Dear Healthy Friend,

You've been told to cut back on salt... In fact, to try eliminate it from your diet completely. But what if research reveals that it could be the sugar you're eating and not the salt that's been increasing your blood pressure...

Ed Martin tells us about this research...

In the name of good health,

Taryn Strugnell
Managing Editor of Nutrition & Healing

P.S. Would you believe me if I told you there was a drink that could help conquer high blood pressure? The juice from a bright purple vegetable... Well... There is... keep reading.

The missing link for hypertension
Ed Martin
Editor, House Calls

For years, mainstream has been screaming that sodium is a leading cause of hypertension... Even as they admit that they have no idea what causes 95% of all high blood pressure cases.

The latest study should clue them in, because it finds that the real problem may not be in the saltshaker after all. It's in your sweet tooth - and the more added sugar you have in your diet, the higher your blood pressure is likely to be.

Researchers looked at data on 4,528 people over the age of 18 with no history of hypertension and found that those who consumed 74g of added sugars a day or more were 77% more likely to have of a blood pressure reading of 160/100.

And that will have your doctor reaching for his prescription pad faster than you can say "high-fructose corn syrup".

It doesn't take much, either - 74g of added sugar is roughly what you'll find in two cans of fizzy drinks!

That's also roughly equal to 18 teaspoons of sugar - which is actually lower than the general average, since most people consume 22 teaspoons a day (and plenty of people take in a whole lot more).

It doesn't take a lot of maths to see why a third of us have hypertension today - versus between 5% and 10 of peopel just a century ago, when we all consumed much less added sugar.

The new study also makes perfect sense when you consider that lower blood pressure is one of the more immediate benefits of a low-carb diet, which contains no added sugar.

Better blood pressure is just one more reason why giving up the sugar habit is one of the best things you could ever do for your body. It may not be easy - added sugars, especially high fructose corn syrup, are in everything from fizzy drinks to salad dressing and bread to barbecue sauce - but it's worth the effort.

One simple change could give you a taste of what's to come: A recent study found that just cutting out fizzy drinks alone could shave a couple of points off your blood pressure.

But the best reason of all is this: Lower your blood pressure on your own and you won't have to be among the millions who take blood pressure meds.

For another easy way to lower blood pressure, keep reading!

Beets beat high blood pressure

So, fizzy drinks might raise your blood pressure - but there's onedrink that may be able to lower it.

You might even say it can't be "beet", because a new study finds that beetroot juice is just as effective at lowering blood pressure as nitrate pills.

That shouldn't be a surprise since beets contain high levels of natural nitrates, but a new study shows how quickly this simple juice can hit the bloodstream and go to work.

In three separate studies, researchers assigned healthy volunteers to either potassium nitrate (in doses ranging from 248mg up to 1488mg), potassium chloride, low-nitrate water, plain water or 250ml of beetroot juice.

The researchers took blood samples and blood pressure readings at the start of the study and at regular intervals for the following 24 hours. And here's the root of what they discovered: The patients who were given 1488mg of nitrate shaved about 7 points of their systolic blood pressure levels, while those who drank the "purple punch" lowered it by 5.4, according to the study published online in Hypertension.

The potassium chloride, low-nitrate water and plain water had no impact on blood pressure, according to the researchers.

The study was done on healthy patients, but the researchers say there's no reason to believe it won't work for people who suffer from cardiovascular disease as well. But of course, talk to your doctor before you consider skipping your nitrate pills in favour of a glass of beetroot juice.

If you do give it a shot, you might want to start out with a blended juice (just make sure you have 250ml of beetroot in it). Beetroot juice has what some might call an earthy taste... Which is a nice way of saying it tastes like dirt. By adding some carrots, tomatoes or berries, however, you might be able to make it a little more palatable.

Beetroot juice has long been believed to have beneficial effects on the bloodstream. It's also a good source of the dietary silica needed for healthy bones. And another new study finds that a glass a day may even boost your stamina by up to 16%.

Looks like we've found one more way to beet the mainstream medical system.