pressure than women, and while high-income nations have seen a significant decline in hypertension, prevalence in low- and middle-income countries, such as South Asia and Africa, is spiking. According to researchers, prevalence is “completely inverse” to national income.

Worldwide, high blood pressure is thought to cause nearly 13 percent of all deaths, or about 7.5 million deaths annually.

What Causes High Blood Pressure?

According to medical physiology textbooks, as much as 95 percent of hypertension is called essential hypertension, meaning the underlying cause is unknown. From my perspective, this simply isn’t true. A number of factors have been identified as contributing to high blood pressure, including but not limited to:

Insulin and leptin resistance. As your insulin and leptin levels rise, it causes your blood pressure to increase

Elevated uric acid levels are also significantly associated with hypertension, so any program adopted to address high blood pressure needs to normalize your uric acid level as well

Poor nutrition in childhood has been shown to raise the risk of high blood pressure in adulthood

Lead exposure

Pollution. As your insulin and leptin levels rise, it causes your blood pressure to increase

Insulin and leptin resistance. Air pollution affects blood pressure by causing inflammation while noise pollution asserts an effect via your nervous and hormonal systems.

Air pollution has been shown to increase your risk of high blood pressure to the same degree as having a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 30.

Living in an area plagued by constant noise pollution (busy city streets with night time traffic) has been shown to increase the risk of hypertension by 6 percent, compared to living in an area where noise levels are at least 20 percent lower

The Importance of Diet and Insulin Sensitivity

As noted by the lead author Majid Ezzati, Ph.D., a professor of global environmental health at Imperial College London.

“The perception is that people are not getting enough calories, but the reality is, they’re not getting healthy calories. Making fresh, healthy food affordable and accessible for everybody should be a priority.”

One of the most important dietary changes needed to improve high blood pressure is to eliminate or dramatically reduce sugar and processed fructose from your diet. The easiest way to do that is to replace processed foods with real, whole foods. This will address not only insulin and leptin resistance but also elevated uric acid levels.

One 2010 study discovered that those who consumed 74 grams or more per day of fructose (the equivalent of about 2.5 sugary drinks) had a 77 percent greater risk of having blood pressure levels of 160/100 mmHg (stage 2 hypertension).

Consuming 74 grams or more of fructose per day also increased the risk of a 135/85 blood pressure reading by 26 percent, and a reading of 140/90 by 30 percent. To learn more about healthy eating, please see my optimal nutrition plan, which will guide you through the necessary changes step-by-step.

To ascertain whether insulin/leptin resistance is at play, be sure to check your fasting insulin level. If your hypertension is the result of elevated insulin levels, dietary intervention will be key.

Aim for a fasting insulin level of 2 to 3 microU per mL (mcU/mL). If it’s 5 mcU/mL or above, you definitely need to lower your insulin level to reduce your risk of high blood pressure and other cardiovascular health problems.

Keep in mind that the so-called “normal” fasting insulin level is anywhere from 5 to 25 mcU/mL, but please do not make the mistake of thinking that this “normal” insulin range equates to optimal.

The American Heart Association (AHA), the American College of Cardiology (ACC, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend lifestyle modification as the first-line treatment. If that doesnt work, patients may be prescribed a thiazide diuretic (commonly known as a water pill) before getting even more meds until their blood pressure is forced down. Commonly, people will end up on three drugs, though researchers are experimenting with four at a time. Some patients even end up on five different meds.

Whats wrong with skipping the lifestyle modification step and jumping straight to the drugs? Because drugs dont treat the underlying cause of high blood pressure yet can cause side effects. Less than half of patients stick with even the first-line drugs, perhaps due to such adverse effects as erectile dysfunction, fatigue, and muscle cramps.

What are the recommended lifestyle changes? The AHA, ACC, and CDC recommend controlling ones weight, salt, and alcohol intake, engaging in regular exercise, and adopting a DASH eating plan.

The DASH diet has been described as a lactovegetarian diet, but its not. It emphasizes fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy, but only a reduction in meat consumption. Why not even more plant-based? Weve known for decades that animal products are significantly associated with blood pressure. In fact, if we take vegetarians and give them meat (and pay them enough to eat it!), we can watch their blood pressures go right up.

Ive talked about the benefits to getting blood pressure down as low as 110 over 70. But who can get that low? Populations centering their diets around whole plant foods. Rural Chinese have been recorded with blood pressures averaging around 110 over 70 their whole lives. They eat plant-based day-to-day, with meat only eaten on special occasions.

How do we know its the plant-based nature of their diets that was so protective, though?

Because in the Western world, as the American Heart Association has pointed out, the only folks getting down that low on average were those eating strictly plant-based diets, coming in at about 110 over 65.

So were the creators of the DASH diet just not aware of this landmark research done by Harvards Frank Sacks? No, they were aware. The Chair of the Design Committee that came up with the DASH diet was Dr. Sacks himself. In fact, the DASH diet was explicitly designed with the number-one goal of capturing the blood pressure-lowering benefits of a vegetarian diet, yet including enough animal products to make it palatable to the general public.

