Hypertension

6 Drinks That Lower Blood Pressure

There are two big risk factors for high blood pressure that are beyond your control: age and family genetics. Whatcan you control? Everything else, which involves making smart lifestyle choices, such as being physically active, reducing your sodium intake, and eating healthfully.

If you're already doing those things, you're on the right track. But you can still kick it up a notch by watching what you quaff: These six drinks can contribute to a drop in blood pressure, especially in combination with a healthy diet and regular exercise.

1. Low-fat milk

How it works: Calcium deficiencies have long been linked to high blood pressure, and the inverse is also true: High calcium intake helps lower high blood pressure. It's important to choose the right type of milk for the best results, though. Low-fat milk is richer in calcium than full-fat milk, and the modest amount of fat actually helps you absorb the calcium more easily. Win-win!

Sipping suggestion: As part of a daily regimen, three servings of low-fat milk and other low-fat dairy products has been shown to help reduce systolic blood pressure.

2. Beet juice

How it works: Beets are a good source of potassium -- and a good source of folate, both of which are important in regulating blood pressure. What's more, beets contain nitrate, which is converted into nitrites once ingested. Nitrites relax smooth muscle tissue and increase blood flow. Finally, beets support healthy blood vessel function and battle homocysteine, which can damage blood vessels.

Sipping suggestion: Research suggests that one to two cups of beet juice daily can lower blood pressure immediately (within an hour of consumption) and significantly. An English study found beet juice to be as effective as nitrate tablets in treating hypertension.

3. Hibiscus tea

How it works: Like pomegranate juice, hibiscus contains bioactive phytochemicals that act as a natural ACE inhibitor. One study showed that hibiscus tea was as effective at lowering blood pressure as captopril, a prescription ACE inhibitor used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure.

Sipping suggestion: In one widely publicized study, three eight-ounce servings of hibiscus tea lowered prehypertensive subjects' systolic blood pressure significantly. Aim for three cups a day -- and for the best results, prepare fresh tea daily.

4. Pomegranate juice

How it works: ACE is an enzyme that raises blood pressure by creating a protein called angiotensin II, which causes your blood vessels to constrict. Pomegranate juice acts as a natural ACE inhibitor, similar to the class of medications prescribed to treat hypertension and heart failure. In one case, pomegranate juice reduced ACE by 36 percent and lowered systolic blood pressure, too. It's also been linked in a handful of recent studies to significantly reduced (up to 30 percent) arterial plaque and increased blood flow to the heart.

Sipping suggestion: Nutrition guru Jonny Bowden recommends drinking six ounces of unsweetened pomegranate juice every day. Too tart? Have two three-ounce servings cut with water or sparkling mineral water.

5. Cranberry juice

How it works: Cranberries and cranberry juice have powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that help prevent and reduce damage inside the blood vessels, thereby preventing an undesirable increase in blood pressure. In addition, cranberry juice may help reduce blood pressure by dilating blood vessels and increasing blood flow. Finally, cranberries are an excellent source of blood-pressure-lowering vitamin C.

Sipping suggestion: There's no standard recommendation for the amount of cranberry juice to drink as part of a daily regimen, but be sure to go for the unsweetened variety that's 100-percent cranberry juice. At 60 calories per one-cup serving, you can have two servings and still get fewer calories than you'd get with the sweetened stuff, which averages about 130 calories per cup.

6. Water

How it works: Drinking adequate amounts of water is, quite simply, one of the healthiest, cheapest, and most effective ways that you can help lower your blood pressure. Chronic dehydration causes blood vessels to constrict, which helps the body conserve water by reducing water loss through perspiration, urination, and respiration. Unfortunately, constricted blood vessels require your heart to work harder, resulting in a spike in blood pressure.

Sipping suggestion: Most people have heard of the eight-glasses-a-day rule, even if they don't abide by it. But for a more personalized approach, divide your body weight in two. That figure -- in ounces -- is how much water you should aim to drink per day, at a minimum. For example, a 150-pound person should shoot for at least 75 ounces daily.

Broken Hip

7 Questions to Ask the Physical Therapist After a Broken Hip

After a hip fracture, it's a good idea to leave the physical therapist's office armed with essential information. Here's what you'll need to ask to help your parent get back on track.

What kind of exercises do you recommend?

Exercises vary depending on such factors as the severity of the hip fracture, whether your parent is experiencing pain, where the fracture is located, the type of treatment recommended for it, and whether your parent has osteoporosis.

How often should my parent do these exercises?

Your parent's physical therapist will make an assessment and recommendations; your parent may be able to do some exercises more often than others.

Can you show me what I need to look for to make sure my parent is doing movements appropriately?

