Blood Pressure

A BBHC Blog Article

If blood pressure were a person, it would be that one friend who overreacts to absolutely everything.
Traffic? They’re stressed.
Weather? Stressed.
Didn’t sleep well? Stressed.
Ate too much sugar? Stressed.

And yet—despite all this drama—blood pressure is not actually the villain.
It’s the messenger.
The warning light.
The body’s version of a car dashboard screaming, “Something is wrong under the hood!”

The real trouble begins when we mistake the flashing red warning light for the actual problem… and then slap a sticker over it called “medication.”
Now we don’t see the warning—but the engine is still on fire.

Welcome to the world of hypertension.

95% of High Blood Pressure Has a Name… and That Name Means “We Have No Clue”

Doctors call it essential hypertension, which is a fancy way of saying:

“We don’t know what causes it. Might be genetics. Might be lifestyle. Could be Mars in retrograde. Please reduce your salt and carry on.”

Meanwhile, half the people who:

• eat tons of salt

• never exercise

• and live on biltong and good intentions

…have perfectly normal blood pressure.

And around 20% of people put on blood pressure meds see absolutely no change at all.

Why?
Because we’re treating the symptom, not the cause.
It’s like trying to fix a smoke alarm by removing the batteries while the house is still burning down.

Root Cause #1: Vitamin D — The Sunlight Hormone You’re Probably Missing

Let’s talk about something surprisingly powerful:

Vitamin D controls a hormonal water-pressure system in your body.

When vitamin D is low:

• Your arteries squeeze tighter

• Your kidneys hold sodium hostage

• Your body retains water like a sponge

Which raises your blood pressure faster than a debt collector.

And here’s the wild part:

Your risk of high blood pressure doubles in winter.
Because winter = no sun = no vitamin D = no chill in your arteries.

And if you have darker skin?
You’re even more at risk because melanin acts like nature’s sunscreen. Beautiful, but strong.

Result?
You need more vitamin D than the average person just to catch up.

Root Cause #2: The Insulin Resistance Domino Effect

If metabolic syndrome were a movie, insulin resistance would be the main villain with excellent screen time.

Too many refined carbs =
↓ Vitamin D
↓ Magnesium
↓ Potassium
↑ Insulin
↑ Blood pressure
↑ Belly fat
↑ Doctor visits you never planned for

Insulin resistance:

• raises blood pressure

• damages your arteries

• leads to fatty liver

• increases inflammation

• and generally behaves like an uninvited guest ruining the whole party

Fix insulin resistance → much of the blood pressure problem starts to unwind.

Root Cause #3: Magnesium — The Unsung Hero

Magnesium:

• relaxes arteries

• prevents calcium from clogging them like cement

• calms adrenaline (natural beta-blocker!)

• partners with vitamin D to regulate your entire cardiovascular system

A magnesium deficiency creates:

• cramps

• arrhythmias

• anxiety

• calcified arteries

• increased clot risk

And guess who’s severely magnesium deficient?
Most people who eat a modern diet.

But don’t worry — pumpkin seeds, leafy greens, almonds, and dark chocolate can help (just skip the sugary kind unless you want high blood pressure and sadness together).

Root Cause #4: Potassium — The Sodium Bouncer

Potassium is the mineral that politely kicks extra sodium out of the bloodstream.

No potassium = sodium parties hard
Enough potassium = sodium behaves

You need 4,700 mg per day, which realistically means eating a salad the size of a toddler.

You can also use a high-quality electrolyte powder with at least 1,000 mg of potassium to make life easier.

And Now… The Part Nobody Talks About

You’ve been told to “reduce salt” your whole life.
But the truth is:

Most people don’t have a salt problem — they have a potassium and magnesium problem.
Most people don’t have a genetic blood pressure problem — they have a genetic vitamin D activation problem.

Fix the root causes… and suddenly the “mysterious, incurable essential hypertension” becomes far less mysterious.

The BBHC 4-Step Fix-Your-Blood-Pressure Plan

1. High-Dose Vitamin D

10,000 IU daily for maintenance,
20,000 IU short-term for therapeutic effect.

(40 minutes of sun = 20,000 IU — so relax, Karen, it's not toxic.)

2. Magnesium Glycinate

Helps vitamin D work and stops arterial cement formation (aka calcium buildup).

3. Potassium

Use electrolytes + leafy greens to hit your daily target.

4. Low-Carb Diet

This is the big one.
A low-carb, real-food, BBHC-style keto diet removes the metabolic stress causing:

• high blood pressure

• fatty liver

• belly fat

• systemic inflammation

High blood pressure is not random.
It’s not bad luck.
It’s not an unavoidable fate.

It’s your body whispering:
“Please stop feeding me carbs, give me sunlight, and maybe a vegetable.”

Listen to it.
Because symptoms aren’t enemies — they’re guides.