'Softening blood vessels' has lied to Chinese people for decades. Red wine, vinegar, and deep-sea fish oil are all nonsense.

The 53-year-old sister Lin and her husband run a fish stall. Sister Lin has been the eldest child in the family since she was a child. She was in charge of the daily life of her younger brothers since she was a child. Later, after marrying her husband, she has two daughters and a son. Although life is hard, it is also enjoyable.

Due to the tiring work at ordinary times, Lin everyone was killing fish at the fish stall two years ago, and suddenly his body swayed and he fainted on the ground.

Later, she was rushed to the hospital by her husband. After examination, the doctor found that Sister Lin had a sign of cerebral blood vessel blockage, so she prescribed some medicines for Sister Lin to go back to eat for a while to "unblock" her blood vessels.

After Sister Lin insisted on taking the medicine for a period of time after returning home, she felt that her body had indeed recovered a lot. Later, she found out from her best friend that drinking red wine can soften blood vessels and prevent blood vessel blockage. Especially for women, drinking red wine can also beautify your face.

So Sister Lin thought carefully and asked her friends to buy a few cases of red wine wholesale, and planned to drink a glass every day to "soften the blood vessels". Her husband disapproved of this and thought she was making a fool of herself, but no matter what he said, Sister Lin didn't want to listen.

After drinking like this for half a year, Sister Lin suddenly felt a little dizzy again one day, worried that she would "burst blood vessels", so she drank a whole bottle of red wine at once, and after a while, she fainted on the ground and was sent to the hospital. , the doctor said she had a sudden brain hemorrhage.

Originally, Sister Lin's high blood pressure was well controlled after drug treatment, but in the past six months, alcohol gradually overwhelmed her blood vessels and finally "collapsed".

Many hypertensive patients, in order to prevent the problem of vascular blockage, will listen to some folk remedies, such as drinking vinegar, eating deep-sea fish oil, drinking red wine, etc. In fact, can these foods really "soften blood vessels"?

1. How are your blood vessels "blocked" step by step?

According to the "China Cardiovascular Health and Disease Report 2020", cardiovascular disease has become the first cause of death in the Chinese population.

Why do blood vessels get blocked? In fact, the "garbage" that causes blood vessel blockage, that is, plaque, is actually called "atherosclerosis" more accurately. Arteries are arterial blood vessels, atheroma is the appearance of atheroma from the outside, and sclerosis means that the plaque is very hard , the texture.

The blockage of blood vessels in the human body does not happen overnight. Generally, it will go through the following four stages:

Newborn: The halo of the inner wall of the arteries is elastic

When a person is born, it is like replacing a new water pipe at home. The wall of the pipe is smooth and elastic, and the blood flow is unobstructed.

And as we " use " the body, lipids and cholesterol begin to deposit on the walls of blood vessels, forming atherosclerotic plaques . The walls of the blood vessels also thicken and harden, and "atherosclerosis" begins.

Adolescents: Eat too much, develop plaque in blood vessels

For children in their teens, parents are always worried about nutritional deficiencies, or there is no adult control at home. Children will eat too many high-fat and high-sugar snacks , and absorb too much oil. These substances will be adsorbed on the blood vessels and form plaque.

There are also some children who don't like to exercise, the blood vessel circulation is slow, eat a lot, and still not move, the body accumulates fat, and it is easy to increase the lipid in the blood vessels.

Middle-aged: More and more garbage is deposited on the walls of blood vessels

When a person reaches middle age, atherosclerosis develops rapidly, and the garbage on the blood vessel wall accumulates more and more, which is equivalent to the accumulation of scale on the water pipe at home, the water pipe passage is completely squeezed, and the blood vessel lumen becomes narrower and narrower.

If coupled with bad habits such as staying up late, smoking, drinking, and stress , it is easy to increase the heart rate, blood pressure, and plaque rupture, thereby promoting thrombosis and blocking blood vessels.

Old age: plaque builds up faster and becomes clogged

With age, blood vessels are inevitably damaged by various external influences. Years of deposition and thickening of the blood vessel wall can directly lead to insufficient blood supply to various parts of the body. Once the blood vessels are completely closed, cerebral infarction or myocardial infarction will occur, posing a major threat to life.

2. Whether the blood vessels are blocked or not, you can tell at a glance?

Different parts of the blockage, symptoms and harm are different.

1. Brain

When a blood vessel is blocked in the brain, one side of the body will have an obvious reaction, one side of the limb or face will experience weakness or numbness, the corners of the face will be crooked, and the vision in both eyes will be lost or blurred . In addition, the brain is responsible for the management of language areas, and patients may also experience slurred speech and incomprehensible speech.

