As if we didn’t have enough problems with the toxic world we live in. There are a very large number of chemicals that we are unconsciously exposed to. Many of these are well documented to cause problems. Many cause cancer. But what about the drugs we knowingly take in? Maybe we assume they are safe and won’t cause cancer.
But what if they do? I know there are times that I sound like a broken record. It sometimes seems that I hammer on pharmaceutical approaches to disease and how damaging it can be. My goal, however, is to enlighten my patients to just how dangerous and wrong a society based almost exclusively on drugs to fix problems is. At the same time offer solutions to the problems for which my patients are taking the drugs.
All too often patients don’t want to make significant lifestyle changes. I think this is because they mistakenly believe that the drug they are going to take is going to actually help them prevent the chronic disease they are concerned about (i.e. statins for preventing a heart attack or stroke). This is rarely the case. Rather, many of our drugs do little to change the long term outcome; worse, they increase the risk for what we are trying to prevent or increase the risk of another condition.
In this case, several drugs used for management of blood pressure (angiotensin II receptor blockers, diuretics) increased the risk of cancer in general. Considering that another popular class of drugs for high blood pressure, the beta-blockers, increase the risk of stroke and diabetes, it doesn’t leave many drug options to control blood pressure that are safe. Thiazide diuretics have also been shown to increase the risk of stroke.
Luckily, many studies have found natural ways to lower your blood pressure. These include:
- Berry intake has been shown to lower blood pressure
- Cocoa and tea have been shown to lower blood pressure
- Biofeedback using the Resperate has been shown to lower blood pressure
- Switching from daiy to non-GMO, organic soy milk
Of course, these are in addition to an overall anti-diabetic lifestyle that avoids refined carbs, omega-6 fatty acids and cuts overall calories while increasing activity levels.