You can see what they were thinking. Just like drugs never workunless you actually take them. Diets never workunless you actually eat them. So whats the point of telling people to eat strictly plant-based if few people will do it? So by soft-peddling the truth and coming up with some kind of compromise diet, the on a population scale maybe youd do more. Ok, but tell that to the thousand U.S. families a day that lose a loved one to high blood pressure. Maybe its time to start telling the American public the truth.

Sacks himself found that the more dairy the lactovegetarians ate, the higher their blood pressures. But they had to make the diet acceptable. Research has since shown that its the added plant foodsnot the changes in oil, sweets, or dairythat appears to the critical component of the DASH diet. So why not eat a diet composed entirely of plant foods?

A recent meta-analysis showed vegetarian diets are good, but strictly plant-based diets may be better. In general, vegetarian diets provide protection against cardiovascular diseases, some cancers, and even death. But completely plant-based diets seem to offer additional protection against obesity, hypertension, type-2 diabetes, and heart disease mortality. Based on a study of more than 89,000 people, those eating meat-free diets appear to cut their risk of high blood pressure in half. But those eating meat-free, egg-free, and dairy-free may have 75% lower risk.

What if were already eating a whole food, plant-based diet, no processed foods, no table salt, yet still not hitting 110 over 70? Here are some foods recently found to offer additional protection: Just a few tablespoons of ground flaxseeds a day was 2 to 3 times more potent than instituting an aerobic endurance exercise program and induced one of the most powerful, antihypertensive effects ever achieved by a diet-related intervention. Watermelon also appears to be extraordinary, but youd have to eat around 2 pounds a day. Sounds like my kind of medicine, but its hard to get year-round (at least in my neck of the woods). Red wine may help, but only if the alcohol has been taken out. Raw vegetables or cooked? The answer is both, though raw may work better. Beans, split peas, chickpeas, and lentils may also help a bit.

Kiwifruits dont seem to work at all, even though the study was funded by a kiwifruit company. Maybe they should have taken direction from the California Raisin Marketing Board, which came out with a study showing raisins can reduce blood pressure, but only, apparently, compared to fudge cookies, Cheez-Its, and Chips Ahoy.

Your diet is an important, if not crucial, factor for the maintenance of a healthy heart well into old age. Healthy dietary fats top the list of heart-healthy foods, of course, but aside from that, a nitrate-rich diet can go a long way toward protecting your heart.

Nitrates should not be confused with nitrites, found in bacon, hot dogs, ham and other less-than-healthy cured meats. Nitrites can convert into potentially dangerous nitrosamines, especially if heated, which is why processed meats are best avoided. In fact, after examining over 7,000 clinical studies, the World Cancer Research Fund concluded there’s no safe lower limit for processed meats.1 They should be avoided altogether.

On the other hand, many vegetables contain naturally occurring nitrates. When consumed, the bacteria in your mouth convert these nitrates to nitrites, but since vegetables are also rich in antioxidants, these nitrites do not pose a health hazard. More importantly, your body transforms the nitrates in vegetables into nitric oxide (NO),2 a soluble gas continually produced from the amino acid L-arginine inside your cells.

Nitrate-Rich Foods Boost Nitric Oxide Production
NO is a gas and free radical that is an important biological signaling molecule that supports normal endothelial function and protects the little powerhouses inside your cells, your mitochondria. Acting as a potent vasodilator, NO also helps relax and widen the diameter of your blood vessels, allowing a greater volume of blood to flow through.

Healthy blood flow helps your body function at its best, as your blood carries oxygen and nutrients to your heart, brain and other organs. It nourishes and oxygenizes your immune system and muscles, and helps keep your heart beating. It also carries away waste material and carbon dioxide.

As noted in research3 presented by Dr. Michael Greger above, a diet high in nitrate is a natural strategy recommended for the treatment of prehypertension and hypertension (high blood pressure), “and to protect individuals at risk of adverse vascular events,” i.e., heart attacks. Indeed, raw beets which are high in nitrates have been shown to lower blood pressure by an average of four to five points within a matter of hours.4

Some studies have shown a glass of beet juice can lower systolic blood pressure by more than eight points5 far more than most blood pressure medications. In conventional medicine, nitrates are used to treat angina and congestive heart failure, and research shows a glass of beetroot juice has the same effect as prescription nitrates.6

NO Promotes Healthy Heart and Brain Function
In one recent study,7,8,9,10 patients diagnosed with high blood pressure who drank beet juice an hour before exercise, three times a week for six weeks, experienced increased tissue oxygenation and blood flow. It also improved brain neuroplasticity by improving oxygenation of the somatomotor cortex (a brain area that is often affected in the early stages of dementia).

As noted by study co-author W. Jack Rejeski, a health and exercise science professor at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, NO is a vital biomolecule that “goes to the areas of the body which are hypoxic, or needing oxygen, and the brain is a heavy feeder of oxygen in your body.”11,12 Your heart, too, requires NO and oxygen for optimal function. As noted by cardiologist Dr. Stephen Sinatra:13

“Adequate NO production is the first step in a chain reaction that promotes healthy cardiovascular function, while insufficient NO triggers a cascade of destruction that eventually results in heart disease NO promotes healthy dilation of the veins and arteries so blood can move throughout your body. Plus, it prevents red blood cells from sticking together to create dangerous clots and blockages.”

