When it comes to the pursuit of health and wellbeing, nothing is more important than vascular wellness. Throughout the world, the leading cause of death remains heart disease and cardiovascular ischemia. In fact, this accounts for 16% of deaths across the globe each year. And while science and medicine have helped greatly in detecting and managing vascular conditions, morbidity and mortality remain high. Thus, it continues to be important to invest in a healthy vasculature to enhance quality of life and longevity. And fortunately, there are many ways to do just that.
If you were to ask most anyone about how to improve your vascular wellness, there’s little doubt they would recommend exercise. Aerobic exercise specifically like running, swimming, cycling, and active athletics are well known to promote a healthy vasculature and heart. But exercise is not everyone’s cup of tea, even though it provides a number of health and wellness benefits. Many people therefore want to know what else they can do besides going to the gym to promote a healthy heart and circulatory system. With this in mind, the following discusses several ways to improve vascular wellness without breaking a sweat. And while exercise is still encouraged, these strategies are also great ways to achieve a healthy vasculature.
- Glucosamine, Not Just for Arthritis
As a supplement, many take glucosamine to alleviate joint pain and inflammation. By far this is the most common use. But as it turn out, glucosamine also promote a healthy vasculature as a result of its anti-inflammatory effects. Specifically, glucosamine lowers a known inflammatory marker in the body called C-reactive protein. Studies have demonstrated that glucosamine lowers this inflammatory marker by 23%. Because C-reactive protein elevation is seen with advancing atherosclerosis, researchers suspected glucosamine might also reduce heart disease risk. As it turns out, they were right. Patients who took glucosamine for a year saw a 65% reduced risk of atherosclerosis. Therefore, adding this supplement to your regimen can contribute to vascular wellness over time.
- Microbiome Magic
Over the last decade, there has been a great deal of excitement about gut health and factors that favorably influence our microbiome. Diets and supplements that encourage healthy bacteria in our intestinal lining has many beneficial health effects. Interestingly, these benefits extend to cardiovascular health as well. Research that has evaluated the effect of probiotics on vascular wellness have demonstrated positive results. One study that had participants add frozen yogurt to their diet saw a 30% reduction in cardiovascular disease risk compared to controls. Likewise, they also had less plaque build-up in their arteries. Presumably, the healthy immune system effects linked to a healthy microbiome accounted for healthier blood vessels. This is another way one can promote a healthy vasculature without exercise.
- Shifting Salts to the Sea
As most are aware, diets high in sodium are associated with hypertension, which is a known risk factor for vascular disease. Therefore, sodium restriction is often recommended when one’ blood pressure begins to climb. But when it comes to dietary salts, not all consist of sodium alone. Sea salts, in particular, often have a significant amount of potassium with lesser amounts of sodium. With this in mind, studies have also examined how these “alternative” salts affect blood pressure and heart disease risk. As it turns out, sea salts have a positive effect on vascular wellness reducing heart disease risk by 41%. Likewise, these salts were also linked to lower systolic blood pressure and fewer blood pressure medications. As it turns out, the preferred combination for a healthy vasculature is 70% sodium and 30% potassium. Choosing sea salts with this formulation is another way to reduce vascular risks.
- Boosting Nitric Oxide Levels
Despite the use of nitroglycerin and similar substances for decades, researchers are still learning about nitrates and heart disease. One specific nitrate compound is that of nitric oxide, which is normally released by cells lining our blood vessels. Once released, nitric oxide promotes blood vessel dilation, which lowers blood pressure. In addition, nitric oxide prevents blood clots, inflammation of blood vessels, and reduces atherosclerotic plaque. Based on these benefits to vasculature wellness, the key question is how to boost nitric oxide levels. One way is to take L-arginine supplements, which is a precursor to nitric oxide production in the body. But other ways are more natural and include adding leafy green vegetables and root vegetables to your diet. Both can be effective in promoting a healthy vasculature.
- Heat Things Up
Because endothelial cells, those lining blood vessels, produce nitric oxide, dysfunction of these cells can lead to vascular problems. Therefore, one goal in the pursuit of a healthy vasculature is to promote a healthy endothelium. While nitric oxide supplements and diets help as well, therapies that target endothelial cells are also important. Interestingly, exposing one’s self to thermal heat actually accomplishes this. In one study, participants who were regularly placed in a dry sauna for 2 months saw a 45% increase in blood circulation. In an effort to determine if this was an endothelial effect, they compared healthy individuals to those with atherosclerosis. The healthy individuals did not have any change, suggesting thermal theory helps dysfunctional endothelial cells better perform. This along with nitric oxide supplements and diets are thus another way to promote vascular wellness without exercise.
The Best Formula for Vascular Wellness
All the above considerations are supported by research, and adding them to your regimen could well boost a healthy vasculature. But it’s also worth investing in aerobics and other exercise regimens to promote true vascular wellness. Current recommendations are to perform 30 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise 3-5 times a week, and move at least 5 minutes every hour. Also, eating healthy diets low in saturated fats and high on lean proteins, vegetables and fiber is similarly beneficial. But if one is not always compliant with this advice, other options for vascular wellness do exist. While the best approach is to include them all, any of these pursuits provide advantages when it comes to a healthy vasculature.
