Category: Blood Pressure

An indoor activity found to diminish high blood pressure more effectively than walking.

Physicians have typically prescribed walking as part of the treatment plan for their patients with high blood pressure (hypertension).

However, according to a recent study, stretching is more effective than brisk walking for people with hypertension or those at increased risk of developing it.

Hypertension, despite being a major risk factor for heart disease, can easily be controlled if patients follow some lifestyle changes.

One of these changes is doing 30-minute stretching exercises for five days a week.

Dr Phil Chilibeck, study’s co-author, said:

“Everyone thinks that stretching is just about stretching your muscles.

But when you stretch your muscles, you’re also stretching all the blood vessels that feed into the muscle, including all the arteries.

If you reduce the stiffness in your arteries, there’s less resistance to blood flow.”

The finding that stretching can lower hypertension has been supported by earlier research, but this is the first time that stretching has been compared with fast walking.

For this study, 40 adults with high blood pressure were randomly divided into two groups to do either stretching exercises or walking for 8 weeks.

One group did 30-minute full-body stretches five days a week and the second group did walking for 30 minutes a day, five days a week.

The participants’ blood pressure was monitored over a full day wearing a blood pressure cuff device.

The results showed that stretching led to a greater reduction of blood pressure than walking.

However, during those eight weeks, the walkers lost more belly fat than the stretching group.

Thus the authors advise people to do stretching exercises along with routine walks.

Dr Chilibeck said:

“I don’t want people to come away from our research thinking they shouldn’t be doing some form of aerobic activity.

Things like walking, biking, or cross-country skiing all have a positive effect on body fat, cholesterol levels, and blood sugar.”

Dr Chilibeck assumes yoga or a shorter stretching session than 30 minutes, if focused on the leg muscles, especially the hamstrings and quadriceps, would produce a similar effect on lowering blood pressure as found in the present study.

Dr Chilibeck said:

“The beauty of stretching is that it’s so easy to incorporate into a person’s daily routine.

You’re not at the mercy of the weather and it’s easy on your joints—a big plus for people with osteoarthritis.

And it doesn’t require a big commitment of time, another barrier to exercise for many people.

When you’re relaxing in the evening, instead of just sitting on the couch, you can get down on the floor and stretch while you’re watching TV.”

The study was published in the  Journal of Physical Activity and Health (Ko et al., 2020).

High blood pressure — known to doctors as hypertension — is a risk factor for heart disease.

Single women who take part in regular social activities have lower blood pressure, research finds.

However, social isolation and loneliness increase the risk of high blood pressure in women.

High blood pressure — known to doctors as hypertension — is a risk factor for heart disease, which is the leading cause of death among women.

The study found that widowed, socially inactive women living on their own were at the highest risk of hypertension.

Dr Annalijn Conklin, study co-author, said:

“Among older adults, social isolation is the largest known risk factor for mortality, equal only to smoking.

Less well known is how social isolation affects men and women differently, or how it affects biomarkers of longevity.

Our research indicates that women, in particular, are more likely to be hypertensive when they experience isolation in middle and older age.”

The study included data from almost 30,000 people aged 45 to 85 in Canada.

The results showed that women without a partner who had fewer than three social activities per month were at the highest risk of hypertension.

Dr Conklin said:

“Among women, the increase in blood pressure that was associated with the lack of social ties was similar to that seen with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory use, increased sodium diets pollution or weight gain.

This represents a significant women-specific risk factor for heart disease or stroke.”

Among men, the results were quite different.

Those who had a large social network and shared their home with others had higher blood pressure.

Men who lived alone and had fewer social ties had lower blood pressure.

Dr Conklin said:

“Taken with our previous research, our new findings underline how social isolation affects health in men and women differently.

At a time when COVID-19 is forcing us to limit our social interactions, it’s important for those working in health care and public health to encourage older women, in particular, to find new ways to be socially active.”

The study was published in the Journal of Hypertension (Zeinab et al., 2020).

The exercise that can reduce your blood pressure by 10 percent.

