High blood pressure?
Question:
What things do you have to deal with when you have it, whats it do?
Give me any info that comes to mind.
Answers:
High blood pressure (hypertension) is known as the silent killer. Sure, you may experience head aches or increased grumpiness, but for the most part, the damage is quite insidious. It can lead to heart failure, stroke, kidney failure and a host of other problems.
Sometimes, doctors can be infuriatingly vague about hypertension. They tell you that you might have it, but they don't lay out a treatment plan!
I'll give you a few recommendations for lifestyle changes and further reading. Please feel free to contact me for more information.
1. First and foremost, you are going to have a much better chance of understanding what helps reduce your BP (and what elevates it) if you monitor it regularly, yourself. A good digital BP cuff can be had for about $50 at your local drug store (ask your pharmacist for a recommendation). Try to take your BP first thing in the morning. Sit in a chair, resting for a few minutes with your feet flat on the floor before taking it. Take a few readings and average them to minimize the measurement noise. If you track your BP over the course of a few weeks, you will get an idea of the trends associated with certain other lifestyle changes.
2. If you have one of the big bad habits, cut it out. Don't smoke. Don't drink excessively. Lose weight, if necessary, to get your BMI under 25. Note also: caffeine intake can cause your BP to jump up in the short term, as well. So don't take your BP right after your morning cup of coffee!
3. Dietarily speaking: cut out extra sodium first. It isn't that tough to keep sodium intake under 1500mg/day. Just read food labels and don't add salt to your food. Restaurants can be a bit of a challenge, but you'll find that your taste buds adjust and certain foods just taste salty after you cut out the extra salt.
4. Next step: try increasing potassium intake, generally with fresh fruit such as bananas and oranges.
5. If you snore, be aware that sleep apnea can cause hypertension. Ask for a sleep study, if you suspect you have a problem here.
6. Join an on-line group to compare notes with those who are in the same boat with you.
Headaches are a major thing with high blood pressure. Avoid foods high in sodium any thing with preservatives (lunch meat canned good fast food and pork) drink plenty of water and dont think about it stress and pain will make you b/p increase.
Listen to what he says.. High blood pressure could & can lead to strokes.... Change your eating habbits, exercise.
MOST IMPORTANT: LISTEN TO YOUR DOCTOR
Watch your sodium intake. Read labels of all medicines overthecounter. Take medication religiously and usually at the same time each day. When first starting the medication it may make you sleepy or "lopsided". These are normal side effects but if they continue for over a week...contact your Dr. He/She may have to change the brand or the dosage. Exercise is important...like walking, swimming, etc. When I began medication, over 5 years ago, it effected my appetite.
Hope this tidbit of information helps.
Lots of times we go to the doctor and are so uptight that when our bloodpressure is taken it's higher than normal. Still it's so vital to have normal blood pressure for the long haul. Start by eating healthy and exersizing. Without the exersize, the good for you food won't get absorbed right and all. Also drink enough water for everything to be balanced.
hey there, i have been taking meds for high bp for about a year now, and i'm just in my 30's. you should keep a log of your bp everyday and how you feel - i usually had hot flashes in the evenings. check out the DASH diet. it's really very good for everyone to follow. as much as it might hurt, lay off the salt too. and most importantly, try to exercise - do anything for about 20 minutes a day.
i also got a pet - a cat, it's a good thing for both of us.
take care, m.
Check with your doctor. What he means by "might have high blood pressure".
But nevertheless, all the other answers are correct. Watch your dietary habits, lower your sodium, meat intake. You might want to do a full blood test and a blood Cholesterol analysis.
If you love salty snack, cut it down. Salt does not cause high blood pressure in everyone, but lot of people experience trouble with it, so don’t take risk. Restricting your salt intake to 2.400 milligrams per day, is one method of reducing your blood pressure. Avoid using table salt on your food. Use a salt substitute, and learn to cook with herbs and spices. Read the sodium content of the processed foods you purchase.
High blood pressure usually has NO symptoms, but if left untreated, will, over time, damage your arteries to your major organs, especially the heart & kidneys. You must obey your doctor's instructions re medication, salt reduction, losing weight and reducing stress. All of these things combine to minimize damage. Sometimes chronic HBP causes the damage anyway. I ended up needing a quadruple bypass and now have early Chronic Renal Failure as well, and only 56 y/o! If you are confirmed with consistent high readings, ensure you receive correct treatment and try to stick with only visiting one doctor, so that consistency can be achieved.
if you are a smoker. STOP smoking. eat healthy, exercise + if you stress a lot try relaxation therapy
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