2. Lungs

Blockage of blood vessels in the lungs can manifest as chest pain, hemoptysis, and difficulty breathing . If left untreated, the mortality rate can be as high as 30%.

3. Heart

Cardiovascular blockage, the degree of blockage is relatively mild, and the pumping ability of the heart will be slightly affected. Men may experience chest pain, shoulder and neck discomfort, etc.; women may experience toothache and jaw pain. If the heart is severely blocked, a myocardial infarction can occur at any time.

4. Kidneys

Blockage of blood vessels in the kidneys can lead to edema, changes in urine output, and in severe cases can lead to renal insufficiency , eventually leading to renal atrophy and necrosis.

5. Upper limbs

Blockage of blood vessels in the upper extremities will affect the pulse and stabilize the blood pressure. In severe cases, the upper extremities will also snatch blood to the brain, resulting in insufficient blood supply to the brain, dizziness, and unstable standing .

6. Lower limbs

When the lower extremity is blocked, that is, the lower extremity venous thrombosis is blocked, the limbs will be swollen, and there will be pain, and the skin temperature at the embolization site will be higher than usual.

3. "Softening blood vessels" has lied to Chinese people for decades!

Zhou Ziqiang, a physician from the Cardiovascular Center of Beijing Tongren Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University, said that it is difficult to soften blood vessels that have been hardened. But there are still many folk sayings about "softening blood vessels", such as ingesting red wine, vinegar, fish oil, etc. What is the truth?

• wine

There are rumors that red wine contains resveratrol, which has the effect of softening blood vessels.

In this regard, in January 2022, the World Heart Federation re-emphasized that alcohol consumption is an important cause of various cardiovascular diseases, and various evidences are very clear that any level of alcohol consumption may lead to the loss of a healthy life.

2. Mature vinegar

There are rumors that vinegar has the effect of softening blood vessels and preventing arteriosclerosis.

In this regard, Liu Jianlong, chief physician of the Department of Vascular Surgery of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, pointed out that soaking calcium in vinegar can indeed dissolve it, but drinking vinegar in the stomach can hardly change the blood pH and affect plaque .

In addition, the main component of vinegar is acetic acid, which is corrosive to a certain extent. If a large amount of vinegar is ingested on an empty stomach, it will cause burns in the digestive tract and cause severe pain.

3. Deep sea fish oil

Deep-sea fish oil was once crowned as a "prevention of cardiovascular disease" selling point, claiming that it contains polyunsaturated fatty acids, which can reduce blood lipids.

It is true that deep-sea fish oil is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, but this fatty acid cannot directly act on blood vessels to keep blood vessels elastic.

Fourth, such as dredging blood vessels, protecting blood vessels is the key

How to protect blood vessels and dredge blood vessels, these key points should be paid attention to:

The first is to control blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood lipids. High blood pressure will aggravate arteriosclerosis and harden blood vessels. High blood sugar will produce more blood vessel plaques, leading to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. High blood lipids will cause the blood to produce more lipids, which is "vascular waste". Therefore, controlling the three highs is the key to protecting blood vessels.

At the same time, it is necessary to improve living habits, especially quit smoking and drinking . Smoking not only damages the lungs, but also damages the blood vessels and aggravates the blockage of the blood vessels. Drinking alcohol, especially heavy drinking, can increase blood pressure, blood lipids, and accelerate arteriosclerosis. Therefore, staying away from tobacco and alcohol can prevent the further progression of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.

Some office workers are sedentary for a long time, blood circulation slows down, cardiopulmonary function also decreases, which will promote the formation of vascular plaque. Therefore, keep exercising and keep at least 150 minutes of exercise per week.

4 Nowadays, many people have the habit of staying up late, and often go to bed after 12:00, and staying up late is a major risk factor for blood vessel blockage . If you want to avoid blood vessel blockage, you must not stay up late, and go to sleep at the time, which is more conducive to protecting blood vessels.

Vascular plaques cannot be formed in a day. Under the constant accumulation of life, many people fail to detect them in time, and eventually suffer from myocardial infarction and cerebral infarction.

Most of the blockages of blood vessels are caused by their own reasons, so you can also help prevent blood vessel blockages by living a healthy life. It's up to you to keep going.

References:

[1] "Shocking! This is how the blood vessels are blocked by yourself bit by bit! ". Health Times. 2021-03-17

[2] "Which people's blood vessels are most likely to be "blocked"? Cardiologists named 7 types of people". Life Times. 2022-08-11

[3] "The blood vessels are hard, and it is difficult to soften again! If you want to prevent and improve, you must first learn to eat". CCTV Life Circle. 2022-09-27

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