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As a small child, I often thought we
lived INSIDE planet earth. As I grew up, I came to understand that we
live ON the planet, the center of which is a immensly hot, molten core
of magma and rock. But even this isn't the whole truth. So what lies
beneath our feet? What do we find when go deeper and deeper into the
soil, past the crust of the earth and into the bowels of our planet.
Find out below!
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If you're above the age of 35,
chances are good you may have already been warned about the dangers of
hypertension, or high blood pressure. Hypertension is a
condition that occures when the force of the blood on the arteries'
walls is strong, which eventually creates health problems, especially
those connected to heart disease.
Our blood pressure is mainly
dependant on our blood vessels. When they narrow, the blood pressure
will be high (just like a garden hose being squeezed sends water more
strongly). The normal blood pressure should be 120/80.
Symptoms of hypertension
Unfortunately, many people won't show
signs of hypertension, and it will only become evident when they either
go through a test or have a health related problem.
Common symptoms include: Mild headaches, Dizziness, nosebleeds, shortness of breath and vision problems.
Common causes of high blood pressure
- Kidney problems
- Age
- Obesity
- Stress
- Lack of exercise
- Use of certain drugs (cocaine for example, alcohol for another)
- certain medication (cold remedies, birth control pills, pain relievers etc.)
- sleep apnea
However, there
are a great many cases of hypertension with unknown underlying reasons,
perhaps genetic, and they can be controlled effecitvely with certain
home remedies and lifestyle changes.
Home Remedies that will lower your blood pressure:
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1. Lemon Water
Lemon softens your blood vessels, and
this will lower your blood pressure. In addition, the vitamin B will
help keep your heart healthy.
Add 2 tablespoon of lemon juice to a glass of hot water, drink it on an empty stomach. Try to drink 5-6 glasses of fresh lemon water every day. It
would be best to drink lemon juice without any sugar or salt, you can
always add a little honey if the taste is a bit too bitter.
2. Ginger Juice with Cumin
Mix a teaspoon of cumin powder with a honey and ginger juice mixture to create blood pressure remedy. Add 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger juice to a teaspoon of honey and a teaspoon of cumin powder. Mix well. Consume this twice a day to lower your blood pressure.
3. Garlic
Garlic is a very common home remedy
that reduces the cholesterol levels in our body, which is one of the
main causes of high blood pressure. Garlic contains hydrogen sulfide, a
compound that is essential to good blood flow.
To effectively lower your blood pressure, eat 5-6 pods of fresh garlic every day, on an empty stomach. You
can also extract the juice of the garlic by crushing about 10 pods of
it. Add 5-6 drops of garlic juice to four teaspoons of water and drink
twice a day.
4. Watermelon seeds
Watermelon seeds contain a substance
called cucurbocitrin. This material help widen the blood capillaries in
your body and take down the hypertension levels. It also helps to fight
off arthritis and kidney diseases.
Start by taking two tablespoons of dried seeds and crushing them gently. These add to a cup of boiling water. Leave it in the cup for about an hour and slightly stir it so it mixes with the water all the way. Strain it and drink 4 tablespoons of this water every hour of the day for quick results.
5. Curry Leaves
Curry leaves contain many medicinal properties and were found to be effective in treating high blood pressure.
Boil 25-30 leaves in a cup of water. Let it simmer down to room temperature and strain away the leaves. Drink this concotion early in the morning on an empty stomach.
6. Celery Leaves
A substance called 3-N-butylphthalide
(try saying that 3 times fast) is found in high amounts in celery
leaves and is a compound that can really help drasitaclly lower your
blood pressure, as well as reducing the stress hormones that are causing
the blood vessels to constrict in the first place.
Add one or more stalks of celery (or
celery leaves) and make a daily vegetable salad that will help you
really reduce that blood pressure. When consuming the celery, also add a glass of water for better results.
7. Onion Juice
A recent study has found that giving
people suffering from hypertension reduced their condition considerably,
compared to a placebo group. Researchers think a compound named
quercetin may be responsible for this.
Try to eat at least one raw onion a day. Extract the juice of the onion and add a teaspoon of it to a teaspoon of honey. Drink this twice a day, every day to lower your blood pressure.