The most effective type of exercise for lowering blood pressure is a combination of endurance exercise, like running, with lifting weights, research finds.

When it comes to lowering high blood pressure, exercise is as useful as drugs.

There is good evidence that systolic blood pressure — which is the highest number of any blood pressure reading — can be lowered by exercise.

The higher systolic blood pressure, the greater the risk of a heart attack or stroke.

We can easily lower high blood pressure by combining endurance training like running, swimming, cycling, jogging or even walking with strength training such as using kettlebells, doing push-ups and working out with dumbbells.

Researchers compared 194 medication trials with 197 exercise intervention trials to see the impact of drugs or exercise on lowering systolic blood pressure.

After analysing these trials, they found that exercise lowered blood pressure as much as most drugs.

They also noticed that people with higher blood pressure were benefiting more from exercise.

Replacing exercise with drugs is challenging, but blood pressure can decrease up to 10% by doing regular physical activities such as fast walking.

Start with doing 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity including gardening, dancing, walking briskly, mowing the lawn, playing tennis (doubles) throughout the week.

Symptoms of high blood pressure include a pounding in the chest, blood in the urine, and severe headaches.

More than 40% of adults in the US and many European countries are physically inactive.

About 30% of American adults suffer from high blood pressure.

Dr Huseyin Naci the lead author of the study, said:

“It’s one thing to recommend that physicians start prescribing exercise to their patients, but we also need to be cognisant of the resource implications and ensure that the patients that have been referred to exercise interventions can adhere to them and so really derive benefit.”

The study was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (Naci et al., 2018).

About half of American adults are affected by hypertension and it is a major factor in 82,000 deaths each year.

People who do long hours at work are most likely to have masked hypertension, which is a hidden type of high blood pressure.

Masked hypertension usually goes undetected by doctors as a patient’s blood pressure reading is normal at medical visits but high at home or outside a clinic.

Working 49 hours or more per week at the office increases the risk of high blood pressure by 70 percent, experts say.

About half of American adults are affected by hypertension and it is a major factor in 82,000 deaths each year.

A study on 3,547 Canadian office workers shows that those who worked 49 hours a week were 70 percent more likely to have masked hypertension and 66 percent more likely to have persistent high blood pressure in comparison to their colleagues who worked less than 35 hours per week.

Among those who worked 41 to 48 hours a week, their chance of having masked hypertension was 54 percent higher and they were 42 percent more likely to have persistent high blood pressure.

Dr Xavier Trudel, the study’s first author, said:

“Both masked and sustained high blood pressure are linked to higher cardiovascular disease risk.

The observed associations accounted for job strain, a work stressor defined as a combination of high work demands and low decision-making authority.

However, other related stressors might have an impact.

Future research could examine whether family responsibilities — such as a worker’s number of children, household duties and childcare role — might interact with work circumstances to explain high blood pressure.”

The study was carried out over five years and 19 percent of these employees were already on high blood pressure pills.

Around 13 percent of employees had masked hypertension but were not taking any high blood pressure medication.

The impact of long working hours on blood pressure was the same for both women and men who participated in the study.

Dr Trudel said:

“People should be aware that long work hours might affect their heart health, and if they’re working long hours, they should ask their doctors about checking their blood pressure over time with a wearable monitor.

Masked hypertension can affect someone for a long period of time and is associated, in the long term, with an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

We have previously shown that over five years, about 1 out of 5 people with masked hypertension never showed high blood pressure in a clinical setting, potentially delaying diagnosis and treatment.”

The study was published in the journal Hypertension (Trudel et al., 2019).

The optimal daily dose of omega-3 fatty acids to lower blood pressure.

Consuming 3 grams of omega-3 fatty acids per day as a dietary supplement or from foods has been found to be the optimal level to reduce high blood pressure.

Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are types of omega-3 fat mainly found in oily fish such as trout, salmon, herring, mackerel, and sardines.

Also, some fish oil supplements including cod liver oil contain good levels of EPA and DHA.

Much research suggests that omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may help lower blood pressure.

The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends eating fish — particularly fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, tuna, and sardines — at least twice a week.

