the heart is a muscle that pumps blood around the body the pumping of blood
creates pressure blood pressure is the amount of force exerted against the
walls of the arteries as the blood flows through them if a person has high blood
pressure it means that the walls of the arteries are receiving too much pressure
on a constant basis high blood pressure is also known as
hypertension in the United States according to the American Heart
Association about one in every three adults over 20 years of age has high
blood pressure the National Institute of Health
estimates that about two-thirds of people over the age of 65 in USA have
high blood pressure some of the reasons for high BP are first age the older you
are the higher your risk of having high BP to family history if you have close
family members with hypertension your chances of development are significantly
higher 3 weight overweight people are more likely to develop high BP compared
to people of normal weight for smoking smoking reduces the blood oxygen content
so the heart has to pump faster in order to compensate causing a rise and bb5
alcohol intake people who drink regularly have high systolic blood
pressure compared to those who do not researchers have found that systolic
blood pressure levels are about seven millimeters of mercury
higher in people who drink compared to those who do not
number six physical inactivity lack of exercise as well as having a sedentary
lifestyle raises the risk of hypertension 7th mental stress
especially if it continues over a long term it can have a serious impact on
blood pressure eight diabetes people with diabetes are at a higher risk of
developing hypertension there could be many other causes such as weak kidneys
that stopped removing waste and extra fluid from the blood now treating it if
hypertension is left untreated or uncontrolled it can cause many health
problems these conditions include heart failure vision loss stroke and kidney
problems
let me suggest to you some tips for lowering the blood pressure over the
years research reveals that several habit and lifestyle changes can greatly
increase your odds of preventing high blood pressure and maintaining a healthy
blood pressure range these include 1 reduce your weight and
watch your baseline weight loss is one of the most effective lifestyle changes
for controlling BP losing even a small amount of weight if you are overweight
or obese can help reduce your BP tremendously besides shedding pounds you
should also keep an eye on your waistline carrying too much weight
around your face can put you at a greater risk of high blood pressure to
exercise regularly regular physical activity about 30 minutes a day six days
a week can lower your BP by about five to eight mmm some examples of aerobic
exercises you may try to lower your BP include yoga walking jogging cycling
swimming you can also try the Sun Salutations or
Surya Namaskar do a few rounds until your heart is pumping hard and then take
a break again do a few rounds and take a break you can repeat this in cycles this
is the yogic way of high-intensity interval training which involves
alternating short bursts of intense activity with subsequent recovery
periods of lighter activity antigravity yoga CIL's that result in
strength training can also help reduce blood pressure three Iza on salt it's a
prime offender in raising blood pressure check your food labels to see how much
you're getting seventy five percent of your sodium intake comes from eating out
of packaged foods so keep your diet as unprocessed as possible consuming less
things that come in packages avoiding takeout restaurant food and really
limiting fast food so cook more at home cooking at home is an important part of
lowering your BP making your homemade meals from fresh nutrient-dense foods
helps you lower your sodium and sugar intake while boosting your intake of
powerful BP lowering nutrients like potassium antioxidants and fiber for
increase fiber consumption consuming plenty of fiber has been shown
to help prevent hypertension plus it can manage our appetite and avoid the blood
sugar rollercoaster that results in cravings fatigue poor digestion and
various health problems fiber is found in nearly all unprocessed plant foods so
eating fresh vegetables aids in lowering your BP
five quick alcohol drinking alcohol can raise your blood pressure by several
points it can also reduce the effectiveness of blood pressure
medications six quit smoking each cigarette you smoke increases your BP
for many minutes after you finish stopping smoking helps your blood
pressure return to normal quitting smoking can reduce your risk of
heart disease and improve your overall health 7 reduce your stress
chronic stress may contribute to high blood pressure lowering your stress
helps keep your BP normal try mind-body exercises like yoga and Tai Chi listen
to or create calming music and if you wish to go deeper into the topic of
stress management do hear my video on this topic eight sitting in the Sun can
boost feel-good chemicals called endorphins and lower your blood pressure
in the next episode I will go into the details of what to eat to help reduce
your blood pressure
you