Ask the physical therapist to show you how your parent should move, so you can coach her once you get home. For example, if your parent is getting up from a chair, she should know how to do so without straining the fractured hip. The physical therapist might demonstrate how to assist her or watch her technique -- for instance, making sure she uses her hands and lets the uninjured leg bear her weight.

Are there some movements my parent shouldn't do?

Generally after hip surgery you shouldn't bend forward more than 90 degrees, sit with crossed legs, or point your feet inward while lying on your back. The physical therapist can illustrate these and other movements your parent should avoid.

What's my parent's weight-bearing status?

After a hip fracture, the doctor might allow your parent to have full, partial, or no weight bearing on the injured hip.

Based on my parent's weight-bearing status, how can I make sure her cane, walker, or wheelchair fits appropriately?

You may need to adjust canes, walkers, and wheelchairs for the correct fit. The physical or occupational therapist can suggest appropriate adjustments.

Do you have any recommendations for the best positions for sitting and sleeping?

If, for example, your parent requires bed rest and she sleeps on her side, a physical therapist can tell you how to position pillows around her so she doesn't feel discomfort in the hip. Or if she's using a wheelchair, she may need a cushion so her bottom doesn't get sore. Typically, you may need to place cushions or pillows wherever bones protrude.

Health Coach Foundings

How One San Francisco Health Coach Found the Key to Healing Our Bodies.

Have you ever thought about doing something epic—something that could transform your life? Meet Sara Seinberg, Class of 2011, a San Francisco Health Coach who knows a thing or two about stepping out of her comfort zone, embracing change, and most importantly, staying true to herself throughout the process. 

Nearing 40, Sara knew she wanted to do something big, and running a marathon would satisfy that urge. But what she didn’t know was that training to run 26.2 miles would help her gain new appreciation for her body and her life. “I slowly, with each run and all that salt on my lips, realized that I could do anything.” 

Read on to learn how this San Francisco Health Coach is helping her clients realize that they too can reshape their lives and why authenticity is a key component to her and her client’s success. 

What were you doing prior to enrolling at Integrative Nutrition?

I had a day job at a very special grocery store. I worked at Rainbow Grocery Cooperative in San Francisco, the largest worker-owned cooperative grocery in the country. I also tucked away a nice income with some freelance photography and writing. 

What led you to explore the Health Coach Training Program?

I decided to do something epic before I turned 40. I got off the couch and began my journey toward running 26.2 miles—a whole marathon. Each day I went out there, I practiced accepting my body exactly how it was rather than berating it for not being a different way. Then I found myself thanking it for lugging me around this life no matter what. I began to appreciate my life and its gifts during the long hours on the streets of this hilly town under that big orange bridge. I slowly, with each run and all that salt on my lips, realized that I could do anything. Which also meant I could reshape my life into a job that supported others to do their best as well, to thrive. And I could be myself the whole time. 

How did your life change after enrolling?

I loved the flexibility of this program. I did the work while I unloaded two ton pallets. I tossed cases of biodegradable laundry detergent around, wielding my box cutter, all the while listening to hours of information about nutrition on my headphones. Everything around me at the store became a piece of my study: the cruciferous vegetables and the books about eating for health. I cooked more. I stretched more. I laughed more. Then my true love, Ginger, got sick. At the height of my studies, she had a health crisis and we weren't sure if she would do something as simple as live, or die. She lived, but studying food and health and thriving while she lay yellow faced in a hospital bed brought me to a place of value for myself and this work. 

Which topics and modules were most beneficial for you?

Geneen Roth tapped into exactly what was right for me to hear. How we eat is just as important as what we eat. Her holistic approach to listening to what our bodies are telling us is the perfect gateway into listening to what our whole lives are telling us. I also very much enjoyed Deepak Chopra and his guidance on meditation as a practice that can inform our nutrition. 

What are you doing now?

I am a full time San Francisco Health Coach now. My clients tend to be creatives with great capacity for humor. I also work a lot with new Health Coaches on building their practices and connecting with their clients. My coaching begins with food and fitness, but my true work is with authenticity practice, creativity, and discovering how being who we truly are is the key to healing our bodies, our nutritional practices and our time management choices. 

What makes you and your practice or product unique? 

I think my voice sets me apart from many Health Coaches. When I began I thought, "No one will want to work with me. I'm a pudgy middle aged lesbian covered in tattoos with a well documented wild past that anyone can find on the internet. But I still think I can be good at this, so I'll try." Instead of developing a "professional" voice, I decided to be myself. And it turns out that's exactly why people want to work with me. I'm just as imperfect and believable as the reflection my clients see in the mirror. The three C’s are the most important tools I bring to work every day: compassion, curiosity and creativity. 

