Natural Ways to Thin the Blood
There are numerous conditions that are associated with “thick blood”, or hypercoagulability. Autoimmune disorders, infectious diseases like Lyme, toxic states like heavy metal or chemical toxicity, cardiovascular disease, MS, chronic fatigue, and Fibromyalgia are just a few of these disorders.

The most common symptoms of hypercoagulability are fatigue, mental fogginess, pain, stroke, and circulatory deficiency like poor leg or heart blood flow. In fact, there is some thought now that most chronic diseases may be at least in part caused by a hypercoagulable state.

At Caring Medical we often check a patient’s bleeding time which is a gross measure of the coagulatory state of the patient's blood. Thinner blood means a healthier you and can help to protect against heart disease and stroke. It is a very important step toward optimal health.

Many doctors prescribe pharmaceutical drugs to help patients thin their blood and prevent blood clots. Why would anyone want to take an  pharmaceutical drugs when he or she can get thinner blood the natural way? You can actually have a positive thinning on your blood just by fine tuning your diet and adding some supplements.

Here are some foods that can give the results you’re looking for:

Herbs: Curry powder, Cayenne pepper, Ginger, Paprika, Thyme, Cinnamon, Dill, Oregano, Turmeric, Licorice, Peppermint

Fats and Fish: Flax Seed Oil, Fish Oils, Walnut Oil, Olive oil

Cold Water Ocean Fish: Salmon, Bluefish, Arctic char, Mackerel, Swordfish. These rate the high in omega-3 fatty acids.

What Not to eat: Eating foods that can thicken the blood would only counter act what you’re trying to accomplish. This consists of packaged foods, fast food, and any food that contains hydrogenated fats or oils. As a general guideline avoid these foods:

1. Packaged products with a label that lists "partially hydrogenated oil.” This means read the labels of your crackers, breads, cookies, and other snack items.

2. Ice creams and frozen desserts

3. Mayonnaise

4. Deli foods

5. Margarine. Margarine is hydrogenated oil and also contains a number of chemical preservatives, dyes, and other artificial substances.

6. Vegetable oils such as corn oil, safflower oil, and "vegetable oil."

7. Fried foods. This includes those chicken strips, fried fish fillets, and French fries. It also includes fried vegetables like zucchini and cauliflower. Learn to enjoy foods fresh and raw, steamed, broiled, or baked.

8. FAST FOOD!
Implementing these rules into your diet can give you some of the tools you need to stay healthy and ward off certain disease states. We hope that this you decide to take charge of your diet and reach your health goals. Hopefully, keeping your blood thin is one of them! If you would like to talk with a natural medicine specialist about diet and nutritional supplement intervention, we’d love to see you!