High Blood Pressure Causes- Thick, Sticky, Sluggish Blood

So let’s look a little more into high blood pressure causes. We already simplified it into several categories.

1. Sticky, thick, sluggish Blood
2. Increased resistance in your arteries
3. Chemicals that can cause high blood pressure

So we will address each one in more depth. First of all, lets look at sticky, thick, sluggish blood. Then we will look at how it causes high blood pressure.

Your blood is, believe it or not, a beautiful symphony of life sustaining and health maintaining particles.

In fact the Scriptures give us the following insight in Leviticus 17:11, "For the life of the flesh [is] in the blood..."

One of the better known particles is the red blood cell. The red blood cell is shaped like a donut with a thin center.

God designed them this way because they do a very important job. They deliver oxygen from your lungs to your tissues. In order to do this, the red blood cell, must be maximally flexible and have the greatest amount of surface area possible through which to release its oxygen molecules at the right place. The tissue which needs the oxygen may be accessed through a big vessel (an artery) or tiny vessel (called an arteriole).

While 5 million red blood cells can fit on the top of a pin head, there are actually tiny little arterioles, which are so small that a red blood cell must bend in half to fit through them. Because of the red blood cells unique shape it can fit through arterioles smaller than half its size.

This is what we are looking for- the high blood pressure cause.

If your red blood cells are sticky or your blood is thick the cells begin to stick together. This not only decreases the amount of surface area through which your red blood cell can release oxygen but two, three or more red blood cells clumped together prevents the single cell from bending over to pass through the smaller arterioles. The result is that certain tissues do not get enough oxygen.

When this occurs the body through a complex process of chemical and neurologic messages signals the heart to pump harder. Perhaps if the pressure is higher the cells can be forced through. And perhaps they can for a time but eventually the heart muscle is overworked. It enlarges, becoming ineffective and damage is done in many areas of your body. The most frequently discussed damage is that which occurs to the blood vessels. This can result in ruptures in the vessels in your brain causing a stroke(Cerebral Vascular Attacks).

But the sluggish, sticky, thick blood can also cause damage over time because the tissues, at large, are simply not receiving the oxygen they need to survive and be healthy.

We are talking serious here!

If you don’t have good circulation, you don’t have enough oxygen. We are talking about the tissues of your brain and heart. These are tissues you need! And we didn't even talk about the tissues of your muscles, skin and other organs. We need those too!

So What Causes Thick, Sluggish, Clumpy Blood?

Well a lot of things can cause this problem. Excessive amounts of red blood cells can cause thick, sluggish, clumpy blood. Causes for excessive amounts of red blood cells are as follows:

Things that can be eliminated or helped by natural lifestyle changes:

Smoking- This is because your body seems to prefer to take in toxic gases, such as carbon monoxide, over the oxygen. The body then signals its need for more oxygen. Part of the bodies compensation to fix the problem is to make more red blood cells to carry the oxygen to the needed places.

Sleep Apnea- Because sleep apnea results in a lack of oxygen (the person frequently stops breathing for a period of time while asleep) the body signals for more oxygen and again the body compensates by making more oxygen carriers, red blood cells.

Dehydration- Simply put, if the “water portion” of your blood is not replaced adequately the red blood cells are more concentrated in a given amount of blood.

A diet high in fat and cholesterol- Studies show the flow of blood is slowed considerably by a high fat diet. Simply put the fat clogs the system. It coats the red blood cells, and gets in the way of good clean circulation. This is only briefly mentioned here but it is actually a huge issue, especially for those living in "developed" countries were our diets are refined and "rich". This is likely why the majority of high blood pressure cases can be reversed by lifestyle changes which promote natural, more healthful diets.

Things that are extremely unusual and will need to be evaluated by a physician- Certain types of cancers may cause to many red blood cells to be formed. This is an unusual cause for high blood pressure. A routine simple blood test would be all your Doctor would need to rule out this unusual cause.

The next cause for high blood pressure is vascular or vessel resistance.

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