How do you help your clients be successful?

I help people the most by supporting them to be who they already are. One client really wanted a solid exercise habit for herself but after years of spending money on the gym, she still found herself walking right by it everyday, each sashay by the doorway a cascade of lost cash and another rock on the mountain of guilt. She'd come to our sessions in her perfect rockabilly outfits and exquisite hair creations to tell me about it. She loved dressing up and it was easy for her. One day I said, "Why don't you quit the gym and save that money to put towards cute tennis outfits. The courts are free in the local parks and you get to look awesome." She plays tennis three times a week now. And she has fun. 

What do you love about your work?

This is the best job I have ever had. I have the freedom and flexibility to work from anywhere. I get to help people make lasting and meaningful change in their lives. I help people realize what their priorities truly are for how they want to live this life and not how they want to be seen. I get to see results. I see people heal, I see them travel and begin new projects. I see people have courage and inspire me. As for me, I get to do things I love as well in this work: I write all the time, I make photographs, I cook, and I get to hear peoples' stories. And I get to be myself and value it, with all these unprofessional knuckle tattoos, questionable language, and an untraditional looking healthy body that moves five times a week. 

Health Coach

Your Simple Guide to Success as a Health Coach.

Through the years I’ve mentored many IIN graduates, and they all have similar concerns.

They wonder, “How will I make money?”

I answer, “Start doing the work.”

They say, “But I’m afraid no one will take me seriously.”

I answer, “Start doing the work.”

They say, “I don’t know where to start.”

I answer, “Start anywhere. Do the work.”

Trust me, when I started my business I felt clueless.

So how did I go from making zero dollars to matching my husband’s salary this month?

I started doing the work.

I did anything I could. I found private clients, gave presentations at gyms and yoga studios, hosted teleseminars, and wrote regular blog posts. Sometimes I got paid and sometimes I didn’t. It’s important to not measure your success in dollars for the first one to three years of your business. Creating a solid foundation of experience, credibility, and self-confidence is much more important.

Of course, it’s easy to say that now! At the time, I often felt frustrated and wanted my business to grow faster. The money didn’t start to roll in until I tapped into my unique voice and talents.

After trying 100 things, I found the two or three that really made me happy and brought clients back for more. Now I know that online programs work really well – for me. Working with private clients in person? Eh. That doesn’t light my fire. But I never would have known it if I hadn’t tried, right?

It feels amazing to create positive change in the world. The more work you do, the more confident you will become. It’s magic. You’ll pinpoint your strengths and start to see a path. You’ll learn what feels good and what doesn’t.

Dreaming and planning an awesome life is great. But very often we get stuck in that dreaming place and never quite take the action necessary to bring our vision to life.

Whatever you are afraid of, whatever you doubt about yourself—all of these things will be resolved when you start doing the work of a health coach. So quit wasting time with training after training. Stop fiddling with your logo and website—they’re never going to be perfect!

8 Top Do's and Don'ts From Breast Cancer Survivors

There's no two ways about it -- finding out you have late-stage breast cancer that has spread, or metastasized to other areas of the body, is scary. But there is help out there: the best kind of help, the kind that comes from people who have been exactly where you are and have wisdom to share. Here are the top eight tips, in the form of do's and don'ts, offered by late-stage breast cancer survivors who want you to know what they wish they had known at the start of their journey.

Tip #1: Do Learn to Be Aggressive

We'd all like to think that the minute you're diagnosed with cancer, every possible resource becomes available to you. And of course that's how it should be. But unfortunately, this isn't the reality, breast cancer survivors say. You'll need to quickly get up to speed on how to be a proactive patient. That means learning how to ask, demand, investigate, and fight for tests, treatment options, therapy for side effects, financial resources, and possibly even access to experimental treatments and clinical trials.

"Before my appointments I do tons of research and talk to other women with similar cancer diagnoses. Then I make a list of tests, drugs, and other treatments to ask the doctor about," says one breast cancer survivor. "If it weren't for my own research and that of other patients, I wouldn't have learned about cutting-edge tests like androgen receptivity and chemosensitivity, and I'd still be dealing with horrific bone pain."

Don't Let Doctors Make You Feel Dumb

It's your body, and your disease, and you're the one fighting the battle. That's the message from those living with late-stage breast cancer, who say that the complexity and scientific jargon of cancer treatment can be so intimidating that many patients go through treatment without really understanding what's happening. So when a doctor or nurse's explanations leave you confused, speak up and ask for clarification. And if you find you're still in the dark after an appointment, don't hesitate to call or ask to come in for another consult. If you consistently find that members of your cancer team don't have the time and availability to actively involve you in your treatment plan, it's your right -- and probably a good idea -- to seek a second opinion or even a new medical team. The stakes are high and the quality of care varies widely over doctors, hospitals, and insurance plans.

