High blood pressure, not any more.

I was prescribed 10mg Amlodipine daily five years ago. My bp was around the 170-180 before medication.

One of the side effects of this drug is swollen feet and legs, which I suffered but, because I have arthritis in my feet and knees, I wrongly thought the pain I was experiencing was due to that.

It got to the point that simply walking was so painful. I was virtually housebound because of it.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, after much research, I decided to dump the medication and try a natural remedy.

I began by taking garlic in the form of garlic bread. I mixed extra virgin olive oil with four crushed garlic cloves and a half tsp chopped parsley. Covered a par baked baguette, cooked and ate. The results were almost immediate. My bp dropped significantly. (this happened without any bp meds.)

The problem I had was while the garlic was lowering my bp, I was consuming too many carbs because of the bread. So it was back to the drawing board.

I did much research on the web and learned so much.

My daily regime is now: Start the day with juice of half lemon in warm water. consume 4 celery sticks daily and occasionally consume half garlic clove, which I eat raw, wrapped in a slice or two of freshly cooked beetroot to make it less harsh.

Yesterday my bp was down to 120/70 and that is the lowest it has been for many years. I'm thrilled with the results.

I have zero swelling in my feet and legs. I am able to walk without pain and generally feel much better. I am also sleeping better because another side effect of the meds were frequent night urination. Honestly I was waking 3-5 times every night to go to the bathroom, but didn't know it was because of
the meds. Another thing my gp didn't mention

I would strongly suggest that anyone who wants to try an alternative to bp meds purchase a bp monitor. I paid £25.00 for mine.

I am in no way suggesting anyone should stop taking their meds. I did and I am so glad.

There is so much info on the web for natural bp reduction. Check it out. One final word. Check your bp, take your garlic, or lemon water, or celery and check it again after 20 minutes. You will be amazed.

a reply to: ashflash

Thanks for sharing

Ginger root works well too

I am really happy for you. Bp drugs can be so difficult, celery and garlic products have long been used in the alternative realm...good for you for listening to yourself, its inspirational.

Blood pressure is a fluid measurement, no pun intended. So it may be that it's lower 20 minutes later, but try it measuring it throughout the day and see what you get.

How about heartburn?

a reply to: gmoneystunt

I love ginger. Thanks.

a reply to: BlueJacket

Thank you. I am so happy to be off the meds.

a reply to: avgguy

Good point.

I intended my new regime to be an experiment. So i checked my bp very often throughout the day. Believe me the results are stable. I keep a log.

I'm a bit high upon waking so I check before my regime. Then after twenty minutes the reading has dropped. So after a few hours I munch on a stick of celery, just to maintain a stable reading.

What I failed to mention in my op is that even on medication my bp was between 140-155. I was not willing to increase the dose and hated taking meds.

Walking also lowers bp but I was unable to walk because the swelling was causing too much pain. Now I can walk. Like I said, I have zero swelling for the first time in years.

Tonight I am going to eat a stick of celery before bed to see if my bp is lower in the morning. If it's not as low as I would like it to be, then I will take celery and lemon water tomorrow night before bed. But, by hook or crook I am going to get a healthy consistant reading. It's trial and error at the moment, but so far I am impressed.

a reply to: ashflash

Try juicing celery before bed. It was celery juice that we freeze dried for bp at the herb company I worked at through the 90s and early 2000s. Naturopathy has long utilized the juice. You can get the equivalent of 8 sticks in a small glass.

a reply to: ashflash

This is great. I have pretty high bp now myself, first time in my life. I don't want to take meds -- and I love celery and garlic and ginger --

I will be upping my consumption of both -- THANK YOU!

a reply to: TheAlleghenyGentleman

Well, there are lots of meds for heartburn, Gaviscon and omeprozole to mention two, however if you don't like taking meds you could try bicarbonate of soda in water. I have taken that on occasion, but some say it is bad for the stomach lining. So it's up to the individual to decide.

Then again, are you referring to garlic? If it upsets your stomach take a garlic supplement instead but be sure to take one specifically for lowering bp. Please google for more information. What I know is that you need a high aliin (al-ee-in) content.

Beetroot juice also is known to lower bp. Google has so much information.

Bicarb 1 rounded tsp in about 3 fluid ounces water. takes minutes to relieve heartburn.

The alcoline of the bicarb hits the stomach acid upon consumption and the reaction creates bubbles of gas. Try to resist burping for as long as you can, then when you burp, it's instant relief. Tastes yukky, but it works.

Thanks for the tips. I want to get off the Amlodipine too. My BP was best when my weight was down and I was bicycling a lot and exercising daily. I'll get checking back for your results. My BP, without daily cardio exercise floats around 150-145/95-90, a little more when stressed. I know that healthy lifestyle changes are the best for controlling BP at any rate.

a reply to: BlueJacket

I do have a juicer, but to be honest I like celery and when I'm munching on that, I'm not eating cookies. And I read 4 stick per dy is all it takes.

I do sometimes juice apple, carrot and ginger, so I think I will throw some celery in. Like I said, its trial and error, but anything has to be better than meds.

Thanks for your input. I will give it a go.

a reply to: BuzzyWigs

I must really stress to anyone who wants to lower their bp. Please get a bp monitor. They are worth every penny and that way you know exactly what is working for you.

Thank you for replying, please keep us informed.

a reply to: MichiganSwampBuck

Did you suffer any side effects like swollen feet/legs. Please let us know.

I read a couple of blogs about amlodipine and it was the stuff of nightmares... Never again.

Natural Celery seed extract found at health food stores and egg plant water made at home by cutting an eggplant into cubes and soaking in about 3/4 gal of water in the fridge for a few days, then drinking a glass a day. It actually tastes pretty good. There is some sort of enzyme in both that lowers blood pressure.

But also needless to say, a proper diet and exercise as in daily cardio and gym time lifting weights should never be left out of anyone's life, it should be mandatory, haha.

a reply to: ashflash

I forgot to mention. This regime is going to be a daily routine. Sure, if you eat garlic or celery it will lower your bp, but it has to be maintained.

Are you going to try the lemon water. (every morning)

Everything I have mentioned has been researched and for me it works.

I didn't even know lemon juice helps lower bp until a few days ago. I now have a bag of lemons in my fridge and will replenish when needed.

a reply to: ashflash

So firstly, I totally apologize for the cryptic 3 word message........




I have chronic heartburn and want to find a natural remedy. There has to be something I can take so I stop guzzling Zantac.

I eat Zantac like candy and the heartburn gets so vicious sometimes I can't sleep and even sitting up does nothing. I've been meaning to ask the boards but just shoved it in your BP thread.

a reply to: ashflash
Do oranges have the same properties as the lemon? Just curious as lemons are too sour for me to eat.

a reply to: 38181

I hear what you say about exercise, but as much as I wanted to get out and walk I couldn't because the swelling made it too painful. Now the swelling has gone and I'm strutting my stuff.

Seriously though. I thought the swelling was a result of arthritis, but now I've dumped the meds, I can walk like years have been taken off me.

It just goes to show, alternate medication is certainly worth looking into, but I'm not saying some meds are not needed.