Which Foods Contain the Most Nitrates?
As noted by Greger in the featured video, leafy greens top the list of nitrate-rich foods. Beets, which are a root vegetable, are well-known for their high nitrate content, but leafy greens contain even more nitrates per serving. In fact, beets barely made it onto the top 10 list, which is as follows:

1. Arugula, 480 mg of nitrates per 100 grams
2. Rhubarb, 281 mg
3. Cilantro, 247 mg
4. Butter leaf lettuce, 200 mg
5. Spring greens like mesclun mix, 188 mg
6. Basil, 183 mg
7. Beet greens, 177 mg
8. Oak leaf lettuce, 155 mg
9. Swiss chard, 151 mg
10. Red beets, 110 mg
Arugula, in the No. 1 spot, contains more nitrates than any other vegetable, and by a wide margin too 480 mg per 100 grams. The second-highest source, rhubarb, contains about 280 mg per 100 grams, which is about the same amount found in a 100-gram serving of beet root juice, whereas 100 grams of whole red beets provide a mere 110 mg of nitrates.

Other foods high in nitrates include the following.14,15,16 (While garlic is low in nitrates, it helps boost NO production by increasing NOS, which converts L-arginine to NO in the presence of cofactors such as vitamins B2 and B3.17)

Source Mg of nitrates per 100 grams
Bok choy
70 to 95 mg
Carrots
92 to 195 mg
Mustard greens
70 to 95 mg
Spinach
24 to 387 mg
Chinese cabbage
43 to 161 mg
Winter melon
16 to 136 mg
Eggplant
25 to 42 mg
Parsley
100 to 250 mg
Leeks
100 to 250 mg
Turnips
50 to 100 mg
Cauliflower
20 to 50 mg
Broccoli
20 to 50 mg
Artichoke
Less than 20 mg
Garlic
Less than 20 mg
Onion
Less than 20 mg
Nitrate-Rich Foods Protect Against Heart Disease
Previous research has shown that the more vegetables and fresh fruits you eat, the lower your risk of heart disease, with leafy greens being the most protective. As noted by Greger, the reason for this is likely their NO-boosting nitrates. This was confirmed in a May 2017 study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.18

In this study, nearly 1,230 Australian seniors without atherosclerotic vascular disease (ASVD) or diabetes were followed for 15 years. A food-frequency questionnaire was used to evaluate food intake, while nitrate intake was calculated using a comprehensive food database. As expected, the higher an individual’s vegetable nitrate intake, the lower their risk for both ASVD and all-cause mortality. According to the authors:

“Nitrate intake from vegetables was inversely associated with ASVD mortality independent of lifestyle and cardiovascular disease risk factors in this population of older adult women without prevalent ASVD or diabetes. These results support the concept that nitrate-rich vegetables may reduce the risk of age-related ASVD mortality.”

Leafy Greens and Sports Performance
Most competitive athletes understand the value of NO, and the wise ones take advantage of Mother Nature’s bounty. While research19,20 has shown nitrate supplements can boost sports performance and enhance fast-twitch muscle fibers, you can get the same results using whole foods. For example, research shows raw beets can increase exercise stamina by as much as 16 percent,21 an effect attributed to increased NO.

In another study,22 nine patients diagnosed with heart failure who experienced loss of muscle strength and reduced ability to exercise were found to benefit from beet juice. The patients were given 140 milliliters (mL) about two-thirds of a cup of concentrated beet juice, followed by testing, which found an almost instantaneous increase in their muscle capacity by an average of 13 percent.

There’s one important caveat though: Avoid using mouthwashes or chewing gum, as this actually prevents the NO conversion from occurring.23 The reason for this is because the nitrate is converted into nitrite in your saliva by friendly bacteria. That nitrite is then converted into NO in other places in your body.

More Information About NO
NO24 not to be confused with nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, a chemical compound with the formula N2O25 serves as a signaling or messenger molecule in every cell of your body. Hence, it’s involved in a wide variety of physiological and pathological processes. As mentioned, it causes arteries and bronchioles to expand, but it’s also needed for communication between brain cells, and causes immune cells to kill bacteria and cancer cells.

Now, your body loses about 10 percent of its ability to make NO for every decade of life, which is why eating a nitrate-rich diet is so important. NO is further synthesized by nitric oxide synthase (NOS). There are three isoforms of the NOS enzyme:

Endothelial (eNOS): a calcium-dependent signaling molecule that produces low levels of gas as a cell signaling molecule
Neuronal (nNOS): a calcium-dependent signaling molecule that produces low levels of gas as a cell signaling molecule
Inducible (immune system) (iNOS): calcium independent; produces large amounts of gas, which can be cytotoxic
Problematically, when fluoride is present (such as when you’re drinking fluoridated water), the fluoride converts NO into the toxic and destructive nitric acid. As noted in “Pharmacology for Anesthetists 3,”26 “[NO] will react with fluorine, chlorine and bromine to form the XNO species, known as the nitrosyl halides, such as nitrosyl chloride.” Hence, avoiding fluoridated water and other halide sources, such as brominated flour, is important to optimize your health and avoid damaging interactions. Exercise Also Boosts NO Production.

