Knowing how your body works is the first step towards better health, something we're passionate about at UMZU. Here are some key terms related to blood flow:

• Vasoconstriction: Blood vessels tighten up.

• Vasodilation: Blood vessels relax and widen.

• Carbon Dioxide: Increases with more metabolism.

• Nitric Oxide: Boosts blood flow and reduces blood pressure.

How Organs and Hormones Influence Blood Flow:

• The Heart: Works harder with more vasoconstriction.

• The Liver: Filters out toxins from the blood.

• The Lungs: Oxygenate blood and remove CO2.

Hormones like cortisol (stress hormone) and estrogen play significant roles in blood flow, affecting everything from blood vessel size to heart health.

Progesterone, often seen as a 'youth hormone', works alongside testosterone to regulate estrogen levels, helping maintain smooth blood flow and heart health. Thyroid hormone is also key in energy regulation and stress hormone management.

Meditation has been proven time and time again in clinical studies to have the ability to lower blood pressure effectively.†

The psychological component of high blood pressure and poor circulation is overlooked by most people who struggle with this problem. Due to the tremendous complexity of the human psyche and the relationship that it has to our physiology, stress has a major impact on our body.

Psychological stress manifests itself on the physical level in the body. It does this by increasing the various stress hormones that we have talked about.

Meditation, when utilized correctly, can decrease the impact that negative thought patterns have on the body.†

Research has shown that subjects who focused on taking six deep breaths were able to decrease blood pressure and promote vasodilation significantly.†

Some good areas of meditation are:

• Transcendental meditation

• Mindfulness meditation

• Focus meditation

Experiment with different types and find out which one is best for you.

ACTION ITEM: Spend around 10 minutes at the beginning of each day meditating in some way.

Breathing is another surefire way to ensure that you are effectively lowering the amount of stress hormones in the body. It also ensures you are exchanging gases properly in order to increase vasodilation.†

Most people are completely unaware of the way that they are breathing. They go throughout their day mildly hyperventilating. This hyperventilation is relaying to the body that it is in a stressful situation promoting stress hormones.†

By focusing on your breath and correcting your breathing patterns you begin to allow your respiratory system to function the way that it is meant to. This allows for the proper exchange of gas between the lungs and the blood.

Some good tactics to begin working on your breathing patterns are:

• Box breathing (breathing in for 7 seconds, holding the breath for 7 seconds, and letting the breath out for 7 seconds)

• Equal breathing (sama vritti - breathing in for the same amount of time you breathe out)

ACTION ITEM:  As you go throughout your day be intentional about your breathing patterns. Imagine yourself pushing out your belly button with the air you are breathing in. Every time you find yourself a little anxious or tense, stop where you are, take six deep breaths, and continue your day.

Sociability decreases the amount of stress hormones that are present in the body, much like meditation.† This then decreases vascular resistance and promotes vasodilation, playing a beneficial role in improved blood flow.

However, for the introverts who might be freaking out reading this, have no fear.

You don't have to go out and be the center of attention, but finding even one person who you enjoy being around and being present with has been shown to have a massive impact on stress and blood pressure.†

ACTION ITEM:  Spend ten minutes daily talking to someone you enjoy spending time with. Whether it is in person or a ten-minute phone call, this will make a significant impact on your day.

Everyone knows that exercise is beneficial for your health; however, most people think that the wrong type of exercise is most beneficial in the scope of cardiovascular health.

Resistance training is one of the most beneficial things that anyone can do to increase all areas of his or her health. Resistance training slows down the aging process and allows for a more friendly internal environment in the long term, even though that exercise itself is a stressor. Resistance training is highly beneficial for increasing the strength and resiliency of the heart.†

Resistance training decreases the body's susceptibility to injury allowing it to be more resilient against trauma and other forms of shock.†

ACTION ITEM:   Find a good workout program. Whether it's bodyweight workouts, you can do at home or a powerlifting routine, finding a good workout program is the first step. Work out every day. It doesn't have to be a lifting session every day but even stretching on a daily basis is good to keep the body moving and functioning properly.

Walking is the most beneficial form of movement that anyone can do, especially if you have the ability to walk out in nature. Walking has a significant impact on the hormonal status of the body. It allows for more protective and youth-associated hormones to be produced and reduces the amount of stress hormones in the body.†

Walking also regulates many different functions throughout the body. One of the most significant systems that is regulated by walking is the digestive system. Walking for around 45-60 minutes a day allows for proper peristaltic contraction of the intestine, helping to move waste through the system and promoting proper digestion.

Walking promotes proper circulation to the lower half of the body, helping to get unoxygenated blood back to the heart and lungs to be replenished with nutrients.

If you have the ability to walk outside in an unknown place this also becomes very beneficial for increasing brain function and helping to promote creativity through different neural patterns being integrated.

ACTION ITEM:   Walk for 20-60 minutes a day with a step goal of 7,000-10,000 steps.

Nutrition plays a foundational role in the health of the circulatory system, as well as all other areas of health. Providing the body with the material that it needs in order to support proper hormonal status and a high-functioning metabolism is extremely important.

At UMZU, we promote The Thermo Diet, which is built upon the metabolic theory of health and is designed in a way that allows you to eat to support proper hormonal status within the body and alleviate micronutrient deficiencies.

Cutting out foods and other things that block the flow of energy through the body and adding in things that will enhance it is the most ideal approach.

At the fundamental level of this way of eating you should:

• Eat plenty of nutrient rich carbohydrates (fruits and roots)

• Get in just the right amount of protein from the right sources (animal sources)

• Eat adequate amounts of the right types of fats to support hormonal production and cellular repair.

The biggest thing that you can do right now in terms of nutrition for blood flow is to eliminate polyunsaturated fatty acids. There are numerous adverse effects with these types of fats as they are extremely unstable, breaking down and forming free radicals in the body, and can even lead to metabolic degradation. 

ACTION ITEM:   Start cooking your food. Go to the grocery store and buy whole foods that are rich in nutrients. Use better oil (saturated fats are best).