Do Find a Community of Fellow Survivors

No matter how much your family and friends love you and show their concern and support, they can't understand what you're going through. Truthfully, they never will, no matter how much you try to articulate what you're thinking and feeling. The fact is, it's impossible to imagine the emotional and physical experience of living with a diagnosis of metastatic cancer and going through treatments that can leave you physically and mentally exhausted, as well as in pain. The only solution: connecting with others in the same situation.

Often calling themselves "metsisters," women (and men) with metastatic breast cancer help each other stay positive and combat fear while they wait for test results; make treatment decisions; undergo chemo, radiation, and surgery; try new meds; and cope with side effects. If there's a breast cancer support group near you -- particularly one for those with metastatic cancer -- join up. But don't stop there. Check out the many online breast cancer communities and find one or more you feel comfortable with. "You may find a general community you like, then also want to join a more specific group or bulletin board for people with similar diagnoses," says one patient.

Do Put Yourself First

Remember the flight crew's admonition to put your own oxygen mask on first, before trying to help others? That's never been as true as it is now that you've been diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer. And one of the few positive things to come out of a breast cancer diagnosis is that you now (hopefully) have your family's permission to prioritize self-care. No matter how busy you are, make it a priority to attend meetings of your breast cancer support group, or to spend time online in forums. Go to meetings regularly and stay in contact in between. It helps, survivors say, if you consider it part of your treatment, and explain it to family and friends that way. You wouldn't miss a doctor's appointment, right? Treat support group meetings as one more medical appointment. After all, research shows stress can interfere with cancer treatment, and a support group is one of the best ways to combat stress.

Do Investigate Alternative Therapies

Yes, there are quacks out there, and many, many untested therapies that can waste your time and money. That said, many alternative and complementary therapies have been found to alleviate side effects and symptoms, boost immune function, and improve tolerance to chemotherapy and radiation. For example, a recent study at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center found that acupuncture had a significant effect in reducing the swelling associated with lymphedema in breast cancer patients.

Don't Futurize

What's futurizing? It's a term used by psychologists to describe what we do when we let our thoughts dwell on the future, ruminating on what's to come rather than focusing on what's happening in the present. It's natural, when you have a life-threatening disease like late-stage breast cancer, to look ahead and try to anticipate what's down the road. But the truth is, you just don't know, and all the worrying in the world won't change anything.

Instead, do your best to bring yourself back to the present moment and focus on the positive things happening around you. It can help to do activities that "root" you in the present, like meditating or taking a walk. Advises one breast cancer survivor: "Take one day at a time. I find being outside and staying active is a lot healthier for me than sitting inside feeling sorry for myself." No question you are going through a difficult time, and it's important to acknowledge that. But when you get stuck in thought cycles about what's to come, survivors say, you give fear more power over you.

Do Ask for a Prognosis -- and Then Promptly Forget About It

Unless you really feel strongly that you'd rather remain in the dark, breast cancer patients overwhelmingly recommend asking your doctor to give it to you straight when it comes to your prognosis. "Before I demanded that my doctor give me the lowdown, I felt like she was pussyfooting around," says one woman with stage IV breast cancer. "I felt very uncomfortable with the feeling that she knew more than she was sharing."

But here's the trick: Once you get that straight-shooting prognosis, don't let yourself be ruled by it. The world of late-stage breast cancer patients is peopled by those who were told they had one, two, three years to live -- and are still here 15 or 20 years later. Ask those who run breast cancer support groups, and they will tell you they have group members who've lived more than 20 years after a stage IV diagnosis. New treatment options are approved every year, and more are on the horizon. No one knows what makes the difference between those who don't get better and those who do, but research does show that hearing positive stories from survivors, getting plenty of support, and focusing on what you can do, rather than what you can't, all help keep you on track to feel better.

Do See Your Cancer in the Context of Your Whole Lifestyle

Survey those with late-stage breast cancer and one thing jumps out at you. With few exceptions, they've taken their cancer diagnosis and run with it -- in the direction of overall healthy lifestyle changes. In other words, rather than just fighting cancer in isolation, they've taken steps to feel better and live healthier, whether that means changing their diet, losing weight, taking up a fitness activity, or engaging in mindfulness practices like deep breathing and meditation. As one stage IIIC cancer patient put it, "For me, getting a cancer diagnosis was like a kick in the butt to do all the things I'd been promising myself to do for years. I finally made time to take yoga, and I organized a group of friends to walk twice a week. In my support group we laugh that if it wasn't for the negative effects from treatment, we'd feel the best we ever have in our lives."