Health Fitness

Heart disease and water fasting

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States with over 616,000 deaths attributed to it and the number of non-institutionalized adults with diagnosed heart disease has reached a staggering 26.8 million people, which is equal to 12% of the population. (one)

MY CONDITION.

I am one of those non-institutionalized people who is obese, with high blood pressure, edema, gout and respiratory problems. Probably the same feature as most with heart disease. I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure a couple of years ago with a 50/50 chance of surviving another ten years. My height is 5’10 and I weigh 272 pounds. In addition to the above foods, I also have edema, high blood pressure, psoriasis, carpal tunnel, and sleep apnea.

Heart disease does not usually appear overnight. It takes many years and decades of tobacco, alcohol, poor diet and lack of exercise. Arterial blockage can be extremely advanced before you know you have a problem. It sneaks up on you and when you least suspect it, it gives you a heart attack. My condition has been getting progressively worse to the point where it is quite a chore to get from my basement to the main floor. Physical labor is out of the question now.

I ALREADY TRIED THIS BEFORE.

Last year I tried to lose a lot of weight through a process known as water fasting. I did a lot of research on the subject through the internet and from the books I bought, and felt it was the right thing for me to do to improve my health. I started at around 265lbs and was down to 230lbs in a 21 day period. But then I quit due to what I later found out was a cleansing reaction. In those 21 days my blood pressure normalized and I stopped taking my Coversyl medication. He took longer and longer walks, and could even jog a short distance. This convinced me that I was on the right track, but I needed to do some more research before starting another fast. That was the summer of 2010.

Now you are wondering how a water fast can benefit someone who has heart disease. Well, first of all, fasting has been shown to lower blood pressure very quickly and effectively. My fasting notes from last year indicate that I was consistently around 125-130/85 from an average of 165/95, so I know the effects on my blood pressure and am confident that if I had continued I would have seen further improvement. Additionally, it appears that fasting can significantly reduce the amount of plaque lining the blood vessels, resulting in more oxygen and blood to circulate and lessening the workload on the heart. In a study published in Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, June 2001, 174 patients fasted and all participants experienced a dramatic drop in blood pressure. The fast lasted only 10 to 11 days, and the average drop in blood pressure was 37/13 mm Hg. Those with stage 3 hypertension (180/110+) experienced an average drop of 60/17 mm Hg. No other method of lowering blood pressure has never shown such dramatic results.

THIS TIME, SUCCESS!

Due to the results of my fast last year, I have decided to start another fast. The purpose is to completely normalize my blood pressure, get rid of edema and gout along with a few other health related issues I am dealing with. The fast will continue until my hunger returns, which I suspect may be 40-50 days. I would love to lose 80 to 100 pounds, which would bring me to about 195 pounds. This time I’ll be drinking medical grade alkaline ionized water to help with the cleansing reactions that stopped my fast in 2010. I’ll be providing stats, comments, photos and videos on a regular basis. I invite you to follow my progress on my blog.

Source

(1) Center for Disease Control and Prevention

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