I was diagnosed with high blood pressure (hypertension) when I was in my early thirties. I was always overweight except for a brief time in my early adulthood when I was lifting weights and going to the gym every day like it was a religion. Then came cubicle work, marriage, and fatherhood. Lack of exercise, fat genes, and too much of the wrong kinds of foods spells disaster in this realm. Now, I do believe that certain blood pressures are predisposed in some people based on some as yet not understood or known about genetic factors. Why do I believe this? I believe it because I have known very heavy people with perfect blood pressure. I also know skinny people with high blood pressure. There is also the stress factor and how each individual handles it. There are also stimulative substances like caffeine.
Blood Pressure Measurement.
Blood pressure is the measurement of the pressure that your blood places on your arteries and other blood vessels. The top number, the Systolic pressure, is the measurement when your heart pumps the blood. That is why it is a higher number. The Diastolic pressure is the force in between heart beats, which is why it is (or should be) lower. It has been accepted for a long time that normal blood pressure is 120/80. Now some drug companies and others are trying to push that lower. This is controversial because more and more data shows that not everyone can or should have the same pressure. Some people are normal with 115/70, or 110/60, while others are 120/80, 125/85, 135/85, etc. As a matter of fact, 140/90, which has long been considered pre-hypertension is actually normal for many people and no reason to panic, only to monitor. Recent data has shown that the lower pressures that some are pushing for would actually be detrimental to some of our older people, resulting in confusion and light headedness.
So you see, there is a lot to these numbers and you should measure yours and try to track what is normal for you. You should monitor it because if it spikes often or goes too high you are damaging your blood vessels and organs like your heart and kidneys, among others. It can lead to strokes, blood clots, aneurysms, and even aortic dissection which killed actor John Ritter. I do not know if his came from untreated high blood pressure or some other cause, but anything that puts frequent high pressure on your blood vessels can result in ruptures and other catastrophic events.
I can say that many times I get perfectly normal readings. I have had readings of all of the already mentioned pressures, but at the same time I have had dangerous spikes like 160/100, and as high as 200/120 during panic attacks and other stressful times. I am on 3 powerful medicines and the doctors have not been able to narrow down my "all over the map" blood pressure. Maybe it's normal for me, but I am on the medicines just in case. My current doctor is the head of cardiology at his hospital and he even told me that it's not my weight, although of course losing it couldn't hurt. He said it's just too sporadic and leans on the side of stress coupled with something unknown. A few years ago I had a stress test and an echo cardiogram and those came out okay, as well as frequent EKG's. Get these tests if you can. If any ting they can spot clogging of your arteries early on so it doesn't end up in a heart attack or stroke.
There are several blood pressure measuring devices. There are the cuffs at some drug store and supermarket chains. They say that the doctor's office arm cuff measuring devices are the best. I never liked them. They seem to squeeze way too tightly. A word here about cuff tightness. If you are a large person like me, you might need a larger cuff. Don't be afraid to ask for one. A cuff that is too small will result in false high readings. they also sell at home electronic models with an arm cuff, but these are too small for my arm. I am muscular and overweight so my arm is just too big for them.
I use an Omron wrist model. It is pretty accurate with doctor's office models (I have tested this on numerous occasions) and they are compact and easy to use. They pump up, count it out, and spit out your pressure in a few seconds. While you do not want to take your pressure all the time, for brief "measuring windows" it can provide you with a larger picture of your pressure. Many people get nervous when in the doctor's office and get higher than normal readings. This is very common and is labeled as "white coat hypertension". The white coat is the doctor or medical staff's white coat. I know that my readings are usually high at the doctor and lower at home. I have had readings as high as 160/90 at a doctor's office only to have a perfect 120/80 an hour later at home. I have also have scary high readings at home which is why I ended up on medication.
Medication
There are several classes of medications for hypertension. There are beta blockers which cause the heart to slow the force of it's beats, thus lowering pressure. There are alpha blockers which relax the muscles inside blood vessels to keep more blood flowing and the pressure is lower when more blood can flow through the body unhindered by tight vessel walls. There are angiotensin II receptor antagonists, which block a certain hormone that the kidneys produce which causes blood vessels to contract and raise the pressure of the blood. Block this out and the pressure goes down. Diuretics are commonly used. The theory here is that when you cause more water to be excreted in urine, blood volume decreases thus lowering pressure. There are also calcium channel blockers, which also cause blood vessel wall (muscle) relaxation. So, this is what they do. They all use different mechanisms to try to lower the blood pressure. Some work amazingly well. Some work well for some and not in others. They start you out on one or more and see how they work. they might work at first and then your body gets used to them. Then the dose goes up or they switch one or more of the drugs to see the effect. I can say that I had little effect from these drugs until recently when I was prescribed a an alpha blocker. I still don't know why I am taking the other two drugs, I guess for some cumulative effect, but this one worked for me. It's no panacea, as I still get spikes due to stress and such, but I am much better off than I was before. Also, I am fortunate that all three of mine come in generic versions, which is much cheaper. There are other types of medications that I left out. You can look up blood pressure or hypertension medications in an online search or in Wikipedia.
A quick note. Blood pressure medications are usually introduced in a gradually increasing dose up to the main dose. Also, you CANNOT just go off them. They have to be weened off SLOWLY under your doctor's supervision. Quickly discontinuing hypertension medication can be FATAL.
