Celery / Hypertension

Herb Of The Week / Celery / Hypertension


The herb of last week was cayenne pepper. I decide to make the herb
of the week a bit interesting this week by including another very
common herb. The herb of the week for this week is probably in your
refrigerator!

The herb of the week is CELERY.

I'll begin by re-posting a testimony that I read somewhere while
researching this post. (Yes I research to see if there's anything
else or any new discoveries).

"....eat about a half dozen full sticks (not stalks) of celery each
day. I got this
one from an old ND, tried it on a patient with high BP and sure
enough, the
systolic made a slow, steady retreat over several weeks......I guess
one could argue that it is helping to balance the ol'
potassium/sodium ratio, or even go with the chinese med 'cool the
liver that feeds the heart' (did I get that right?), but even if ya
think it's bunk, it's worth a try and safer than experimenting with
diuretics...."

I tend to agree with the testimony. It is CERTAINLY worthy of atry
because it's harmless and the price is right!

But here's the four-one-one on CELERY (Apium graveolens):

CELERY contains a chemical by the name of called "apigenin" which is
known to dilate your blood vessels, thus reduceing the pressure. Also
The LEAVES actually contain the active ingredient (phenolic acid)
that also helps to relieve blood pressure. The weird thing is that
even though celery is especially high in sodium (usually a bad thing,)
celery seems to lower blood pressure.

This was discovered by a medical student at the University of Chicago
Medical Center whose father was diagnosed with mild hypertension.
Instead of reducing sodium intake, or taking drugs, the father was
given a quarter pound of celery to eat each day. After a week, his
blood pressure dropped from 158/96 to 118/82. This observation led
to further study that found very small amounts of a chemical in
celery called 3-n-butyl phtalide which lowered blood pressure (by
relaxing the smooth muscles that line the blood vessels) in rats by
12%-14% and also lowered cholesterol by about 7%.

As little as 3 celery sticks per day is said to reduce blood p-
ressure to normal levels by helping to reduce muscle spasms. (nerves!)

There is not a whole lot I can add to this. It's pretty straight
forward and is one of those type of things that is not hard to find
out if it'll work for you. Like most good things, you have to
establish a dietary regime of a certain amount a day. Eating a little
celery every now and then probably will not change anything. I wish I
could be the guinea pig, but alas.. my blood pressure is always low.
Thank God! Maybe somebody who tries this can write back and tell us
how it worked.


But..... of course... IT'S YOUR HEALTH. Why take my word for it?

You can research anything mentioned on this site yourself. Some good
search engines are www.mamma.com or www.google.com. or www.dogpile.com
or www.askjeeves.com. Enter one or more keywords and do your own
research.

Until next time remember .... most illness (upwards of 80% according
to experts) can be attributed to FOUR important factors that can
weaken your immune system and your ability to fight off disease:

1. Anxiety, depression, anger, guilt and other STRESS factors
2. Improper and/or inadequate NUTRITION habits
3. A sedimentary lifestyle that does not include enough EXERCISE
4. Not enough rest and quality SLEEP time

The United States Surgeon General warned Americans in a landmark 1988
report on Nutrition and Health that "diet related diseases account for
68% of U.S. deaths"

Remember, we ALWAYS recommend that you ALWAYS consult a professional
herbalist, naturopathologist or physician. We are just passing along
what we hope to be useful information.

Until next time,
Q