Blood Pressure

Blood pressure refers to the pressure from circulating blood being exerted on the walls of blood vessels.  Blood pressure is measured and recorded as two numbers (120/80).  The top number is called systolic blood pressure.  This is measured as your heart is contracting and pushing blood through your arteries. The pressure during this phase is great which is why the number is higher.  The bottom number represents your diastolic blood pressure.  This is when your heart is relaxing and filling back up with blood.

Blood pressure can have negative health effects if it’s too high.  Ideally, blood pressure should be right around 120/80, or slightly lower.  A blood pressure that reads 140/90 on two separate occasions is classified as hypertension (high blood pressure).  Having high blood pressure has dangerous health consequences and can lead to coronary artery disease, heart failure, or stroke. There are not really symptoms of high blood pressure which is why it’s important to have it checked on a regular basis.  It could be causing damage to the heart and blood vessels without your knowledge.

There fortunately are ways to reduce your blood pressure by adopting a healthy lifestyle.  First of all, eating a nutritious diet will not only reduce your risk of developing hypertension, but decrease it if you already have hypertension. Decreasing your sodium intake has also been proven to help lower blood pressure. Your body only requires about one teaspoon of salt per day but most people eat significantly more than that. Lowering sodium intake can help decrease hypertension as well as make blood pressure medications work more effectively.

Being physically active is probably the easiest thing you can do to help lower high blood pressure. Those who are physically active tend to have lower and healthier blood pressures than their sedentary counterparts. Another important one is to quit smoking if you’re a smoker.  While smoking does not directly cause hypertension, it does speed up the process of hardening in the arteries and causes damage to the walls of the blood vessels, all of which increase the risk for hypertension.

Remember to check your blood pressure regularly, more frequently if you already have hypertension. Making small changes in your lifestyle can make a big difference in your overall health.