Integrative Treatment of
HYPERTENSION

The epidemic of hypertension affects about 1 billion people worldwide.
In the United States alone, some 90 million people have this disease. It is
a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, stroke, and kidney disease.
Although it is mostly a disease of the elderly, with current trends toward
obesity, sedentary lifestyles, and poor diets, it is increasingly becoming a
disease of the young too. An ever-increasing portion of medical budgets
is allocated to its treatment, often making many drug companies quite
profitable. Clever advertising and prudent public relations are the driving factors in the popularity of many drugs, despite the fact that most
other drugs of the same class have near indistinguishable efficacy and
side effects. Yet, despite the apparent popularity of many drugs, no patient
really wants to take them. In fact, most patients, especially the younger
ones, bargain and plead for more time or alternative treatments. Initially,
medication is resisted by everyone, and for good reason, as it usually leads
to many others along with dreaded side effects