Other omega-3-rich foods to include in your diet are:

• flaxseed,
• walnuts,
• canola oil,
• and soybeans.

How much omega-3?

Several studies have suggested that daily consumption of omega-3 fatty acids could lower hypertension but the amount that a person should take to see the effect is unknown.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a daily intake of 1.1 to 1.6 grams of omega-3 fatty acids will be adequate for a healthy adult.

This study found that the optimal dosage of omega-3 fatty acids to lower blood pressure is about 3 grams a day.

Dr Xinzhi Li, the study’s co-author, said:

“According to our research, the average adult may have a modest blood pressure reduction from consuming about 3 grams a day of these fatty acids.”

The findings are from an analysis of 71 clinical trials that looked at the effect of DHA and EPA on blood pressure and cholesterol levels in adults between 1987 and 2020.

Here is a summary of their findings:

• A daily intake of 2 to 3 grams EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids from foods or supplements or both led to a reduction of 2 mm Hg in systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
• Doses of omega‐3 fatty acid intake above 3 grams a day may provide even more blood pressure and cholesterol lowering benefits for those at greater risk of heart disease.
• Participants with hypertension who consumed at least 3 grams a day of omega-3 fatty acids saw a reduction of 4.5 mm Hg in their systolic blood pressure.
• Higher dosages than 3 grams a day of omega-3 fatty acids didn’t show further benefits for those with normal blood pressure.

A 5 ounce (140g) serving of Atlantic salmon or 3 ounces (90g) of mackerel will provide 3 grams of omega-3 fatty acids.

Dr Li said:

“Most of the studies reported on fish oil supplements rather than on EPA and DHA omega-3’s consumed in food, which suggests supplements may be an alternative for those who cannot eat fatty fish such as salmon regularly.

Algae supplements with EPA and DHA fatty acids are also an option for people who do not consume fish or other animal products.”

Dr Li addd:

“Our study supports the FDA guidance that EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease by lowering high blood pressure, especially among people already diagnosed with hypertension.”

Caution

Note that more research is needed to understand the full effects of omega-3 on blood pressure, and supplementation is not a substitute for other blood pressure-lowering treatments prescribed by your doctor.

The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (Zhang et al., 2022).

The snack contains a type of omega-3 called alpha-linolenic acid, which is heart healthy.

Eating whole walnuts can help to lower blood pressure, research finds.

Walnuts contain a type of omega-3 called alpha-linolenic acid, which is heart healthy.

People in the study swapped out 5 percent of their saturated fat intake for walnuts to achieve the benefit.

After eating the walnuts for six weeks, their blood pressure was lower.

Reducing saturated fat intake helps, but there is something special about walnuts, explained Professor Penny Kris-Etherton, study co-author:

“When participants ate whole walnuts, they saw greater benefits than when they consumed a diet with a similar fatty acid profile as walnuts without eating the nut itself.

So it seems like there’s a little something extra in walnuts that are beneficial — maybe their bioactive compounds, maybe the fiber, maybe something else — that you don’t get in the fatty acids alone.”

The study included 45 overweight or obese people.

They were split into three groups and for six weeks each was fed a slightly different diet to test the effects of walnuts.

Dr Alyssa Tindall, the study’s first author, explained:

“Walnuts contain alpha-linolenic acid — ALA — a plant-based omega-3 that may positively affect blood pressure.

We wanted to see if ALA was the major contributor to these heart-healthy benefits, or if it was other bioactive component of walnuts, like polyphenols.

We designed the study to test if these components had additive benefits.”

The results of the study showed that reducing saturated fats helped reduce blood pressure.

However, walnuts produced the greatest drop in blood pressure.

Dr Tindall said:

“An average American diet has about 12 percent calories from saturated fat, and all our treatment diets all had about seven percent, using walnuts or vegetable oils as a replacement.

So, seeing the positive benefits from all three diets sends a message that regardless of whether you replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats from walnuts or vegetable oils, you should see cardiovascular benefits.”