The Benefits of PQQ
PQQ stands for pyrroloquinoline quinone. This compound was identified as an essential nutritional component in 1994. Eventually, it will be classified as a vitamin. It’s particularly important for the health of the mitochondria. “It appears that PQQ is really the spark of life,” Murray says. “Our mitochondria definitely require this compound to produce energy. It’s also critical in protecting the mitochondria from damage.”

Mitochondrial DNA is quite prone to damage from free radicals and pro-oxidants. Most of the free radicals in the body are produced within the mitochondria themselves, which is why they’re so susceptible. The free radicals are an unavoidable artifact of burning food for fuel, and your food is ultimately metabolized in your mitochondria.

PQQ has been shown to protect against this kind of damage. PQQ is found in minute quantities in food, but research shows that when taken in supplement form, you can dramatically boost your PQQ level and really see remarkable effects. While your mitochondria are susceptible to damage, they also have built-in repair and replication mechanisms. The key is to activate those mechanisms, which is what PQQ allows you to do. Murray explains:

“Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced during energy production. There are mechanisms that the mitochondria use to protect itself. One of those mechanisms is PQQ. I know your audience is very familiar with the term “antioxidant.” The thing is everybody thinks all antioxidants are the same. They’re really not. You have to look at the type of pro-oxidant and free radical that is involved.

You have to look at how many times an antioxidant can be used to really get a sense of how profound it is in protecting our cells. PQQ is really a profoundly effective antioxidant. Every time an antioxidant neutralizes a free radical, that’s called a catalytic conversion. Some antioxidants just aren’t used very often.

For example, vitamin C is only capable of going through four catalytic conversions. That means after it’s used four times, it’s no longer effective as an antioxidant. The number of catalytic conversions that PQQ can be utilized for is in the realm of over 20,000 times It also plays a huge role in a process called mitochondrial biogenesis (regeneration of new mitochondria).

It does a great job in killing off mitochondria that are not functioning properly and then stimulating the replication of the healthy mitochondria. It’s really a cellular regenerator. It does this through its action on mitochondria. This is really exemplified in studies that have looked at the influence of PQQ in enhancing brain function and brain connections, and forming new brain cells. That translates to just having your brain function at a much higher level.”

The Role of Polyphenols for Health
Before we go further, I want to remind you that indiscriminately suppressing free radicals with general antioxidants is typically not a good idea. Yes, free radicals are often considered damaging, but the same can be said for exercise. It too causes damage if done excessively without enough recovery. The key is moderation and balanced recovery.

ROS are actually important biological signaling molecules. If you indiscriminately suppress their formation, you can interrupt profoundly important biologic pathways. So, there’s a fine balance to prevent damage. This is one of the reasons why I recommend focusing on your diet. When you eat a diet high in healthy fats, low in net carbs, with moderate amounts of protein, you naturally limit the production of ROS in the first place, which means you typically don’t need to worry about excessive damage taking place.

Additionally, an alternative to using a potent antioxidant like PQQ is to use hormetic agents such as molecular hydrogen, CBD oil both of which activate the Nrf2 pathway and resveratrol (found in grape skins, for example). Hormetic agents are not antioxidants by themselves, rather, they induce oxidative stress on the system that causes your body to produce its own antioxidants. This helps ensure a more ideal balance of free radicals and antioxidants.

As a quick side note, increasing Nrf2 a biological hormetic that upregulates superoxide dismutase, catalase and all the other beneficial intercellular antioxidants is helpful mainly because it lowers inflammation, improves your mitochondrial function and stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis. Both PQQ and berberine (discussed below) have a positive effect on Nrf2 expression. Murray weighs in on this subject, saying:

“Flavonoids, polyphenols, are quite interesting to mitochondrial function. There’s wisdom in the body. There’s wisdom in nature. If we look at the way flavonoids are transported in the body, they are not transported in a free form. They are bound to either sulfur or glucuronic acid. In this bound form, they become inactive.

This is really important because we want to make sure that when we take something that is getting delivered not only to the tissues but also to the cell and to the parts of the cell that really needs the greatest support. The latest science shows that when we ingest these polyphenols whether they come from grapes, berries, raw cacao or any of the other rich sources they are bound to glucuronic acid and they are inactive.

But at sites of inflammation, sites of infection, or when cells aren’t functioning properly, the cells release an enzyme called glucuronidase. This liberates the flavonoid or polyphenol and allows that polyphenol to enter the cell, enter the mitochondria and affect change. This has been demonstrated with mitochondria. It causes mitochondria to experience stress.

When the mitochondria experience that stress, it causes release of glucuronidase, and that ultimately leads to flavonoids entering in the mitochondria, protecting the mitochondria from free radical damage, and actually activating certain genomes that will allow the mitochondria to function much more efficiently and to reduce the inflammation and the stress.”

