Smoking And High Blood Pressure

Posted on June 19, 2013 by docmac

When discussing taming the silent killer it is important to understand the role smoking has in raising your blood pressure.

The simple explanation is that nicotine acts as a vasoconstrictor and stimulant. Vasoconstriction results in narrowing of the arteries, which causes a rise in your blood pressure. Nicotine also increases your heart rate which can increase your blood pressure as well.

Family history, obesity, sedentarylifestyle, alcohol, poor nutrition all play a role in high blood pressure; however, smoking cessation is one thing you can do right now and quickly start seeing the benefits on blood pressure reduction.

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Smoking also has more long term affects on blood pressure by contributing to hardening of the arteries. Over time plaque develops in the walls of your arteries making the blood vessel stiffer. This decrease in flexibility of the artery wall causes the blood pressure to rise.

The  long term effects of smoking and nicotine can lead to increased risk of strokes, heart attacks, kidney problems, peripheral vascular disease, loss of vision and even death.

This does not even take into account the risk of developing lung cancer and chronic lung disease from years of smoking.

It is estimated that  if you quit smoking your risk of heart attack will decrease after one year of not smoking. This means that smoking is such a potent health hazard that it takes one year for the chemical substances to clear your body to decrease your risk of heart attack.

Smoking  adds carbon monoxide to your blood and carbon monoxide competes with your hemoglobin in binding to oxygen. This causes the heart to work harder to supply oxygenated blood throughout the body.

Smoking also increases your blood cholesterol and fibrinogen. Fibrinogen is a factor that affects clotting of the blood. The affect on both of these factors means that a smoker’s blood will clot more easily and increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. This increases the risk of coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, stroke and heart attack.

The cilia, or small hairs that keep the lungs clean, are unable to sweep away the harmful chemicals that assault the lungs each day with smoking. Eventually this damage can contribute to the development of cancer and chronic lung disease. This damage affects the ability of the lungs to oxygenate blood resulting in the development of pulmonary hypertension.

The ability to tame the silent killer is adversely affected by smoking. These affects are short term and long term.

If you are a smoker and dealing with high blood pressure, smoking cessation may be the best intervention you can do to achieve blood pressure control and more optimal health.

 

 

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Natural Blood Pressure Reduction

Posted on June 19, 2013 by docmac

Natural blood pressure reduction can frequently be achieved if the individual is motivated to make the appropriate lifestyle changes.

Your blood pressure is an important number for you to monitor throughout your life.  High blood pressure is called the ‘silent killer’ because there are usually no reliable symptoms that your blood pressure is elevated. If your blood pressure is not dealt with appropriately there is an increases in risk of kidney failure, heart failure, heart attacks, strokes and death.

Everyone should understand what high blood pressure is before electing to make attempts at lowering it naturally. If you are concerned about your blood pressure the first step should involve discussing it with your doctor, so that the two of you can approach it as a team.

Your doctor will help you decide if managing your blood pressure naturally is the best way or if you need medical treatment. If your blood pressure is too high, it may be unsafe to begin an exercise program until your blood pressure has come down to a safer range.

Blood pressure is a numerical value obtained using a mercury or digital blood pressure monitoring device. The device used to check your blood pressure is called a sphymomanometer.

Risk factors for high blood pressure include:

Obesity

Sedentary lifestyle

Nicotine usage

Alcohol intake

Poor diet with high salt intake

Stress

Family History

Naturally lowering blood pressure should address activities that focus on making lifestyle changes that improve the above risk factors.

The natural ways to reduce your blood pressure should include reducing your weight, start exercising or  increase the amount of exercise, stop smoking, alcohol cessation and improve your diet by cutting down on salt and  including fruits and vegetables with each  meal.

Learning to meditate will help reduce stress and lower your blood pressure. Yoga will strengthen, tone and make your body more flexible potentially benefiting your blood pressure.

Decreasing your intake of salt will help your blood pressure by decreasing your retention of water.  Your blood pressure will increase when your heart has to do more work to pump excess fluid throughout your body. So stop adding salt to your meals or use a salt substitute.

Also, from a dietary standpoint decreasing the fats in your diet and increasing fiber will help you lose weight and lower your risk of developing colon cancer.

Eating more fiber will also  improve your overall health by decreasing your cholesterol and triglycerides which helps to improve your lipid profile. An optimal lipid profile will lower your risk of developing hardening of the arteries of the heart and other arteries throughout your body.  Your lipid profile includes your good (HDL cholesterol) and bad cholesterol (LDL). Research has shown some regression of plague formation in arteries when the LDL cholesterol is reduced below 70 . Depending upon your genetics, habits, and lifestyle getting your LDL cholesterol below 70 may be achieved naturally or require supplemental medication to lower it.

