Dear Doctor;I suffer from blood pressure and diabetes. I recently heard a testimony of a woman who got cured from these two diseases through drinking five litres of water and eating two oranges daily. She claims to be okay now. How feasible is this? Do you think I should give it a shot? Magdalene,38.Dear Magdalene,Using 5 litres of water and 2 oranges is certainly not a cure for hypertension or diabetes. The woman whom you mention may have had a very small increase or transient increase in blood pressure and glucose, which can become normal even without any intervention.

There are multiple reasons for hypertension and diabetes including genetic susceptibility, stress, obesity, alcohol and smoking. Cure involves control of risk factors and medicines depending on lifestyle and level of blood pressure and glucose. Some people can do without medicines, while some need multiple medicines in high doses, while in between, there remain some who only need low dose of drugs.