Blood Vessel Health

How and why we should be taking our bloods vessels into consideration.

Blood vessels, you may remember them from biology classes back in school however this overlooked aspect of health may be making a come back int he wellness scene and here is all you need to know about how to take great care of your blood vessels.

Firstly, what is a blood vessel?
Blood vessels are the channels or conduits through which blood is distributed to body tissues. The vessels make up two closed systems of tubes that begin and end at the heart. One system, the pulmonary vessels, transports blood from the right ventricle to the lungs and back to the left atrium.

The Role. Blood vessels are the network of tubes through which blood is pumped around the body, so think blood flow and circulation. Blood vessels carry blood from your heart to the rest of your body. They’re essential for making sure your organs and tissues get the oxygen and nutrients they need to work.

Implications

Blood vessels can develop problems, such as blockages or enlargements. Acute blood vessel dysfunction can look like; poor circulation, tired and weakness and numbness or heaviness in muscles. Severe blood vessel disorders can be life-threatening. Damage or disease of the blood vessels causes a variety of diseases including hypertension, aneurysm formation, aneurysm rupture, peripheral vascular disease, deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, transient ischemic attack, stroke, and many others.

How we can support our blood vessels

In order to support blood vessels, we can turn to boosting our circulation and eating a blood vessel friendly diet. For this a number of lifestyle factors can help, here are a few of my favourite:

• Walk to Increase cardio vascular exercise. This is anything that gets your heart rate up, such as biking, running, boxing or dancing my favourite is walking as its low impact and easy on joints.
• Dry brush the body. Before a shower or bath, I love to dry brush as its stimulates blood flow and boosts the sympathetic system, both which contribute to positive circulation.
• Lifting legs up the wall. Elevating your legs will help move blood to the upper body helps blood vessels push blood through the body up to your heart. They can also help reduce swelling and can be beneficial for those who are pregnant, those have diabetes or those who are standing on their feet all day. 

Top foods to boost blood flow

• Cayenne pepper. Cayenne pepper gets its spicy u from a phytochemical called capsaicin.Capsaicin promotes blood flow to tissues by lowering blood pressure and stimulating the release of nitric oxide and other vasodilators — or compounds that help expand your blood vessels.Vasodilators allow blood to flow more easily through your veins and arteries by relaxing the tiny muscles found in blood vessel walls.
• Pomegranate. Pomegranate are particularly high in polyphenol antioxidants and nitrates, which are potent vasodilators. A 2014 study in 19 active people found that consuming 1,000 milligrams (mg) of pomegranate extract 30 minutes before working out increased blood flow, blood vessel diameter, and exercise performance.
• Cinnamon. Cinnamon is a warming spice that has many health benefits, including increased blood flow. In studies, cinnamon improved blood vessel dilation and blood flow in the coronary artery, which supplies blood to the heart.
• Garlic. Garlic is well known for its beneficial impact on circulation and heart health. Studies suggest that garlic specifically, its sulphur compounds, which include allicin can increase tissue blood flow and lower blood pressure by relaxing your blood vessels

Those are my top tips for better blood vessel health, these guys are not to be forgotten or overlooked and I hope after reading this post you have gained a new appreciation for these small but mighty part of ourselves.