Integrative Treatment of Hypertension: A Clinical and Mechanistic Approach

Features

• Integrates mainstream pharmacological medicine with alternative treatments
• Provides a concise, clinically oriented book, meeting the needs of the busy practicing medical community
• Covers principles and common causes of hypertension, blood pressure medications, nutrition, diets, holistic therapies, and approaches to treating hypertension
• Offers a more complete understanding of how various methods regulate blood pressure, which will allow better implementation of treatment
• Describes efficacy of alternative treatment methods, including dietary changes to treat the disease, physical activity, meditation, biofeedback, acupuncture, and natural supplements
• Contains approximately 900 references from well-regarded medical journals, giving validity to claims about non-pharmacology methods of treating hypertension
• Includes multiple appendices containing tabulated dosage recommendations, blood pressure goals, and a review of respected guidelines

Summary

Given current trends toward obesity, sedentary lifestyles, and poor diets, hypertension is increasingly becoming a disease of the young as well as the elderly, affecting about 1 billion people worldwide. Many patients, especially the younger ones, would prefer alternative treatments. While natural remedies have been used for much longer than pharmaceutical-based treatments, few Western physicians are trained in alternative treatments of hypertension. Written by a dual board-certified nephrologist and internist as well as a Harvard-trained doctor of chemistry, Integrative Treatment of Hypertension: A Clinical and Mechanistic Approach offers an alternative approach to treating hypertension, providing sound mechanisms of action and practical implementation advice.

The author meticulously analyzes the efficacy of treatments based on data from respected medical journals. The book begins with an introduction to the subject and explains the mechanisms of blood pressure and hypertension, describes common causes of hypertension, and reviews standard medications and their side effects. The author examines alternative methods of treatment, emphasizing mechanisms of action, similarities to standard medications, and practical recommendations for employing these methods.

Chapters cover dietary factors in treating hypertension, alternative yet common diets, the efficacy of nonconsumptive methods of treatment, and descriptions of natural supplements in treating hypertension. The book also addresses blood pressure goals and categorizes each standard and alternative method of treatment, suggesting ways of implementing an integrative approach to hypertension treatment. A useful companion to any health care provider, this book presents a unique work that fills a niche within the medical community.