PQQ Boosts Brain Health
So, it’s important to get the right type of antioxidants and not just use a shotgun approach where you’re loading your body up with them. For health, you really need targeted support for key cellular compartments, especially your mitochondria. As for PQQ, Murray notes that PQQ is stored in your mitochondria, where it is used appropriately. “When you supplement with PQQ, it increases the number and the health of your mitochondria, which in turn increases the need for PQQ,” he says.

Both animal and human studies using doses between 10 and 20 milligrams (mg) of PQQ shows significant improvement in mental processing and memory.

One study using the Stroop test found PQQ in combination with Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) produced better results than either of these nutrients alone, so there appears to be some synergistic effects with CoQ10. (The Stroop test is where you’re looking at words spelling out various colors while the word itself is also colored. You’re supposed to name the color you see. The test is timed, which gives you an indication of your brain’s processing speed.)

“A lot of times the energy production [in the brain] is turned down like a dimmer switch. What PQQ, CoQ10 and other mitochondrial enhancers do is they basically just brighten up the brain. They turn up that dimmer switch. They increase the energy production in the brain cells, so that they function more efficiently.

That leads to better memory, better cognitive function and feeling better as well,” Murray says. “That’s what they’re showing with these clinical studies with PQQ. In regards to brain health, these studies have used a combination of [a daily dose of] 20 mg of PQQ with 300 mg of CoQ10.”

I recommend using the reduced form of CoQ10, called ubiquinol, as it is more readily available for your body. It’s fat-soluble, so it’s best taken with a small amount of fat in your meal rather on an empty stomach. In addition to being a powerful antioxidant in its own right, CoQ10/ubiquinol also facilitates the recycling (catalytic conversion) of other antioxidants.

PQQ Lowers Inflammation and Improves Blood Lipids
Research looking at PQQs influence on energy metabolism and markers of inflammation showed a single dose was able to dramatically lower C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation. Other studies have shown it lowers low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol on par with statins, but without any side effects. “I think the list of potential applications for PQQ is extremely long,” Murray says.

“If you look at some of the metabolic effects of PQQ, they go well beyond improving mitochondrial function. PQQ can lead to activation of an enzyme called adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). This enzyme, I think, is really a molecular target for modern humans.

As we age, the level of this enzyme drops. Certain dietary practices too much of the wrong types of fats, not enough of the good types of fats, not enough of the flavonoids, not enough of the metabolic enhancers and mitochondrial enhancers lead to a reduction in AMPK activity.

Insulin resistance is probably the major cause of reduction in AMPK activity. This enzyme plays a huge role in body fat composition. In your body, it plays a huge role in inflammation [and] blood lipids. It’s not surprising with PQQ activating this enzyme that we see improved blood sugar control, we see excess body fat, particularly visceral fat, decline, and we see drops in LDL cholesterol.”

How PQQ Helps Lower Risk of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
AMPK also stimulates mitochondrial autophagy (mitophagy) and mitochondrial biogenesis, as well as five other critically important pathways: insulin, leptin, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1-alpha (PGC-1α). According to Murray, it also increases nerve growth factor and helps protect against the type of oxidative stress that leads to Parkinson’s disease.

One of the mechanisms by which it does this is by protecting against the self-oxidation of a gene called DJ-1, which is damaged by various compounds. When damaged, it leads to Parkinson’s disease. According to Murray, PQQ has been shown to be protective against every known inducer of damage to DJ-1, including mercury and other heavy metals, as well as a variety of neurotoxins.

“[PQQ] protects against the development of alpha-synuclein, a protein associated with Parkinson’s,” Murray says. “It also protects the brain from the development of Alzheimer’s disease [via] multiple mechanisms, including protecting the formation of beta-amyloid [and] the damage that beta-amyloid can cause in the brain.

It’s really far reaching. I think that PQQ is going to be a real superstar in the dietary supplement field. It’s really going to revolutionize natural therapies for many different health conditions.

We highlighted its synergy with CoQ10. I think we’re going to learn that various cocktails of PQQ in combination with other compounds are going to produce better results than PQQ on its own. It makes a lot of sense when you start digging in and looking at how PQQ works, and how it’s synergistic with all these other wonderful compounds that we have available to us now.”

The Benefits of Berberine
Another beneficial and vastly underappreciated supplement is berberine. It has many of the same benefits as the diabetic drug metformin, but without the drawbacks and side effects. Historically, berberine-containing plants such goldenseal, goldthread, Oregon grape root and barberry have been used in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes, gastrointestinal infections, liver problems and a number of other health conditions.

Berberine is an alkaloid, which tend to be stronger in their effect than the flavonoids. Flavonoids are neutralized fairly quickly in the body by binding to glucaronic acid or sulfur. Alkaloids circulate in two to three forms and therefore tend to be stronger. Like PQQ, berberine benefits mitochondrial function and is a powerful AMPK activator.

“The research on berberine right now is really focusing on its ability to improve blood sugar control, to lower blood pressure and cholesterol. If this were a drug, it’ll hit big numbers, because it’s kind of a holy grail. The drug companies would love to have a drug that would hit that triad of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and Type 2 diabetes.

