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Techniques for Improving Circulation

Techniques for Improving Circulation

industrial-pipes-200-300A healthy circulatory system is crucial to good health. To be at its best, your body needs to be able to keep blood pumping from the heart and lungs through the arteries to your organs and extremities, and then keep pumping it back to the lungs for re-oxygenation. Anything that interferes with the proper circulation of blood puts your body’s health at risk for lots of reasons.

“Poor circulation” can mean many things. Common symptoms include having consistently cold fingers and toes, experiencing tingling in your feet and hands, feelings of numbness, tiredness and a general lack of energy, and chronically dry skin. More serious symptoms of poor circulation can include headaches, hair loss, dizzy spells, varicose veins, muscle cramps, feeling short of breath, memory lapses (due to impaired blood flow to the brain), bluish-tinted skin, and slow healing times for wounds.

What causes poor circulation?

One of the most common causes is inactivity and lack of exercise. To keep the blood moving, you need to keep your body in motion. And do it often. Poor diet and carrying excess weight can lead to poor circulation, as can diabetes and many other chronic diseases. Medically, if you have been diagnosed as hypertensive (having high blood pressure), this is almost always an indicator of poor circulation. The “high pressure” is caused by your heart having to pump harder to cause the blood to keep flowing, often because of blood vessels that have become constricted because of stress, disease, or the buildup of plaque.

How can poor circulation be treated?

Serious circulatory problems can be treated with medication. But for most people anxious to improve their circulation and thus their overall health, a few lifestyle changes can do wonders:

  • Get more exercise. Walk rather than ride. Take the stairs rather than the elevator. Go for walks after lunch and go to the gym after work. Your body functions best with a minimum of 30 minutes exercise per day.
  • Stretch more. Not just before exercising, but at your desk at work. Stretching helps to relieve stress, and stress is one of the things that can constrict your blood vessels.
  • Get massages. Massage improves circulation by stimulating the soft tissues of your body and encouraging blood flow.
  • Put your feet up. After you exercise, elevating your legs can really help you not only to relax, but increase your circulation. It also reduces your risk of developing varicose veins.
  • Eat healthier foods. Try to eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats (from fish, olive oil, and nuts), and lean meats. Try to avoid processed foods.
  • Drink more water, and less caffeine. When you’re thirsty, drink water instead of coffee or black tea or soft drinks. Try to cut down on or avoid alcohol, because it definitely impedes circulation.
  • Don’t smoke, or quit smoking if you do. Nicotine and the pulmonary perils of smoking are among the most common causes of poor circulation.
  • De–stress, however you can. Stress has an extremely negative effect on your circulation. So try to find healthy outlets for the stresses you encounter at work and in other areas of your life, to release the stress rather than have it build up and become toxic.
  • Consider herbs and supplements that can help. Ginger, hawthorn berry, cayenne, motherwort, garlic, ginkgo biloba and vitamins C and E all can help to improve your circulation.

If any of the symptoms become chronic, see your doctor or chiropractor. Don’t try to “tough it out” and live with the discomfort of consistent symptoms of poor circulation. Some of the causes can be very serious indeed, so see an expert to make sure.

 

Natural Approaches to Lowering Blood Pressure

Natural Approaches to Lowering Blood Pressure

????????????????????????High blood pressure (hypertension) often has no visible symptoms, especially early on. The only way to determine your blood pressure is to have it measured. If you have high blood pressure, lowering it is vitally important to your long-term health and to reducing your risk of cardiovascular disease. Risk factors for high blood pressure include the following:

  • Being Overweight—If you are overweight, this will put extra pressure on your artery walls
  • Inactivity—If you don’t exercise, you increase your risk of high blood pressure
  • Stress—Increased and prolonged stress can raise blood pressure
  • Alcohol consumption—Overdoing the drinking of alcoholic beverages can increase the risk
  • Potassium—If your potassium level is too low, cells tend to compensate with more sodium, which places you at greater risk
  • Sodium—Too muchrefined sodium in your diet leads to fluid retention and higher blood pressure. Be sure to use good natural, unrefined salts.
  • Age—As you get older, your risk increases
  • Genetics—Some families have greater risk of high blood pressure than others
  • Sugar—Excessive sugar intake, especially refined sugar, can lead to diabetes, which is frequently associated with high blood pressure
  • Inflammation – inflammation can be blamed for a whole host of health complaints and should probably be the first issue addressed. All of the risk factors listed above can be related to or be affected by inflammation. Eating a diet which contains REAL foods  and that includes lots of fruits and vegetables is key in helping to reduce inflammation in the body!

While you cannot influence some of these factors (such as genetic disposition and aging), it is possible to manage most of the items on this list. Exercise is one very effective way to reduce high blood pressure. First of all, it increases your general level of activity. Second, it tends to lower your weight. And third, it helps to reduce stress because of the release of endorphins. Yoga and biofeedback have also been found to be beneficial in reducing stress. When it comes to diet and blood pressure, bananas can be a useful addition. Bananas are a rich source of potassium and can help normalize the potassium-sodium balance in your cells. Limiting the sodium content of your food is also important. Eliminate refined sugar from your diet. Relying on fruit and natural 100% fruit juices to sweeten your diet can be one of the best things you can do. Alcohol, like most everything else, should be taken in moderation. If you have too much stress in your life, realize that alcohol is a depressant and cannot help in the long run. Exercise is a much better stress reliever. A few herbs are believed to contribute to high blood pressure risk:

  • Asian Ginseng
  • Licorice
  • Rosemary essential oil
  • Ephedra

Calcium and magnesium have been found to improve blood pressure. In particular, they’re associated with improving nerve action, calming nervous tension and reducing jitters. These substances also help reducing high blood pressure or its risk:

  • Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10)
  • Garlic (may interfere with other medications, so check with your doctor)
  • Hawthorn (a natural herb with no known interactions with medications)
  • Fish oil
  • Folic acid

If you have high blood pressure, be sure to consult with your doctor before following any of the above suggestions. But rest assured that there are natural ways for you to manage your blood pressure without resorting to drugs.