Q. In the last four months or so, my blood pressure began to climb higher and higher, despite my daily dose of the blood pressure medicine, lisinopril. In the last month, I began to feel short of breath and weak, my ankles swelled and I craved bananas.
My doctor started me on furosemide, Pravachol and atenolol, to no avail. My blood pressure yesterday afternoon while resting was 213/91, and today it was 193/93. I was afraid I would go into kidney failure or have a heart attack.
This afternoon your book (The People’s Pharmacy® Guide to Home and Herbal Remedies) arrived. The first thing I looked up was licorice.
I had been eating licorice twists every day for months. Your book alerted me to the cause of my symptoms. I’ve sworn off licorice and am hoping that my blood pressure will now come down.
A. Licorice may have contributed to your extremely high blood pressure. Now that you have stopped eating it, your blood pressure should begin to come down.
Candy seems like an innocent treat, but licorice, whether in candy, as tea or in capsules, can raise blood pressure and lower levels of potassium. (Maybe that’s why you were craving bananas.)
Side effects from a high dose or prolonged use (and months of candy counts) can be serious, resulting in fluid retention, weakness or heart rhythm irregularities in some cases.
Q. I used to have horrible cramps that would stiffen my calves and curl my toes. They were particularly bad after a day of heavy exercise or in the heat of summer.
Ever since I was finally diagnosed with celiac disease, I have had no cramps (not a single one). I am surprised you have not suggested this as a possible cure. A gluten-free diet changed my life in so many ways, including curing leg cramps.
A. Celiac disease occurs when susceptible people are exposed to gluten in foods like bread, cereal and pasta. The protein, found in wheat, rye and barley, triggers an immune reaction that destroys cells in the lining of the intestine. This interferes with normal absorption of nutrients.
People who don’t have enough minerals such as magnesium, potassium or calcium may be more vulnerable to leg cramps. This could explain why adopting a gluten-free diet solved your problem.
We have gathered many treatments to prevent or relieve leg cramps into our Guide to Leg Pain. Anyone who would like a copy, please send $2 in check or money order with a long (no. 10) stamped (60 cents), self-addressed envelope: Graedons’ The People’s Pharmacy®, No. RLS-5, P. O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027. The Guide can also be ordered from www.peoplespharmacy.com.
Q. Several years ago I developed severe dry eyes. About a year later, my husband developed the same condition. The only common denominator our doctors could find is that we were both taking Tylenol PM to sleep at night.
The ingredient that helps one sleep in that product is an antihistamine, which can be drying. Your readers should be told.
A. Diphenhydramine, the PM in Tylenol PM and many other nighttime pain relievers, can dry out mucous membranes. Sensitive individuals could notice a dry mouth. This is the first time we have heard that this antihistamine may also cause dry eyes.
