On Mon, 5 Oct 1998, cmd wrote:
>
> Could anyone please tell my what:  "Systolic Hypertension" is and how =
> can one overcome it?  Could the Paleo diet be a start?

CMD-- your blood pressure reading has two numbers:  Systolic Pressure and
Diastolic Pressure; normal blood pressure is considered to be 120/80
(systolic over diastolic).  In the past, physicians worried mainly about
diastolic high blood pressure, especially if it was greater than 95,
because that is the "relaxed" pressure between beats of the heart.
Diastolic hypertension is strongly correlated with stroke and heart
attack (myocardial infarction). In recent years, careful multivariable
analysis of large samples, such as the those in the famous Framingham
Heart Study, has revealed that systolic hypertention (>140) also has
detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system and, thus, should be
carefully monitored.  Generally speaking, systolic pressure reveals much
greater variability than diastolic pressure, and it is therefore more
difficult to make a diagnosis of systolic hypertension.  However, if
you've had several readings that indicate that it is above 140, you should
be concerned.

A caveman diet would be helpful in that if faithfully followed you will
lose weight, and blood pressure (both sys & dia) tends to drop with weight
loss.  The ratio of potassium to sodium in your diet is also negatively
correlated with blood pressure; plants -- fruits & veggies -- tend to be
very high in potassium, so you would want to incorporate a good amount of
them in your diet.  The ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids is also
negatively correlated with blood pressure, so you would want make the
primary flesh on your caveman diet regimen fatty ocean fish a la tuna,
mackerel, sardines, herring, and blue fish (see Artemis Simopoulous, THE
OMEGA PLAN, for the full story of eating a diet that brings the omega
3/omega 6 ratio down to 1, as opposed to its present level of 11 in the
typical American diet).  So, the answer is "yes"  . . . variants of a
paleo diet can help bring down your blood pressure (both numbers).

One last note, hunter-gatherers lead/led active lifestyles, and it is well
documented that both aerobic and strength exercises reduce blood pressure.

Cheers!

Gregg C.
[log in to unmask]