Magnesium is a great supplement that will help to decrease your blood pressure. It can be taken as an oral supplement or eaten in green leafy vegetables, whole grains and legumes such as peanuts and beans.

Vitamin C and Vitamin E supplements have been shown to have a beneficial effect on blood pressure.

Omega– 3 Fatty Acids  are helpful in maintaining a healthy heart. The best source for o-mega fatty acids is salmon and flax seed.

Hormonal supplements such as birth control pills can raise your blood pressure by causing the body to retain fluid.

The stimulant properties of caffeine, coffee, tea, and decongestants in cold medications cause the blood vessels to constrict which raises blood pressure in some people.

The anti-inflammatory medications can have an effect on the kidneys and cause fluid retention leading to elevations in blood pressure. Taken without proper monitoring and guidance can also lead to kidney injury and gastrointestinal bleeding.

Zinc supplements, ginger and carrot juice may be beneficial in lowering blood pressure.

Kelp supplements and aroma therapy may help in lowering blood pressure. Kelp is a supplement that works internally while aromatherapy will help in lower your stress level which helps decrease your blood pressure.

Making the appropriate lifestyle changes is the first step to naturally lowering your blood pressure; however, you should work closely with your doctor in lowering your blood pressure  to achieve optimal health.

 

 

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The Correct Way To Check Blood Pressure

Posted on June 18, 2013 by docmac

When dealing with high blood pressure it is important to know the correct way to check blood pressure.

how to check blood pressure

how to check blood pressure

 

Different people find it necessary to learn the correct way to take a bp or blood pressure.  Nurses are taught the correct method in school, as are doctors and patient technicians.  But sometimes the general public needs to learn the correct way to take a bp so they can monitor their own blood pressure at home.

To understand the mechanics behind the correct way to take a bp you must first understand what blood pressure is and why it’s measured.  Blood pressure is the force or pressure that your heart exerts to push your blood through the arteries.  There are two parts – the top number or the systolic and the bottom number or the diastolic measurement.

The top number represents how much pressure is needed to squeeze out the blood from the heart and the diastolic number is the pressure that comes from the heart between beats.

The American Heart Association defines high blood pressure as a systolic number over 140 and diastolic over 90.  Normal pressure is lower than 135/85.  Your doctor may ask you to monitor your blood pressure for several reasons.  You may be changing your medication, have a low blood pressure or you may have borderline blood pressure.

Your healthcare provider will teach you or someone close to you how to check your blood pressure.  They will tell you what time of the day to take your blood pressure – and if they don’t then take it at the same time each day.  They will also tell you how many times a day to take it.  If your doctor doesn’t give you a chart to use then write down your readings after each time you take it recording the date, time and blood pressure.

There are several different pieces of equipment that can be used to take an accurate blood pressure.  The monitor you use should be recommended by your physician and you shouldn’t alternate between machines.  The correct way to take a bp is to use only one machine and if it breaks then replace it with another using the same machine with each blood pressure reading.

Use a cuff that is the correct size.  The correct way to take a bp means using the correct size cuff.  If you use a cuff that is too large or too small then the blood pressure readings will be inaccurate and your doctor may make decisions based on incorrect information.

There are digital monitors that make it easy to correctly take your blood pressure.  It is important to read the directions on the machine you use since each one has slightly different instructions that can change the reading you get.

A digital device will have an automatic pump that inflates the cuff and the readings will be displayed on the monitor.  When you take your blood pressure your arm should be level with your heart.  If it is an arm cuff place it 1 inch above the elbow.  Wrap it snugly around the arm. 

To take a correct way to take a bp you shouldn’t use an injured arm or one that has a shunt or IV.  If you’ve had a mastectomy use the opposite arm.  Don’t take the reading directly after exercise. 

If you have questions you should call your doctor or if you are nauseated, dizzy, your readings are higher or lower than normal or if you are having chest pain, problems breathing, or trouble thinking clearly.


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Alcohol and Blood Pressure

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

Alcohol and Blood Pressure

If you’re worried about your health, it’s important to understand the relationship between alcohol and blood pressure.  While alcohol doesn’t always cause high blood pressure, excessive drinking can play a role in it.

Some studies have shown that drinking one or two glasses of alcoholic beverages can improve heart health.  But if you don’t drink, no healthcare provider would recommend that you start just to control blood pressure.

