Know Your Blood Pressure
#1

Know Your Blood Pressure


Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps blood. When your heart is beating & pumping blood, your blood pressure is the highest. This numeric is called systolic pressure. In between beats, when your heart is at rest, your blood pressure falls. This numeric is called diastolic pressure.
Your blood pressure reading uses both these numbers. The systolic number comes above the diastolic number. (Eg. 120/80 is normal BP)


    Blood Pressure Category                                                   Systolic                                           Diastolic
                                                                                          mm Hg (upper #)                             mm Hg (lower #)
                                                                                                      
Normal                                                                               less than 120             And                less than 80   

Prehypertension                                                                120-139                     Or                   80-89

High Blood Pressure                                                          140 – 159                   Or                   90 – 99
(Hypertension) Stage 1


High Blood Pressure                                                         160 or higher                 Or                 100 or higher 
Hypertension) Stage 2     

our blood pressure doesn’t stay the same all the time. It drops while you sleep and increases when you are awake. It also rises when you’re excited or nervous. Under normal conditions, if the numbers stay above normal, you’re at risk for health problems.
How Overweight Increases the Risk of High Blood Pressure

Being overweight and/or obese is a major risk factor leading to high blood pressure. Increased body weight means more pressure required to move the blood around the body.  Thus the pressure on the inner walls of the arteries increases. Also as abdominal fat increases, the arteries are likely to become thick and stiff. This makes it harder to push the blood through the blood vessels.

However, the good news is that even when you lose weight in small amounts the blood vessels become less stiff and your blood pressure can go down.

Maintaining Healthy Blood Pressure

While also focusing on losing weight, there are some other habits you need to inculcate to maintain a healthy blood pressure. They include –
  • A healthy diet that has fresh fruits and vegetables

  • Lower sodium intake

  • Regular exercise

  • Stress management

  • Quitting smoking

  • Limiting alcohol intake
Have you ever tried any weight loss programs? Do share with us your experience.
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