There were 27 double-blind, placebo-controlled trials with berberine for those conditions. The results were on par with the individual drug for those three conditions (metformin, statins and blood pressure-lowering drugs) You’re looking at clinical trials involving thousands of patients now. The results show [berberine is] very safe [and] a very effective natural alternative to drugs used for these common conditions.”

The typical dose is 500 mg of berberine two or three times daily. It’s best taken right before meals as it also helps improve digestion and will address parasitic infections in the gastrointestinal tract.

Berberine is actually poorly absorbed by your body, and many of its benefits appear to be related to its beneficial impact on the gut microbiome, which we now know plays an important role in metabolism and even insulin sensitivity. In addition to its beneficial effects on blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, berberine is also a powerful neuroprotector, in part by improving mitochondrial health and function.

The Benefits of Mulberry Leaves and Grape Seed Extract
Another plant that can help improve blood sugar control is mulberry leaves. Murray cites a study in which mulberry leaves were compared to glyburide, a Type 2 diabetes medication, and mulberry performed far better than the drug. In addition to improving blood sugar control, lowering A1C levels and improving fasting blood sugar levels, mulberry also increases the level of antioxidants in your blood and lowers both LDL and total cholesterol.

“It just seems to work much better than the drug,” Murray says. “It’s just that there’s no money to advertise mulberry or mulberry extract. It’s really a very important approach I think. [Berberine and mulberry] are good answers for these epidemic conditions that people are suffering from out there, whether it’s high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes.”

Murray also cites research demonstrating the effects of grape seed extract on high blood pressure. Two double-blind studies found 300 mg of grape seed extract per day lowered blood pressure in people with mild to moderate hypertension, bringing them back into the normal range. “We’re not talking about a few points that we typically see with some of the natural approaches. We see dramatic clinically relevant reductions just by taking a simple dietary supplement,” he says.

“My key message is that there are safe and effective alternatives [to drugs],” Murray says. “We use those safe and effective alternatives until the diet and lifestyle and attitude adjustments have a chance to take hold. But we don’t lose focus. We focus on those real key areas that really lead to the condition arising in the first place diet, lifestyle and attitude.”

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Blood pressure refers to the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as your heart pumps blood. High blood pressure, or Hypertension, occurs when blood flows through blood vessels and arteries at higher than normal pressures. High blood pressure can hinder blood flow, slowing the flow and volume of blood to your vital organs, including your brain.

Your blood pressure is measured by assessing

• Systolic pressure: This is the first, or top, number. It indicates the blood pressure in your arteries when the heart beats while pumping blood. This measurement takes into account how much blood is passing through your blood vessels and the amount of resistance the blood meets while your heart is pumping.
• Diastolic pressure: This is the second, or bottom, number. It indicates the blood pressure when your heart is at rest between beats.

Normal blood pressure is considered less than 120/80. Your blood pressure is considered high when systolic pressure (the top number) is 140 or higher or the diastolic pressure (bottom number) is 90 or higher.

What Causes High Blood Pressure?

A number of factors can contribute to high blood pressure or hypertension, including:

Poor Parasympathetic Tone:  Your heart rate is controlled by the two branches of the autonomic nervous system (ANS).  The  “fight or flight” sympathetic nervous system raises your heart rate so we can bump more blood to our muscles and flee from danger, while the “rest and digest” parasympathetic nervous system slows down our heart rate so you can rest repair and recover. In the parasympathetic state, your vagus nerve releases the neurotransmitter acetylcholine to the sinoatrial node of the heart signaling it to prolong the time to the next heartbeat, thus slowing the pulse.   Increased sympathetic tone is often correlated with high blood pressure and hypertension.READ THIS NEXT: Parasympathetic for Heart Health

High Cortisol:  Research has found significant evidence that high cortisol levels increases blood pressure and hypertension.  More specifically, your adrenal glands, which release cortisol, also release the hormone aldosterone which works with your kidneys to balance fluids and electrolytes.  When stress levels are high (as evidenced by high levels of cortisol), aldosterone signals your kidneys to retain salt, which triggers the retention of fluid as well, increasing the volume of fluid in the blood vessels which contributes to high blood pressure. (Study)  Learn more about essential oils for cortisol here.

Poor Circulation: Constriction of blood vessels can make it harder for blood to flow freely which elevates blood pressure.  Discover 10 signs of poor circulation here.

Compromised Kidney Function:  Poor kidney function may upset your body’s natural balance of salts, causing you to retain more fluid, which increases blood pressure. Learn more about the kidneys here.

Symptoms of High Blood Pressure

Symptoms of high blood pressure are often subtle or non-existent, but can parallel signs of poor circulation, including:

Visionary Problems: High blood pressure can cause thickened, narrowed or torn blood vessels in the eyes, which can result in vision problems, like blurred vision or vision loss.

No Brain Endurance: Your brain needs a healthy supply of blood in order to function properly. When blood circulation to the brain becomes sluggish, it can impact your mental abilities, including your ability to focus and concentrate.  This has to do with both the poor delivery of oxygen to the brain and the poor drainage of toxins from the brain.

