Hypertension has long been known to be more prevalent among obese subjects or in patients with diabetes, i.e., in states of insulin resistance.
The American Heart Association states that “It was logical to include hypertension in the insulin resistance syndrome”
What is Insulin Resistance
Insulin resistance is a state in which your muscle cells, fat and liver do not respond to the insulin hormone. The insulin hormone carries glucose from the blood into the cells to supply them with energy.
When the cells stop responding to insulin, they become insulin resistant and reject it. This causes the pancreas to make more insulin which results in higher level of blood sugar.
Hypertension and Insulin Resistance
High insulin stiffens your arteries, disrupts the endothelial layer of your arteries, which start the hardening of the arteries as well as the cascade effect of cholesterol and calcium to accumulate in the arteries.
High insulin (insulin resistance) creates inflammation in the arteries. This condition also causes sodium retention and a loss of potassium because insulin is necessary to allow this mineral in the cell.
Dr. Berg talks about the link between high blood pressure and insulin resistance.
Medications and Insulin Resistance
Diuretics also have a side-effect of causing insulin resistance. The treatment of hypertension is mainly medications because we are told that there is no cure, only treatment. The pathophysiology is, in reality, a disruption of the artery wall creating vasoconstriction, stiffness and less elasticity.
The additional symptom of hypertension is headaches and a risk for stroke and heart attack. The home remedies involve actions to lower insulin – cutting out sugar, adding vegetables to get your potassium and even apple cider vinegar can help.
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