Professor Kris-Etherton has this advice:

“Instead of reaching for fatty red meat or full-fat dairy products for a snack, consider having some skim milk and walnuts.

I think it boils down to how we can get the most out of the food we’re eating, specifically, ‘how to get a little more bang out of your food buck.’

In that respect, walnuts are a good substitute for saturated fat.”

The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (Tindall et al., 2019).

Controlling blood pressure is one of the keys to reducing the risk of stroke.

Thinking positive is linked to lower blood pressure in stroke survivors, research finds.

People who believe they can protect themselves from another stroke are better able to control their blood pressure.

The link is particularly strong in women.

Controlling blood pressure is one of the keys to reducing the risk of stroke.

Although it can be done with lifestyle changes or medication, many people find it hard to keep their blood pressure in check.

Blood pressure is not the only health condition that positive beliefs can improve.

For example, people who are more optimistic about their heart disease have better outcomes.

Similarly, holding more positive beliefs about ageing may protect against Alzheimer’s disease and those who believe they can control their weight eat more healthily.

Dr Emily Goldmann, the study’s first author, said:

“This perception that you can protect yourself from another stroke reflects the construct of self-efficacy, or a belief in one’s ability to achieve a specific outcome.”

The study included 552 stroke patients who had been treated at four New York City hospitals.

They were each asked if they agreed with this statement: “I can protect myself against having a stroke.”

One year later, the results showed that women who believed they could reduce their blood pressure were correct.

Their readings were, on average, 5.6 mm/Hg lower than those who did not believe they could reduce their blood pressure.

The finding was not statistically significant in men.

Dr Goldmann said:

“In this study, we found an association between self-efficacy and reduced blood pressure, which is consistent with previous studies linking positive psychological states to better health outcomes in the context of cardiovascular disease and stroke.

Targeted strategies to improve health beliefs after stroke may be an important component to include in risk factor management among stroke survivors.”

Many mechanisms could explain why positive health beliefs may improve outcomes, the study’s authors write:

“Having positive health beliefs, such as higher levels of self‐efficacy and confidence, motivation to take action, greater ability to cope and adjust to adversity, and accurate risk perception, may promote healthy behaviors (eg, diet, physical activity, sleep, and treatment adherence) and result in better health outcomes.

Greater psychosocial resources and better physiological functioning noted among those with positive psychological well‐being may also explain this association.

In addition, positive emotions may buffer the impact of stress on health or reduce the stress itself.”

The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (Goldmann et al., 2020).

High blood pressure can be difficult to spot as there are few symptoms.

A cup of tomato juice each day helps to lower blood pressure, research shows.

The drop in blood pressure is enough to move someone from stage 2 hypertension down to stage 1.

Drinking tomato juice is also linked to a decrease in the levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol.

High blood pressure can be difficult to spot as there are few symptoms.

The condition is linked to cardiovascular disease.

Tomatoes, though, may help protect against the disease because, as the study’s authors explain, they…

“…contain a variety of bioactive compounds, such as carotenoid, vitamin A, calcium, and gamma‐aminobutyric acid, which may play a role in maintaining physical and psychological health, including the prevention of [cardiovascular disease].”

The study included 481 people in Japan whose blood pressure and other physiological factors were tracked.

People in the study were given unlimited access to tomato juice for one year.

They chose to drink around one cup each day (200 ml) on average.

The results showed that blood pressure dropped significantly in people with untreated hypertension.

The study’s authors write:

“To the best of our knowledge, the current study is the first to investigate the effects of tomato or tomato product intake on cardiovascular disease risk markers over the course of a year and over a wide age range.”

Other natural methods to lower blood pressure include increasing intake of fruits and vegetables and staying active.

Regular exercise helps to lower blood pressure and is also linked to weight loss.

For example, a thirty-minute walk in the morning significantly lowers blood pressure for the rest of the day.

The beneficial effect is almost the same as taking blood pressure lowering medication.

Avoiding sitting for prolonged periods during the day also helps keep blood pressure down.

The study was published in the journal Food Science & Nutrition (Odai et al., 2019).