Fatigue: When your circulatory system slows down, it damages it’s capacity to deliver oxygen, vitamins, and minerals throughout the body. It can also slow down your metabolism. Without the proper supply of nutrient-filled blood, your body tries to conserve as much energy as possible, making you feel fatigued.

Digestive Problems: Adequate blood supply is necessary for nutrients to be properly digested, absorbed and assimilated.  Poor blood flow to the digestive track, can lead to acid reflux, bloating, gas, nausea, loose stools or impaired digestion.

Memory Issues: Uncontrolled high blood pressure can affect your ability to think, remember and learn. Trouble with memory or understanding concepts is more common in people with high blood pressure.

Essential Oils for High Blood Pressure

Essential oils can help support healthy circulation and balance blood pressure.  Research deemed the inhalation of essential oils and “effective intervention that reduces psychological stress responses and serum cortisol levels, as well as the blood pressure of clients with essential hypertension.”  Key statistical measures, including blood pressure, pulse rate, subjective stress, state anxiety, and serum cortisol levels were all significantly reduced with essential oil exposure.

Additional research measured  the effects of essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels on 83 people with prehypertension or hypertension. Inhalation of essential oils was found to significantly decrease daytime blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels.

Are Essential Oils Contra-Indicated for High Blood Pressure?

Essential oils do not raise blood pressure.

In the 1964 book Aromathérapie, Dr, Jean Valnet warned that rosemary, hyssop, sage and thymeshould not be used for people with high blood pressure.  It turns out this often-repeated warning lacks any research to support it and was based on easily disputed animal research conducted in the 1940s.  Essential Oil Safety author Robert Tisserand dispelled this myth, noting that “the quantity and quality of essential oil research available in the early 1960s was extremely poor” and “these four oils would NOT be contraindicated in high blood pressure.”

In his research paper Essential Oils and Hypertension – is There a Problem?, Robert Tisserand explains that there is no case for contraindicating any essential oil in someone with high blood pressure.  He notes “a close examination of the original 1940s research reveals that, if anything, these essential oils reduce blood pressure… Ultimately, there is currently no compelling evidence that any essential oil is dangerous to use in hypertension.”

In summary, there are also no proven cases of anyone suffering ill effects from escalation of blood pressure caused by essential oils.  What research is available correlates inhalation or topical application with a decrease in blood pressure.

What are the Best Essential Oils for High Blood Pressure?

The following blends best support and balance the underlying factors that contribute to high blood pressure or hypertension.

Parasympathetic™

The parasympathetic nervous system slows down our heart rate so you can rest repair and recover. In the parasympathetic state, your vagus nerve releases the neurotransmitter acetylcholine to the sinoatrial node of the heart signaling it to prolong the time to the next heartbeat, thus slowing the pulse.

To stimulate the vagus nerve and trigger the parasympathetic response, topically apply Parasympathetic™ blend on the vagal nerve behind the earlobe on the neck .  This triggers the release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine which helps slow your heart beat which reduces the amount of blood ,pumped through your arteries with each beat, naturally helping to lower blood pressure. This also helps to keep your heart healthy.  High blood pressure, or increased pressure in your blood vessels, forces your heart’s muscles to pump more frequently and with more force than a healthy heart should have to.

The parasympathetic nervous system also calms inflammation which also supports blood pressure as inflammation in the arteries over time is a major contributing factor to high blood pressure.  Calming inflammation and relaxing smooth muscles helps to lower blood pressure.

The Parasympathetic™ blend of clove and lime is well suited to supporting high blood pressure.  Clove has a high concentration of the chemical constituent eugenol, found in clove oil in levels upward of 88.58 percent, which has been shown to lower the amount of blood flow through the vessels. Eugenol specifically may act as a calcium channel blocker, preventing the mineral from entering the cells of blood vessel walls. In a similar vein, Lime essential oil is said to have stress-reducing properties.

Adrenal™

High stress levels trigger the release of cortisol which  increases blood pressure and hypertension.  Cortisol is released by your adrenal glands and levels are regulated by your hypothalamus in your brain.  When either of these glands are out of balance, the hormones they release, like cortisol and aldosterone can surge and increase blood pressure.

Calming the adrenals helps calm the release of aldosterone which helps your kidneys remove excess sodium from your body. As the sodium leaves, extra fluid in your bloodstream moves into your urine, which helps lower your blood pressure.  Essential oils can help return your adrenal glands and your hypothalamus to balance which can help lower blood pressure.

Your adrenal glands secrete cortisol in response to stress.  To help keep your adrenals balanced and not over releasing cortisol, apply 1- 2 drops of the Adrenal™ on the adrenal glands (lower mid-back, one fist above the 12th rib on each side) upon waking, before bed and throughout the day as needed.

Adrenal™ blend contains several oils that have been recognized to lower blood pressure. For example, research on cinnamon found a significant decrease in blood pressure in both prediabetes and type 2 diabetes patients.

