If you want to lower high blood pressure without side effects, look no further than celery. The ability of celery to lower high blood pressure has long been acknowledged by Chinese practitioners. Modern researchers are in the process of documenting what the Chinese have known for centuries.
This process began with a Chinese man living in America, named Mr. Lee. He was diagnosed with mild high blood pressure and given the traditional answer of the American medical establishment to cut back on salt. Instead of doing as his doctor advised, Mr. Lee began eating four stalks of celery every day. Within a week his blood pressure had dropped from 158/96 to 118/82.
Hearing this report, the assistant professor of medicine, pharmacological and physiological science at the University of Chicago decided to investigate the properties of celery. When his researchers injected 3-n-butyl phthalide from celery into laboratory animals, the animals’ blood pressure dropped 12 to 14 percent.
This research found that phthalides, a compound found in celery, relaxes the muscles around arteries and allows vessels to dilate, providing more space inside for blood to flow at a lower pressure. In addition, phthalides reduce the amount of stress hormones known as catecholomines in the blood. This is helpful because stress hormones typically raise blood pressure by causing blood vessels to constrict.
If you want to try to lower high blood pressure with celery, you can do as Chinese practitioners suggest, and eat four stalks every day for a week, then stop for three weeks. After the three week rest period, start over and eat celery for another week, repeating the cycle until your blood pressure is under control.
Another way to get plenty of celery into your diet is to drink fresh celery juice made in a juicer. One to two glasses daily can normalize your blood pressure.
Celery is a healing superstar
Celery is popular these days because it is alkalizing in the body, meaning it helps keep your pH in the range where it should be. Eating celery helps offset the acidity that comes from eating meats and dairy products. Celery’s alkalizing properties are highly effective against inflammation, cancer and gout. Celery provides antioxidant protection against DNA damage that is double that amount produced by Vitamin C.
Celery is a member of the Unbelliferae family that includes such distinguished members as carrots, parsley, fennel and dill. Its stalks are not the only beneficial part. Celery leaves, roots and seeds are prized for their medicinal value. Celery contains many active compounds, including phthalides that normalize cholesterol, and coumarins that provide cancer protection. The bioflavonoid luteolin from celery has many healing powers.
Luteolin from celery is a health superstar
Luteolin prevents activation of a pathway that allows inflammation in the brain to get switched on, according to a study reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science U.S.A.
Luteolin and quercetin, another bioflavonoid, were found to inhibit the platelet-activating factor and suppress inflammatory response induced by allergens. Luteolin inhibited the excess production of TNF-alpha, a direct cause of inflammation. This study was reported in Inflammatory Research Journal.
In a study reported by World’s Healthiest Foods, mice whose diets were supplemented with luteolin while also being given a mutigen showed a reduction in tumor expression of 40% compared to mice given the mutigen but not given luteolin.
Luteolin has been found effective in maintaining healthy methylation patterns that protect against DNA mutations that damage cells and cause cancer. Enzymatic and genetic activity throughout the body depends on the continuous re-methylation of DNA. As people age, the breakdown of methylation predisposes them to a wide range of degenerative diseases.
Luteolin inhibits the proliferation of tumor cells and interferes with angiogenesis (the ability of tumors to set up their own blood supply. Luteolin shows strong anti-proliferative activity against different human cancer cell lines such as breast, prostate and thyroid cancer. It reduces the formation of carcinogens in food such as heterocyclic amines. And luteolin is able to block the activation of carcinogens, increase detoxification, and stimulate error free DNA repair.
Apigenin from celery is powerful COX-2 inhibitor
Celery contains a good amount of another highly active bioflavonoid, apigenin, a powerful COX-2 inhibitor able to halt inflammation as effectively as anti-inflammatory drugs. Apigenin also exhibits antioxidant and ant-tumor properties, and is renown in Chinese medicine for preventing and treating gout and other types of arthritic conditions.
Help you whole family eat more celery
Try some of these suggestions that should help get celery into kids and adults. Be sure to buy organic celery because the Environmental Working Group’s testing of vegetables for pesticide load found that celery had more pesticide residue than any other vegetable.
*Add chopped celery and celery seeds to your favorite egg, tuna, chicken, turkey or ham salad recipe.
*Add finely chopped celery to meat loaf, sloppy Joes, and pulled barbeque chicken or pork.
*Use finely chopped celery stalks and leave in salads and cole slaw.
*Add chopped celery to cooked carrots and sweeten with honey and cumin.
*Braise chopped celery, radicchio and onions and serve topped with walnuts and your favorite soft cheese.
*Add celery leaves, stalks and seeds to soups, stews, casserole, and healthy stir fries.
