If you have been diagnosed with high blood
pressure, you might be worried about taking medication to bring your numbers
down, but after reading this article, you'd be glad we shared it.
Lifestyle
plays an important role in treating your high blood pressure. If you
successfully control your blood pressure with a healthy lifestyle, you might
avoid, delay or reduce the need for medication.
Here
are lifestyle changes you can make to lower your blood pressure and keep it
down.
1. Watch your waistline
Blood
pressure often increases as weight increases. Being overweight also can cause
disrupted breathing while you sleep (sleep apnea), which further raises your
blood pressure.
Weight
loss is one of the most effective lifestyle changes for controlling blood
pressure. Losing just 10 pounds (4.5 kilogrammes) can help reduce your blood
pressure.
Besides
shedding pounds, you generally should also keep an eye on your waistline.
Carrying too much weight around your waist can put you at greater risk of high
blood pressure
Men
are at risk if their waist measurement is greater than 40 inches (102
centimetres while women are at risk if their waist measurement is greater than
35 inches (89 centimetres).
These
numbers vary among ethnic groups. Ask your doctor about a healthy waist
measurement for you.
2. Exercise regularly
Regular
physical activity — at least 30 minutes most days of the week — can lower your
blood pressure by four to nine millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). It’s important
to be consistent because if you stop exercising, your blood pressure can rise
again.
If
you have slightly high blood pressure (prehypertension), exercise can help you
avoid developing full-blown hypertension. If you already have hypertension,
regular physical activity can bring your blood pressure down to safer levels.
The
best types of exercise for lowering blood pressure include walking, jogging,
cycling, swimming or dancing.
Strength
training also can help reduce blood pressure. Talk to your doctor about
developing an exercise programme.
3. Eat a healthy diet
Eating
a diet that is rich in whole grains, fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy
products and skimps on saturated fat and cholesterol can lower your blood pressure
by up to 14 mm Hg.This eating plan is known as the Dietary Approaches to Stop
Hypertension diet.It isn’t easy to change your eating habits, but with these
tips, you can adopt a healthy diet:
4. Keep a food diary
Writing
down what you eat, even for just a week, can shed surprising light on your true
eating habits. Monitor what you eat, how much, when and why.
Consider
boosting potassium. Potassium can lessen the effects of sodium on blood
pressure. The best source of potassium is food, such as fruits and vegetables,
rather than supplements. Talk to your doctor about the potassium level that’s
best for you.
Be
a smart shopper. Read food labels when you shop and stick to your
healthy-eating plan when you’re dining out, too.
5. Reduce salt in your diet
Even
a small reduction in the sodium in your diet can reduce blood pressure by 2 to
8 mm Hg.
The
effect of sodium intake on blood pressure varies among groups of people. In
general, limit sodium to less than 2,300 milligrammes (mg) a day or less.
However,
a lower sodium intake — 1,500 mg a day or less — is appropriate for people with
greater salt sensitivity, including: African-Americans, anyone age 51 or older,
anyone diagnosed with high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease.
6. Limit alcohol intake
Alcohol
can be both good and bad for your health. In small amounts, it can potentially
lower your blood pressure by two to four mm Hg.
But
that protective effect is lost if you drink too much alcohol — generally more than
one drink a day for women and for men older than age 65, or more than two a day
for men age 65 and younger. One drink equals 12 ounces of beer, five ounces of
wine or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor.
Drinking
more than moderate amounts of alcohol can actually raise blood pressure by
several points. It can also reduce the effectiveness of blood pressure
medications.
–Mayoclinic
When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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