Nutritional Supplements and Food
There are several things that are out there which they claim can help with hypertension. I have tried them all with some effect, but nothing compared to modern pharmaceuticals. There are various herbal concoctions that are said to mimic what many of the aforementioned drugs do, but I have found this to be mostly hype. Also, if you can get a generic drug, it's probably cheaper to get the drug than the expensive supplement, as long as you go to the doctor and get a new prescription every so often. DO NOT attempt to buy prescription drugs over the Internet. You might be getting the wrong dose or the wrong medication, or both. They might not be manufactured to the same specifications, or they might come from China and have plastics and other industrial waste in them. Don't take such a chance with your body.
There are several natural things that I say can't hurt and might show some promise. Even if they do not work as a blood pressure lowerer, they can have pleasant side benefits associated with keeping your circulatory system working as best as it can. There are vitamins like natural Vitamin E. It is a great antioxidant and is great for keeping the fish oils fresh in your system. Vitamin E has to be natural (d-alpha tocopherol vs the man made dL-alpha) to have the most benefit. That is why natural is expensive. If you get it, get one with d-alpha as well as mixed tocopherols like d-gamma, etc.... It has been shown that it works better in this mixed form. Now, I buy fish oil capsules that are molecularly distilled to remove mercury and other impurities and they are also laced with d-alpha Vitamin E, so I personally do not take extra E. That is up to you. I take fish oil because I feel that it offers protection against dangerous clots without the side effects of aspirin. Also, once you are on daily aspirin therapy you are on it for good. It has been shown that discontinuation of aspirin therapy can be fatal. The blood clots can come back with a vengeance. Fish oil also has a myriad of other benefits mainly due to the EPA and DHA fatty acids, which are Omega 3 fatty acids. We need these to offset the overabundance of Omega 6 fatty acids in your grain rich (right down to the animal feed) food supply. This is why grass fed beef/lamb/dairy/etc is nutritionally superior to the grain fed majority. You may like your corn fed steak, but the corn fed is what makes the fat saturated and unhealthy to consume. Grass fed beef fat is okay, in moderation. This is why wild caught salmon and other fish are good to eat. Farm raised fish suffer the same problem as most farmed terrestrial animals. They are fed Omega 6 rich feed and that ends up in the meat. This is why I will not eat farm raised Tilapia. It is loaded with Omega 6 fats which while essential, are overrepresented in our food supply and implicated in diseases of inflammation, like arthritis, artery disease, and other nasty conditions.
Potassium and magnesium can help, as long as you do not have kidney disease. people with kidney disease can build up dangerous potassium levels so they have to watch their intake. Many of us are deficient in these important minerals which regulate..... blood pressure. You need them both. As a matter of fact I have had several blood tests that claim that I am low in potassium, despite eating a diet high in vegetables and fruits. The doctors so far just tell me to eat bananas, but I already do, as well as avocados and other potassium rich foods. I have resorted on occasion to taking supplemental magnesium to get enough of that. Do not take supplemental potassium. It can cause stomach problems. By the way, taking these minerals in diet form, or in the case of magnesium in a pill with food, also helps to alleviate painful muscle cramping.
Salt has been shown to aggravate hypertension in some people, and many people have had success with the DASH Diet. I have to say that I just do not agree with the high grain part of that diet for reasons of Omega 6 pro inflammatory response. Use your judgment after your research. The bottom line is that you can lower your salt intake and see if that helps. Start reading the sodium content of your foods and you will be surprised at how much salt is in many things, especially fast and convenience foods. I was lucky enough to find organic hot dogs without nitrites or preservatives, made wholly from the beef of grass fed cows, and with only about 330mg of sodium vs the 600-700 in most brands. They were right there in my regular supermarket too. If your supermarket carries junk, find a local health food market and you'll likely find something similar there.
Other Conditions
Do you snore? Why would I ask that? Snoring is usually a sign of sleep apnea, or better known as obstructive sleep apnea. This is when your throat closes when you sleep and you can't get air. It takes effort to get air through that collapsed throat, which puts all kinds of pressure on your body, including high blood pressure. Get a sleep study done and if you have it get a CPAP machine to treat it. It's awkward at first, but you will sleep soundly and eliminate at least one contributing factor to heart attack and stroke, and you might cure your hypertension as well. It didn't cure mine, but I can now drive to work without falling asleep at the wheel, and I don't have to worry (as much) about dying in my sleep from "the big one". Get tested. Get treated. For some people a tonsillectomy and getting the adenoids removed can fix this, along with fixing a deviated septum. They wanted to do that to me and so far I have not gone for it. I know someone who did and he as able to ditch his CPAP machine as it cured his snoring. It is tempting though since the machine is like a ball and chain.
This was a really simple article meant to get the most information out in a distilled fashion. There are many related nuances that I just couldn't get into, but you should have gotten out of it:
1 - Measure your blood pressure
2- Get medicated if it's consistently over 140/90, or even over 135/85.
3- Lower your salt and see if that helps
4- Consider eating more foods rich in Potassium or Magnesium
5- Losing weight and exercise can't hurt
6- Eat more Omega 3 rich foods and lay off the empty starches and grains, flour products, and grain fed meats or farm raised fish.
I hope that my many years of research into this condition as well as my having to live with and through it can be of some benefit to you. I still have hypertension, and I have to follow my own advise of exercising more, because I am only human. I do have this knowledge though and I wanted to share it.
Reference to the source blood pressure check
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