Drinking more than two drinks in a single day has been shown to be detrimental to health in many ways – but it can definitely cause your blood pressure to rise.  If you have high blood pressure, this is the time to cut back on alcohol.

Beyond blood pressure, too much alcohol use can cause liver damage and other health complications that have negative consequences.  It’s always best to use alcohol in moderation, which means limiting yourself to two drinks in a single day if you’re a man.

For women, the limit is even greater.  It’s not recommended that women drink more than one drink in a single day to have good health.  For many people, it’s not difficult to limit alcohol consumption.

However, you may find that as you examine your lifestyle and start to cut back it’s harder than you thought it would be.  If you find yourself struggling to stop drinking, it could indicate that alcohol and blood pressure might not be your greatest problem.

Alcohol addiction is a common problem that many people face.  You may need to seek professional help in order to eliminate alcoholism from your life.  Talk with your doctor about options that are covered by health insurance.

You also can take advantage of free resource such as Alcoholics Anonymous that can help you to learn to eliminate alcohol and improve many aspects of your life.  If you feel like alcohol is more than just an occasional indulgence, it’s important to examine its role in your life.

It’s important to be honest with your healthcare provider about issues with alcohol.  Alcohol can interfere with medications that you might take and can cause you to have greater side effects.  Your doctor needs to know the truth of your alcohol consumption in order to treat you properly.

If you have a concern about your high blood pressure and lifestyle, it’s important to talk with your doctor.  Together with your health provider, you can determine if your consumption of alcohol and blood pressure problems are related to each other.

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Diet Tips To Help Lower Blood Pressure

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

Blood Pressure Diet Tips

If you have high blood pressure, diet tips can help you to get control of it without having to take blood pressure medication.  While it doesn’t work for everyone, many people will find that changing their diet can improve their health.

Tip 1:  Lower sodium in your diet.  Sodium can cause your body to hold onto more fluid and cause your blood pressure to rise.  When you lower sodium in your diet you can lower your blood pressure as well.

Sodium is present in many foods you might not expect.  You need to pay attention to the labels on foods so that you can keep track.  Eat lower sodium is more than not adding salt to your plate, so be aware of hidden sodium in foods.

Tip 2:  Eat fresh foods.  Fresh foods are less likely to have sodium in them.  When you get food from cans and from boxes or even frozen meals, you’re more likely to find a lot of salt.  That’s because salt is a natural preservative that’s used.

For foods such as canned beans and vegetables, you can lower the sodium content by rinsing draining them and rinsing them with water before use.  This washes off the salty liquid that can have a high sodium content.

Tip 3:  Add plenty of antioxidants.  Antioxidants found in food can help improve your heart health and even lower high blood pressure.  Antioxidants can be found in foods such as blueberries and raspberries.

It’s also found in dark chocolate.  Eating a small piece of dark chocolate every day can actually lower your risk of heart disease and even some cancers. Plus it’s a tasty treat you can look forward to every day.

Tip 4:  Increase the potassium in your diet.  Potassium is known to help you lower high blood pressure.  Many foods naturally contain it such as potatoes (especially in the skins), cantaloupe, and bananas.

Kidney beans and carrots are also an important source of potassium.  By adding these foods to your diet you can lower your blood pressure and lower your overall risk for heart attack and stroke. 

Tip 5:  Eat less saturated fat and more healthy fats.  High blood pressure can become even more dangerous when combined with high cholesterol.  Avoiding saturated fat that can clog arteries will help to decrease the negative effects of high blood pressure.

Healthy fats, those that come from plants, can actually help you to lower cholesterol and have a healthier heart.  Fish oil supplements can help you to improve heart health as well.  These important blood pressure diet tips can help you to control your blood pressure and improve your health.

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Blood Pressure Foods

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

Blood Pressure Foods

When you have high blood pressure, foods can either help or harm you.  Let’s take a look at a few rules of thumb when it comes to foods and controlling your high blood pressure – these tips could lead to saving your life.

Some foods are important to add to your diet when you have high blood pressure.  Foods high in potassium have been shown to help reduce blood pressure.  This includes foods such as kidney beans, cantaloupe, dried fruits, bananas, potatoes, and carrots.

Foods that contain anthocyanins actually help to decrease blood pressure.  These chemicals help blood vessels to stay dilated.  When you eat berries, such as blueberries and raspberries, you’ll get some of this important chemical naturally.

Whole grain foods have also been shown to help lower blood pressure.  For example oatmeal and whole wheat products can help you to improve your heart health.  These also help lower your cholesterol.

