Blood Flow
Raynaud’s Syndrome?
Virtually everyone understands how critical blood flow is, yet they probably do almost nothing on a daily basis to maintain and improve their own blood flow.
Naming something as a disease, such as “Raynaud’s Syndrome”, tends to lead toward a victim mentality. “Oh, I can’t because I have XYZ disease.” People use it as an excuse instead of actively fixing the problem. Industrial medicine information, like what the Cleveland Clinic publishes for Raynaud’s, focuses on describing the condition, treatments, living with it and generally letting you know that it’s not all that severe.
Industrial medicine doesn’t mention cures like taking omega 3 supplementation.
A staggering number of people believe the misinformation of restricting salt intake and restricting saturated fats (or taking a cholesterol lowering drug) are keys to having healthy circulation. Nothing could be further from the truth. More people suffer from insufficient sodium than excess! Cholesterol is vital for life, every hormone (starting with Vitamin D) is built from cholesterol. Low cholesterol is a serious problem if you want important hormones like testosterone and estrogen!
There are many other nutrients which help maintain good blood flow. Vitamin K2 helps remove calcium from your soft tissues (like arteries) and put it where it belongs (your bones). Ginkgo biloba is a reasonably well known herb that increases blood flow.
Magnesium (prevents vasospasm) should never be overlooked as deficiency is common and supplements are inexpensive.
Do you keep your second heart pumping? Oh? Did you not know you have a second heart?
The soleus muscle (in your calf) plays an important role in pumping blood back up to your torso. This is one reason sitting is so unhealthy and walking is extremely healthy. Make sure you use this muscle often!
Back to Raynaud’s: What is Raynaud’s? This is impaired blood flow, with vasospasms (sudden contractions of blood vessels), specifically in your small capillaries, which leads to problems of your hands and feet getting very cold when you are out in cold weather. Certainly you can avoid cold weather, or you could improve your blood flow.
Do not overlook thyroid hormone status. With reduced thyroid hormone status there will be a decrease in nitric oxide production and thus less vasodilation. Thyroid hormone also reduces blood viscosity (aka “thinner” blood). The net result of good thyroid hormone status, is higher flow throughout the whole circulatory system, including the smallest capillaries.
[One reference: Effect of Thyroid Hormone on Circulation ]
Other nutrients to consider: niacin (you may prefer inositol hexanicotinate), carnitine, and arginine.