Doctor’s On Call is a brand new weekly health column. The primary objective of this column is to provide you with healthcare advice and treatment options for a broad spectrum of conditions.
This week’s topic is heart health. The topic of heart health includes the effects of high blood pressure and cholesterol.
Your role as a reader is to provide input and suggestions. This column is intended to be as interactive as possible.
You will be able to ask specific questions about future topics and we will provide easy-to-understand solutions.
Remember this column is not designed to replace valuable medical advice; it is intended to direct you properly to get the correct care needed.
You can still comment and email us regarding last week’s article on arthritis. We want to thank you for the email suggestions from last week pertaining to heart health.
In this week’s article, we will provide answers to the five most common email questions that were submitted. In future, we will continue to rely on your online comments and email suggestions. We look forward to interacting with you and guiding you in the right direction.
High blood pressure
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“I have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, what are my treatment options?” That is a great question. Unfortunately many of us have been misled regarding treatment options for high blood pressure.
Commonly the only treatment recommendation is medication. High blood pressure can be treated or better controlled by a number of factors. These factors include exercise, dietary choices and reducing the amount of stress one has.
“Does exercise help with blood pressure?” Exercise is defined as physical activity that is planned. Exercise helps the body respond to stress and improves cardiovascular health. Clinical studies have demonstrated exercise is very efficient at reducing one’s blood pressure.
“What kinds of exercises are good for blood pressure?” Cardiovascular exercises such as walking, running, biking and swimming are perfect to help reduce one’s blood pressure.
Interval or circuit training has become very popular as well. However, it is important as a healthcare professional to encourage you to monitor your pulse before, during and after exercise.
Cholesterol
“I have read about the dangers of statin medications, what is your opinion?” Statin medications are given to lower cholesterol. Unfortunately many healthcare professionals do not comment on other lifestyle factors that can reduce cholesterol naturally.
Statin medications commonly damage an enzyme called Co-Q10, this enzyme helps produce the molecule that provides the energy for muscular contraction. The most common side affects such as weakness, soreness and fatigue are caused by this damaged enzyme.
Our opinion is more holistic in nature, statins artificially reduce cholesterol in the short-term; let’s find out what will reduce it naturally over the long-term.
“How can I reduce my cholesterol naturally?” Eating a balanced, healthy diet is the first step to healthy cholesterol. Many health professionals still say eggs are unhealthy and should be avoided.
Research demonstrates that eating natural foods with cholesterol and saturated fats does not produce high levels of cholesterol in your blood.
Coconut oils are very high with natural saturated fats, but produce very little heart disease. Highly processed foods and unhealthy cooking oils are now linked to increased cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood stream.
Cholesterol is a substance that is a part of every cell in the body. Cholesterol can be described as the communication towers of a cell.
These communication towers help communicate and signal specific actions to occur or not to occur. This communication helps signal healing within the body. When cholesterol numbers rise, it is usually indicative of additional signals of healing that are needed within the body.
When one artificially reduces these signals by taking statin medications, healing can be diminished. There are certain conditions that can spike cholesterol numbers abnormally.
These recommendations do not apply to every case, but to the vast majority. One’s blood pressure and cholesterol will naturally reduce when you apply exercise, nutrition, and improve lifestyle factors.
Health is not about medications, it is about the choices one makes. The healthier your choices, the healthier you will become.
In next week’s column we will be discussing type two diabetes. Type two diabetes is closely related to one’s body weight and their risk of developing cardiovascular and heart conditions.
To prepare the column in advance, I request that you email your questions. I will select five of the most common questions and address them in next week’s column.
After the article is published, we will be able to discuss questions and answers online.
If you have any health questions, send your mail to [email protected]
