Blood Pressure

A new surgical procedure is being hailed as a breakthrough in high blood pressure treatment in more than 50 years.

By following the advice to smoke less, take regular exercise and eat properly you are less likely to be affected by high blood pressure however there are still millions of people who take this advice but are still affected by hypertension and take a combination of drugs to treat it.  It is these people, whose blood pressure remains high even though they eat little salt and take medication that are likely to benefit from this new surgical procedure to cure high blood pressure.

Cure for High Blood Pressure

The one-hour operation called renal sympathetic-nerve ablation attempts to cure high blood pressure by disrupting signals from the brain that keep it raised. The procedure  involves inserting a wire into a blood vessel close to the kidneys to burn through nerves which carry signals that stimulate high blood pressure.

“This is the most exciting development in hypertension since the advent of anti-hypertensive medication 50 years ago. It is hard to forecast the limitations and it could eventually be compared to medication”,

said Mel Lobo, a doctor and specialist in clinical hypertension with the UK’s NHS

The tiny burns just one millimetre across are the equivalent of snuffing a candle out between the fingers. A series of four or five burns are carried out in a spiral pattern along the inside of the artery to each kidney.

The blood vessel itself does not sustain serious damage as the blood flowing along inside it cools the burn, like running a burned finger under a tap. But the burn is deep enough to affect the nerve on the other side of the vessel.

Once the connection between the brain and kidneys is distrupted the signals to raise blood pressure should stop source

Still A Need for Blood Pressure Monitors

Although it is hoped that it will help some patients stop taking medicines for high blood pressure completely it is important to note that the diagnosis of high blood pressure can only be achieved by regular and proper measuring with an accurate blood pressure monitor.

Already there are misguided reports that the operation to cure blood pressure will lessen the need to follow lifestyle guidelines suggesting that patients can forget about healthy diets and excersise for good.

Results of the Operation to Cure High Blood Pressure

Early results show it can take between one and three months for the procedure to have an effect on blood pressure.

The first person to have this operation to cure his hypertension was found to have much lowered blood pressure after two weeks

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Eating Fresh Vegetables Helps Lower Blood Pressure

Eating more fruit and vegetables helps to lower blood pressure. New research may help to reveal why.

For many years the five a day message has been publicised – now there is further evidence to support the health benefits of a diet that includes pleant of fresh savory vegetables as well as sweet fruit.

Researchers have discovered that people who eat more vegetable protein have a lower blood pressure. In particular, one component of vegetable protein, glutamic acid, appears to have a direct relation to blood pressure: the more glutamic acid you eat, the lower your blood pressure will be.

glutamic acid which creates the fifth taste sense known as ‘umami’ – otherwise known as ’savoury’

Vegetables that are high in glutamic acid include

• broccoli
• soy (used to make tofu)
• durum wheat (used to make pasta)
• cabbage
• rice
• grains (used to make bread).

Vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage are particularly high in a chemical called glutamic acid which creates the fifth taste sense known as ‘umami’ – otherwise known as ’savoury’.

The results come from the INTERMAP study (the International Study of Macro/Micronutrients and Blood Pressure), which looked at the blood pressures and eating habits of 4,680 people from the UK, US, China and Japan. It found that people who ate nearly 5% more glutamic acid than other people had a lower average systolic blood pressure (top number) of 1.5-3.0mmHg and a lower average diastolic blood pressure (bottom number) of 1.0-1.6mmHg.

At the moment, there are no studies into the safety of eating large doses of glutamic acid, so it is recommended that you do not take glutamic acid supplements, but instead eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. The additional benefit of this approach is that you will also be lowering your saturated fat intake and taking in many other helpful antioxidants and vitamins at the same time.

Dr Stamler said

These findings show the only effective long-term approach to preventing hypertension and pre-hypertension is eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and regular exercise

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