Beet juice beats drug to lower blood pressure

Q. I took hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) to control my blood pressure for 10 years, but then I developed a bad rash as a side effect. So with my doctor’s help, I was able to discontinue the medicine.

I have been exercising much more and watching my weight. Most importantly, I have been juicing a raw beet every day to lower my blood pressure. I drink from one-fourth cup to half a cup daily, depending on the size of the beet.

I now have my blood pressure down to what it was 15 years ago, though I have been off meds for more than a year. At first I was also taking hawthorn berry extract, but beets are cheaper!

A. Your experience dovetails beautifully with the results from a recent British study (Hypertension, February 2015). The scientists had 64 people with elevated blood pressure drink a glass of beet juice every morning for a month. Half the group got regular beet juice, rich in vegetable nitrate, while the other half got beet juice with the nitrate removed — a placebo. Blood pressure dropped in the folks getting the full-nitrate beet juice (8 points systolic). That’s even more than if they had been taking HCTZ (6.5 systolic). The investigators wrote: “We have demonstrated that the [beet juice] intervention is well tolerated, safe, and is associated with robust BP [blood pressure] reductions measured in and out of clinic.”

Q. You recently answered a question from a person who had dry nose at night and wondered whether to use Vaseline or saline spray.

About 34 years ago, I was having trouble breathing at night. I kept a glass of water by my bed that I would dip my finger into and moisten my nostril so that I could breathe.

One morning, I woke up and realized that I hadn’t woken to do that even once! I searched my mind through the previous day to see what was different. I realized I had washed our sheets and forgotten to bring dryer sheets with me to the laundromat.

That was the last time I used dryer sheets. I have not had a problem with dry nose since. I also started using fragrance-free laundry detergent, and my husband’s “athlete’s foot” and “jock itch” cleared up.

A. Thank you for the reminder that simple things sometimes have an unexpected impact. Fragrances and other chemicals in dryer sheets may trigger allergic symptoms, including nasal congestion.

Q. I am a 41-year-old woman who never experienced acne until the past few years. I tried several medications, soaps and creams, but I found nothing to be particularly effective.

Recently, a friend recommended sulfur soap. I find it on the Hispanic product aisle.

After using it for a few weeks, my face is starting to clear up. Is this product safe, and how could a bar of soap costing less than $3 be more effective than salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide?

A. Topical sulfur is an old-fashioned skin treatment that has antifungal and antibacterial activity (Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, July-August 2004).

It does appear to be safe, though a few people may have a mild skin reaction.

2015 King Features Syndicate, Inc.