Emerging evidence indicates that the role of Grape Seed Extract (GSE) in support of cardiovascular health may extend beyond its important antioxidant functions. Scientific studies have shown that the proprietary GSE found in LifeSource’s Blood Pressure Support, MegaNatural®-BP™ contains flavonoids that can support healthy arterial function already within the healthy range through a number of mechanisms. In fact, these studies suggest that MegaNatural®-BP™ can help maintain blood pressure already within the healthy range. In addition, we have included standardized Hawthorn Extract as a synergist. Hawthorn Extract provides powerful antioxidant flavonoids, including standardized Vitexin that, along with other components in Hawthorn, have also been found to support healthy range blood flow and healthy range blood pressure.*

• Cardiovascular Support
• Helps maintain blood pressure already within the healthy range*
• Vegetarian Formula

It is estimated that 60 million Americans have high blood pressure, and uncontrolled high blood pressure (hypertension) is the leading risk factor for both heart attack and stroke. Women are even more vulnerable to high blood pressure than men. Despite lifestyle modifications and drugs, only about two-thirds of those who know they have high blood pressure have it under control (usually with drugs). These statistics make high blood pressure the number one concern of cardiologists and internists today.

Blood pressure is the result of a complex system that includes not only the heart and blood vessels, but also hormones and protein messengers. As the heart pumps, it sends blood through arteries. Healthy arteries expand under the pressure and contract when the pressure wave passes. However, unhealthy or inelastic arteries cannot expand, which causes higher pressure when the blood pumps.

Receptors in the kidneys keep track of pressure and send hormone signals to the heart to speed up or slow down as needed.

What is high blood pressure?

Blood pressure is a measure of how hard the blood pushes against the walls of your arteries as it moves through your body. It’s normal for blood pressure to go up and down throughout the day, but if it stays up, you have high blood pressure. Another name for high blood pressure is hypertension.

When blood pressure is high, it starts to damage the blood vessels, heart, and kidneys. This can lead to heart attack, stroke, and other problems. High blood pressure is called a "silent killer,'' because it doesn't usually cause symptoms while it is causing this damage.

Your blood pressure consists of two numbers: systolic and diastolic. Someone with a systolic pressure of 120 and a diastolic pressure of 80 has a blood pressure of 120/80, or "120 over 80."

• The systolic number shows how hard the blood pushes when the heart is pumping.
• The diastolic number shows how hard the blood pushes between heartbeats, when the heart is relaxed and filling with blood.

Adults should have a blood pressure of less than 120/80. High blood pressure is 140/90 or higher. Many people fall into the category in between, called prehypertension. People with prehypertension need to make lifestyle changes to bring the blood pressure down and help prevent or delay high blood pressure.

What causes high blood pressure?

In most cases, doctors can't point to the exact cause. But several things are known to raise blood pressure, including being very overweight, drinking too much alcohol, having a family history of high blood pressure, eating too much salt, and getting older.

Your blood pressure may also rise if you are not very active, you don't eat enough potassium and calcium, or you have a condition called insulin resistance.

What are the symptoms?

High blood pressure doesn't usually cause symptoms. Most people don't know they have it until they go to the doctor for some other reason

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Without treatment, high blood pressure can damage the heart, brain, kidneys, or eyes. This damage causes problems like coronary artery disease, stroke, and kidney failure.

Very high blood pressure can cause headaches, vision problems, nausea, and vomiting. Malignant high blood pressure (hypertensive crisis), which is blood pressure that rises very fast, can also cause these symptoms. Malignant high blood pressure is a medical emergency.

How is high blood pressure diagnosed?

Most people find out they have high blood pressure during a routine doctor visit. For your doctor to confirm that you have high blood pressure, your blood pressure must be at least 140/90 on three or more separate occasions. It is usually measured 1 to 2 weeks apart.

You may have to check your blood pressure at home if there is reason to think the readings in the doctor’s office aren't accurate. You may have what is called white-coat hypertension, which is blood pressure that goes up just because you're at the doctor’s office. Even routine activities, such as attending a meeting, can raise your blood pressure. So can commuting to work or smoking a cigarette.

How is it treated?

Treatment depends on how high your blood pressure is, whether you have other health problems such as diabetes, and whether any organs have already been damaged. Your doctor will also consider how likely you are to develop other diseases, especially heart disease.

You can help lower your blood pressure by making healthy changes in your lifestyle. If those lifestyle changes don't work, you may also need to take pills. Either way, you will need to control your high blood pressure throughout your life.

• If you have prehypertension, your doctor will likely recommend lifestyle changes. These may include losing extra weight, exercising, limiting alcohol, cutting back on salt, quitting smoking, and eating a low-fat diet that includes more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat dairy foods.
• If you have high blood pressure without any organ damage or other risk factors for heart disease, your doctor may recommend that you take medicine in addition to making lifestyle changes.
• If you have high blood pressure and have some organ damage or other risk factors for heart disease, you may need to try various combinations of medicines in addition to making big lifestyle changes.
  

Most people take more than one pill for high blood pressure. Work with your doctor to find the right pill or combination of pills that will cause the fewest side effects.
It can be hard to remember to take pills when you have no symptoms. But your blood pressure will go back up if you don't take your medicine. Make your pill schedule as simple as you can. Plan times to take them when you are doing other things, like eating a meal or getting ready for bed.

What can you do to prevent high blood pressure?

There are six lifestyle changes you can make to help prevent high blood pressure:

• Lose extra weight.
• Eat less salt.
• Exercise.
• Limit alcohol to 2 drinks a day for men and 1 drink a day for women and lighter-weight men.
• Get 3,500 mg of potassium in your diet every day. Fresh, unprocessed whole foods have the most potassium. These foods include meat, fish, nonfat and low-fat dairy products, and many fruits and vegetables.
• Follow the DASH eating plan (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension). This diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products and is low in fat.

Additional Alternative Supplement Therapies:

Conventional medicine tries to control blood pressure with drugs such as ACE inhibitors like Accupril or Vasotec or with diuretics like Lasix or Aldactone. But there are more natural ways to control blood pressure already in the normal range that often eliminate the need for drugs at all.

Non-drug therapies include:

Calcium Supplementation vs. Salt Elimination
Researchers determined that salt intake only adversely affected blood pressure when a person was deficient in calcium. When calcium intake was adequate, salt had no effect on blood pressure. As calcium intake increased, blood pressure decreased. The researchers concluded that salt sensitive hypertension is more likely to indicate a poor diet (lacking in calcium) than a predisposition to hypertension.

Coenzyme Q10
In a meta-analysis of eight CoQ10 studies published in 2003, the mean decrease in systolic blood pressure was 16 mm Hg and in diastolic blood pressure, 10 mm Hg. Researchers concluded: Being devoid of significant side effects, CoQ10 may have a role as an adjunct or alternative to conventional agents in the treatment of hypertension.

Omega-3 Fish Oil
Harvard researchers conclude that supplementation with 7.7 to 9 grams/day of fish oils will reduce systolic blood pressure by 4 mm Hg and diastolic pressure by 3 mm Hg in hypertensive individuals. Blood pressure reductions may be substantially larger among patients with atherosclerosis or high cholesterol levels.

Lycopene
Clinical research conducted at Ben-Gurion University, Israel shows that lycopene complex, a tomato extract, reduces blood pressure in patients with mild to moderate hypertension. Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant found in red produce such as tomatoes and tomato products, watermelon, and pink grapefruit.