If you’re not eating very many beets, you may want to add these nutritious vegetables to your diet to lower your blood pressure.  Beet juice is full of nitrates that are very beneficial for your heart health and blood pressure. 

In fact, some studies have shown that drinking a glass of beet juice each day was as effective as some prescription medications in controlling high blood pressure.  Make sure to talk to your doctor about adding this to your routine.

You should also make sure you get plenty of low fat dairy products such as skim milk, low fat yogurt, and cottage cheese.  People who eat a diet rich in these items are less likely to have problems with blood pressure.

When you have high blood pressure, foods can also cause you harm. 

In particular, foods high in sodium can raise your blood pressure.  Make sure to check the sodium content of the foods you eat.  Foods that are highly processed or canned often have more sodium than other options.

You should also avoid foods that are high in saturated fat and cholesterol.  High blood pressure plus high cholesterol are a deadly combination.  Cholesterol can collect in hardened arteries and increase your risk of heart attack and stroke.

In general, any healthy diet includes plenty of lean meats, low-fat dairy products, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes. 

Eating as few processed foods as possible is also a great step toward good health.

When you’re watching your blood pressure, it’s important to make sure your diet is working for you instead of against you.  With high blood pressure foods can really make the difference between good and poor health.

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High Blood Pressure In Children

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

Blood Pressure in Children

It’s unusual for blood pressure in children to be abnormal.  However, there may be cases where this occurs.  First, let’s look at normal blood pressure in children and how it can change over time.

Because children have lower blood pressure in general, high blood pressure in kids is diagnosed when their blood pressure is higher than 95% of the children their age in the general population.  Your pediatrician will have a chart that measures appropriate blood pressure for your child’s age.

If a child has high blood pressure, or hypertension, it’s usually the result of a medical problem, not one of lifestyle.  However, as children are suffering more from obesity high blood pressure and diabetes are both being seen in younger and younger people.

Kids who eat unhealthy diets and don’t get enough exercise can suffer from hypertension.  Having this problem so early in life set kids up to have many health problems later in life related to heart disease.  This can lead to high blood pressure in children and adults.

To give your child the best start in life it’s important to build healthy habits at a young age.  For example, it’s important to help set up a lifestyle that leads to wellness.  There are many things you can do to support your child having healthy blood pressure now and in the future.

For example, make sure your child eats a lot of healthy fruits and vegetables and stays away from high sugar, high fat foods.  Too much salt in the diet can also put you at risk for heart disease, so help your child to appreciate a wider variety of spices and not depend on sodium.

It’s also important to begin helping your young one develop an active lifestyle.  This doesn’t mean your child needs to be a gym rat.  Instead, as a family you can participate in staying active.  For example, encourage your child to play outside and ride his or her bike.

Take trips to the park and play family games of basketball, flag football, volleyball, or mini golf.  Even helping with chores such as yard work can help your whole family stay active.  It’s also important to limit TV and computer games that lead to a sedentary lifestyle.

You can have a major role in your child’s health by beginning healthy habits now.  Your little one will be more likely to be a healthy adult.  And if your goal is to avoid the high blood pressure in children that sometimes comes from a poor lifestyle, you’ll also meet it.

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Can You Lower Blood Pressure With Herbs

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

Blood Pressure Herbs

When it comes to keeping a healthy blood pressure, herbs can be your best friends. 

There are several herbal remedies that can help you to keep it under control.  And most of them can be found in your kitchen right now.

Garlic is one herb that’s known for helping to lower blood pressure and also cholesterol.  You can add it to your diet by eating a clove of garlic each day.  If that’s not something you want to do, you can also purchase it in capsule form.

There are even garlic capsules designed not to have an odor so you won’t have to walk around with garlic breath all day.  You’ll want to talk to your doctor about taking a garlic supplement before you begin it because it can interfere with some medications.

Cardamom, a popular Indian spice, is also helpful for keeping blood pressure down.  In a small clinical study, researchers found that this spice can help reduce blood pressure and the risk of blood clots without harmful side effects. 

It has to be taken daily for this effect and you’ll need at least three grams daily to get the effect.  If you don’t want to eat food seasoned with it daily, you can always take a supplement of capsules.

Onions are antioxidants that are full of good health benefits.  They’re pretty commonly eaten and inexpensive as well.  In clinical studies, people who ate onion every day had lower blood pressure than those who didn’t.  Look for ways to add this to your diet.

Olives and olive oil are also heart healthy.  People who eat some olive oil every day will often have lower blood pressure.  It may not be lowered enough to completely take away your need for medication, but it may reduce your dependence on it.