8. Fenugreek Seeds
Make a paste out of fenugreek seeds that is said to be very useful in the battle against high blood pressure.
Take 1-2 teaspoons of seeds and boil them in water for about 3-4 minutes. Straing the seeds and crush them (or use a blender) to make a smooth paste. Consume this amount every day twice: morning and evening, and always on an empty stomach. Your hypertension should begin to lower in 2-3 months time.
9. Bananas
Bananas have zero cholesterol and are low on sodium. Try to eat at least 2 of them a day or add them to your meals. Other foods that are good for high blood pressure: Orange juice, spinach, baked sweet potatoes and raisins.
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How could your dental and heart
health ever be connected? Well, according to new research conducted in
England, there is a rather strong connection between the ways you care
for your pearly whites and your chance of suffering a heart attack.
Image: fotographic1980/ freedigitalphotos.net
The study, conducted by the Scottish
Health Survey, examined over 11,000 individuals of all ages to identify a
possible correlation between dental and heart health. Along with
information on their dental bill of health, the subjects were asked to
provide information about their other lifestyle habits, such as smoking,
physical activity, and health routines.
Of the group, about 62 percent said
they visited the dentist every six months, and another 71 percent said
that they brushed their teeth twice a day. This information lead the
researchers to conclude that those that admitted to brushing their teeth
less frequently had an extra 70 percent risk of heart disease or heart
attack.
"Our results confirmed and further
strengthened the suggested association between oral hygiene and the risk
of cardiovascular disease," says Richard Watt DDS from the University
College London. According to the researchers, the results of the study
were not entirely surprising, but rather confirmation of a decade-long
hypothesis on the connection between dental diseases and cardiovascular
health.
In yet another study conducted in the
United States, it was found that as people's gum health improved, so
did the rate at which plaque built up in their arteries. This study
showed that the chances of contracting a dangerous condition called
atherosclerosis, or the narrowing of the arteries around the heart,
decreased when subjects brushed their teeth and had a clean bill of gum
and oral health.
Image: khunaspix/ freedigitalphotos.net
But scientifically, how are gum
disease and heart disease connected? The bacteria that develops in your
mouth when you have gum disease contributes to atherosclerosis in that
it adds to the level of inflammation of the arteries and triggering a
biological reaction that narrows space these important passage ways.
Once you have atherosclerosis, your chances mild to certain that you
will experience a heart attack and possibly even stroke.
So the next time you worry about your
visit to the dentist, or need a reason to floss your teeth, remember
that caring for your oral and gum health properly could dramatically
decrease your chances of heart disease and other serious conditions.
Make brushing and flossing a regular habit, and you are sure to be on
the way to a heart-healthy and happy self!
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Extraordinary Photos from History! |
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As long as we have memories of it,
history never truly dies. The more that documents it, the more alive it
still is for us. This has been especially true since the invention of
the camera, which gives us a real glance into what it was like at epic
moments in the past.
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The Beauty of Night and Day Combined in Amazing Pictures. |
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Photographer Stephen Wilkes uses an
amazing technique to capture the visual movement of time, from sunrise
to sunset, in a single image. It is an extremely long process, each
shooting day takes 12 – 15 hours, in which Stephen will take over 1,500
photos. After the day is done he will have to sit and edit each picture,
picking about 50 pictures to be the base for the final picture.
Needless to say that this is truly a tiring process, but the end result
is more than worth it, and gives us a glimpse not only of a place, but
of time.
Pont de la Tournelle - Paris |
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Bethesda Fountain - Central Park - NYC |
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Western Wall - Jerusalem |
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Santa Monica Pier - CA |
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Gramercy Park - NYC |
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Wrigley Field - Chicago |
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Millennium Park - Chicago |
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Flatiron - NYC |
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America’s Cup - San Francisco |
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High Line - NYC |
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The Public Library - NYC |
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Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade - NYC |
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Times Square - New Year's Eve - NYC |
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View from The Savoy hotel – London |
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Washington Square - NYC |
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Coney Island - Brooklyn |
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Union Square - NYC |
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Park Avenue - NYC |
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Shanghai - China |
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Presidential Inauguration - Washington - D.C. |
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