Adrenal™ blend contains “stimulatory” oils like Rosemary and Thyme.  Misinformation has been shared that stimulatory oils should be avoided to avoid triggering high blood pressure.  I have found the opposite to be true.  Specifically, a 2007 study found that Rosemary oil decreased cortisol levels in saliva when inhaled and  has been shown to balance hormones that help support adrenal glands.

Essential oil expert Robert Tisserand cautions “we need to be careful how we apply general terms such as “stimulating”. The evidence shows that peppermint oil both increases alertness, and reduces blood pressure. This is not adaptogenesis, nor is it a contradiction, it’s simply that alertness and blood pressure are controlled by different parts of our nervous system, and the same essential oil can be both “stimulating” and “depressing” at the same time, but to different receptor sites or neurochemical pathways.”

Hypothalamus™

Your hypothalamus, the pearl size region of your brain located just above your brain stem, is responsible for maintaining your body’s internal balance, by helping to stimulate or inhibit heart rate and regulate blood pressure.  Research found that “The possible dysfunction of such a center, particularly in an abnormal sensitiveness to psychic or emotional stimuli, could obviously be an important pathogenic factor in the production of clinical “essential” hypertension.

The Hypothalamus serves as control center for neural and hormonal messages received from/sent to body, including signals to trigger the release of cortisol or raise blood pressure.  The ability of the hypothalamus to receive clear messages from the body is critical as all outgoing endocrine and neural signals are based on the clarity of these incoming signals, including the ability to put the brakes on cortisol release.  To optimize the ability of the hypothalamus to send and receive signals, apply 1 drop of Hypothalamus™ on forehead slightly above the third eye up to 6 times daily.

Circulation™

Constriction of blood vessels can make it harder for blood to flow freely which elevates blood pressure.  Essential oils, like Black Pepper, are known to help relax and expand your blood vessels, veins and arteries.

Hypertension can make your arteries tougher, tighter, and less elastic. This damage makes it easier for dietary fats to deposit in your arteries and further restrict blood flow.   Narrow arteries make it harder for blood to flow easily, increasing resistance and raising your blood pressure.  Essential oils can help restore strength and flexibility to your blood vessels and arteries so that your blood can flow freely and unobstructed through your body.

Circulation™ blend is formulated with powerful oils known to help blood vessels relax and dilate which reduces blood pressure and supports healthy circulation to deliver oxygen and nutrient rich blood to the body and the brain.

For example, Cypress oil helps improve circulation, helping the veins contract, making it easier to stimulate blood flow. It may also help alleviate some of the triglycerides that can form and restrict blood flow.  Similarly, Ginger Root helps warm the skin and vessels, promoting circulation and helping to regulate blood flow throughout the body.

Apply 2- 3 drops of Circulation™ on the sides or back of the neck, over the left clavicle, on the wrists or ankles to help increase blood flow.

Kidney Support™

Poor kidney function may upset your body’s natural balance of salts, causing you to retain more fluid, which increases blood pressure

Your kidneys are two bean-shaped organs located near the middle part of your back that help regulate the flow and balance of fluids in your body.  For example, they balance your blood pressure by maintaining the salt and water balance and controlling the volume, composition and pressure of fluids in all of your cells.  Blood flows through your kidneys at its highest pressure  – over 200 quarts per day.  Fluid is symbolic of the unconscious or that which we do not understand or fear.

In Chinese medicine, the kidneys are considered the seat of courage and willpower.  Feelings of fear and paranoia can be held in the kidneys impairing function.  Vibrant Blue Oils Emotion Balance Kidney Support™ blend helps dispel fear, assist in feeling safe and bring about a balance of emotions.

Kidney Support™ blend also contains several essential oils known for lowering blood pressure, including Cedarwood which is known for calming nerves.  Research found inhalation of ylang ylang essential oil significantly decreased blood pressure and heart rate.  Frankincense is also known as a mood enhancer which is effective at lowering blood pressure.  Apply 2- 3 drops of Kidney Support™ over the kidneys (one inch up and out from belly button), back of neck, or around the outside of earlobes.

Epsom Salt Baths

Epsom salt baths have been found to lower blood pressure.

Epsom salt is a naturally occurring mineral compound of magnesium and sulfate first distilled from seawater in the town of Epsom, England.  Magnesium helps relax your blood vessels and can have an immediate impact on naturally lowering blood pressure.  Magnesium plays a number of roles in the body including regulating enzyme activity, reducing inflammation, helping to improve muscle and nerve function along with blood flow throughout the body.

Studies have shown that both magnesium and sulfate are easily absorbed through the skin and into the body’s blood stream. The skin is a highly porous membrane that both takes in minerals and eliminates toxins every day.  You can learn more about Epsom salt baths here or download our FREE Healing Bath guide here.

To reduce blood pressure, consider adding either Rose or Lavender essential oil to the bath.  One study found that  topical application of rose oil can reduce blood pressure and heart rate. The calming effect and anti-inflammatory characteristics of rose essential oil helps relax the entire body to increase blood circulation and lower high blood pressure.

Lavender essential oil has also been found to reduce blood pressure. The study revealed that lavender oil caused significant decreases of blood pressure and heart rate.