If you love food from the Mediterranean, you’re familiar with the delicious flavor of oregano.  But oregano is also a heart healthy herb that can be added to your diet to help improve your blood pressure and your heart’s performance.

And one of the most tasty spices, cinnamon, is also known for its heart healthy properties.  Cinnamon is known for preventing diabetes as well by helping your blood sugar to be lower.  Insulin and blood pressure are linked, so this also improves your heart health. 

A teaspoon of cinnamon each day can do wonders for your health.  You can also take cinnamon supplements that are basically ground cinnamon in a capsule. 

Start adding these herbs to your diet if you want to improve your blood pressure, heart health and lower your risk of stroke.

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Blood Pressure And Caffeine

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

The effects of caffeine on blood pressure.

The relationship between caffeine and blood pressure can be deadly.  If you have high blood pressure, caffeine may be causing it to go up even more.  It could also take it high enough to cause your hypertension.

Some people are very sensitive to caffeine while others don’t have much of a problem with it.  But if you do have sensitivity to caffeine, it’s important to pay attention to what you drink so that you don’t get too much.

Caffeine can be found in sodas, coffee, tea, chocolate, and energy drinks.  In particular, energy drinks tend to contain large amounts of caffeine.  Some medications also have caffeine in them such as headache medications.

If you have high blood pressure, it’s always a good idea to limit caffeine to 200mg a day.  That means you can drink about two cups of coffee.  But more than that can cause your blood pressure levels to go up even more.

Check the labels on your drinks and medications to determine how much caffeine they contain and then work to stay to the 200 mg limit.  You may even choose to eliminate caffeine if you find that you’re very sensitive to it.

Taking your blood pressure before drinking caffeine and then taking it again half an hour after you drink it.  If you see that your blood pressure has gone up, it may be time to say goodbye to it in order to keep your blood pressure healthy.

Some great alternatives to caffeinated beverages are caffeine free soda, decaffeinated coffee, sparkling juices, and water.  It can be hard to imagine your life without waking up to a coffee or soda, but if you taper off a little at a time you’ll find that you don’t need it.

There are other benefits to lowering your caffeine consumption.  You’ll find that you also sleep better and get more rest.  That makes it much easier to stop relying on morning caffeine to get you going.

Caffeine can also cause you to feel nervous and have anxiety.  It can also irritate your stomach as well and lead to problems with heartburn.  It also causes your heart rate to go up and can cause breathing problems if you have too much of it.

As you stop using caffeine, you may get headaches from the withdrawal.  This can be a frustrating part of eliminating caffeine.  However this lasts for just a few days and is not as bad as the effect of caffeine and blood pressure levels.

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High Blood Pressure Diets

Posted on November 1, 2012 by docmac

High Blood Pressure Diets

Can a diet for high blood pressure help you to lower it?  It absolutely can.  While there are some people who have high blood pressure that doesn’t respond to dietary changes, many people will experience improvements.

So, how can you improve your diet without giving up everything you love?  It’s important to make sure you keep eating foods you like or you won’t be able to keep up with it.  But you can have many of your favorite foods and still keep your blood pressure healthy.

First, look for low sodium options.  You can find many foods in your local supermarket that have low sodium versions such as crackers, soups, and frozen meals.  You’ll be able to enjoy man favorites this way.

You also need to make sure you eat in such a way that you’ll keep your weight as close to your ideal weight as possible.  That means watching your calories, intake of fat, and making sure that you don’t overdo it when it comes to sweets and high fat foods.

You should also add foods to your diet that can help your blood pressure to get lower. 

There are several foods that you can eat that will actually give you a benefit.  For example, berries such as blueberries and raspberries can help to lower blood pressure because they contain healthy antioxidants.

You can also eat foods high in potassium like potatoes, carrots, kidney beans, and bananas.  These are shown through research to help lower blood pressure and keep your heart healthier. 

Dark chocolate is also a tasty way to lower blood pressure and should be a part of a diet for high blood pressure.

Dark chocolate contains antioxidants that can help your health in many ways.  Eating just a small piece each day can help you obtain the health benefits.  The higher the concentration of cocoa in the chocolate, the better it will be for your health.

It’s also important to watch your saturated fat and cholesterol when you have high blood pressure because they go hand in hand with heart disease.  Eating fewer foods that are high in animal fats and more vegetable fats will contribute to better levels.

Diabetes and high blood pressure also go hand in hand, so you’ll also need to keep a close eye on your blood sugar.  You may also need to follow a plan for people who have diabetes when you have high blood pressure.

Designing your diet plan for high blood pressure should include low salt options and heart healthy foods.

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