I got a shock the last time I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned. It’s part of their practice to take a quick blood pressure reading before they begin. I never gave it that much thought.

This time however, as the Dental Hygienist was writing down the results in my folder, she said, “Hmm, your blood pressure seems a little high.” I was reading 120/88 - the first stages of hypertension. Needless to say, it got my attention.

What is High Blood Pressure?

Your circulatory system is basically your body’s plumbing system and your heart is the pump that powers it. When your heart “beats,” the heart muscle contracts pushes blood through the arteries creating a set amount of pressure against the artery walls. The amount of pressure that the heart creates when it beats is called the Systolic pressure. When the heart relaxes in between beats, the pressure drops. This is called Diastolic pressure.

Your blood pressure is usually reported as the systolic pressure over the diastolic. Since the systolic pressure is created when the heart beats, it makes sense that the systolic pressure would be the higher of the two. However, both numbers are important.

Although your blood pressure changes throughout the day depending on factors such as your activity and stress level, to name a few, if it stays elevated, it’s called high blood pressure, or Hypertension.

For most adults, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have determined the following categories of blood pressure:

How Serious is High Blood Pressure?

It’s estimated that high blood pressure affects more than 65 million Americans, or about 1 out of every 3 adults. High blood pressure is an indication that your heart is working too hard. The high pressure also put a strain on the arteries and organs downstream. If uncontrolled, high blood pressure can eventually lead to heart and kidney disease, stroke, or blindness.

Who’s Most at Risk?

High blood pressure is most common in those over 55 years of age. It’s also common in African Americans, where it tends to develop at a younger age and affect a larger percentage of the population than Whites.

Non-medical Ways to Reduce It

High blood pressure can be managed to a large extent by the following means, listed in the order of biggest impact:

1. Weight management. Just losing 10 pounds can reduce your blood pressure by 4-6 points.
2. Exercise. Try to stay physically active during most of the week.
3. Watch your diet. Maintain a healthy, and low salt (sodium), diet. Check out the DASH diet from the US Department of Health and Human Services.
4. Drink in moderation. If you drink, don’t overdo it.

Note that if your blood pressure is already elevated, your doctor may prescribe medication to control it. It’s important to understand that any kind of medication is not a substitute for the above. Whether you take blood pressure medication or not, you should still watch your weight, exercise, eat right, and drink in moderation.

What I’m Doing

So here’s my problem. I’m not really overweight and I already exercise several times a week. I don’t smoke, and I don’t drink. So what’s left? Lose some weight and eat healthier. Although I’m not overweight, everyone nowadays can afford to lose 10 or more pounds. I don’t binge on junk food but again, everyone can make better food choices. So those are my two goals for the next 6 months.

I’ve also bought a new gadget called the “Resperate.” It’s a computer controlled gizmo that teaches you how to lower your breathing rate, and thereby lower your blood pressure. You put on a pair of headphones and listen to some special music, breathing in to the high notes and breathing out to the low notes, while the machine monitors your actual breathing rate. Once your breathing is in sync with the machine, it slows the music down trying to get your actual breathing rate to slow down as well.

It’s kind of neat how it works. I just got it so I can’t endorse it yet or say how effective it is. You can read more about it at their website at www.resperate.com.

To Get More Information

For more information on blood pressure, see the publication “Your Guide to Lowering Blood Pressure” from the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Hiram
The Balanced Health Guy

Technorati Tags: blood pressure, hypertension, heart, DASH, diet, health, resperate

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