Success in lowering blood pressure - tell me how

drift

Hi, having lost half the weight I hope to, my blood pressure has gone up to marginally over the level at which dr's in the UK are keen to start you on medication. I'm keen to avoid this so have ramped up my efforts on weight loss and increased exercise.

Anyone got success stories to share on reducing bp? Or ideas on how much weight loss/ exercise increase will make a difference?

Would also welcome any plausible excuses to give the dr on why to delay medication start.

Thanks for your interest.

Sheron

Cyclingbonnie

Hit the cardio.

drift

Thanks, I'm usually on my bike by now but this year it's been freezing! Have been increasing my activity.

60x60

I am salt sensitive. If I have eaten too much salt my blood pressure goes up. Tracking salt was my original reason for tracking food. I found that keeping my salt intake below 1500 mg and my potassium intake above 2500 mg keeps my blood pressure in the normal range. I have taken my blood pressure and tracked it in relation to salt intake for over a year. Too much salt equals high blood pressure.

I want to do my part in avoiding a stroke. High blood pressure is a silent killer. I really recommend controlling it. If that requires taking mild prescription such as hydrocholorot until you can get the salt in your diet under control, it's worth it.

And to those of you who are not salt sensitive, I will admit to being envious! Enjoy and savor. Salt is one of my favorite flavor accents.

astrampe

Mine went down within the first ten pounds, but I exercised 4 times a week right from the start- run/walk mostly for around 30 minutes....Never gone up after that...I thing exercise is just as important as losing weight for that....
Sometimes you just have high blood pressure, regardless of how fit you are and how much you weigh...I have a good friend who is fit and normal weight, and he has to take medication to keep his down...

I would not want to risk having a stroke is medication can prevent it - so I would take the medication and work on fitness and weight while taking it....

kimosabe1

hey, there are always meds for that...... I'm on one right now....

SoozeE512

Lower your sodium intake so that it is 1,500mg minimum. For anything that can be too high, there is a too low also so you don't want to go below that amount, but maybe somewhere between 1,500-1,700 mg would be a good range to aim for.

Adding cardio helps also.

Helloitsdan

High protein diets have shown to lower blood pressure.
Shoot for at least 30% of your calories to come from lean sources of protein and it will naturally go down.

pepeleo

I was able to lower mine and get off the medication. I did it by removing certain stresses, took up meditation, started walking a lot, lowered my soduim levels and lost some weight in addition to stopping drinking for awhile. Now I rarely drink alcohol.

Good luck to you.

mjculbertson4512

I am salt sensitive. If I have eaten too much salt my blood pressure goes up. Tracking salt was my original reason for tracking food. I found that keeping my salt intake below 1500 mg and my potassium intake above 2500 mg keeps my blood pressure in the normal range. I have taken my blood pressure and tracked it in relation to salt intake for over a year. Too much salt equals high blood pressure.

I want to do my part in avoiding a stroke. High blood pressure is a silent killer. I really recommend controlling it. If that requires taking mild prescription such as hydrocholorot until you can get the salt in your diet under control, it's worth it.

And to those of you who are not salt sensitive, I will admit to being envious! Enjoy and savor. Salt is one of my favorite flavor accents.

mjculbertson4512

Amen to that! I am trying to get off my BP meds too. Will see on Friday how I am doing.

Salt is causing me to puff up like a balloon, so I am trying to watch the levels in my diary.

drift

Thanks for the fresh approaches. I don't think sodium is an issue for me, don't cook or eat with it much, wasn't aware of the potassium link - will look into that.

Have attempted to increase protein previously with mixed results, but trying it now linked to reducing sugar hopefully thereby warding off carb cravings.

mreardon614

My mom has a real problem with her blood pressure. She gets stressed really easily. The doctors put her on meds and they still weren't helping. She lowered her sodium to 1500 mg, and that along with the meds have kept it under control.

aprmay

I can out simple sugar and process food, watch my sodium snd meditate. Even though I still take meds, I will be cutting it out soon. Good luck!

Flixie00

Tell your doctor you are dieting and exercising, and will try to bring it down naturally. It is difficult to get them to take you off of the meds once you are on them.

wikitbikit

You can try suggesting to your doctor that you'd like to try to lower it naturally for 6 months, and if that doesn't work, you'll start the meds. If you're just borderline high that shouldn't present too much of a danger--although I would home monitor over that time--and if you can't get it down in that amount of time, it's probably wise to go ahead and accept a low dosage pill.

Take care, and good luck!

Kirkajuice

I guess you want the opposite of what I was told to do with my low blood pressure. Less salt, more garlic! They told me I'm not supposed to have garlic :frown: I still eat it, and I hate salty food so I can't stand adding more to my meals :grumble:

nataliescalories

I actually just found out today that I lowered mine--officially (I monitor at home, but I hadn't met with my doctor until today). I was prehypertensive/hypertensive (just right on the edge). They wanted me to take meds, but I just started tracking calories in mid-January and lost 30lbs since then. I also began walking and running three or four times a week, doing aerobic videos twice a week, and doing kettlebell circuit training three times a week. I tried to keep salt around 2500mg, but I didn't worry about that too much. I get between 100-140g of protein a day, I keep carbs under or as close to 100g as I can (because of PCOS and IR) and my caloric intake is so low I don't worry about fat at all.

I have half of my book due on Tuesday, so I'm pretty much at the height of stress right now--it's a pretty awesome change to have brought my BP down so significantly (from 130-140/90-100 to 110/80) with just diet and exercise alone and in such a short time. If you can't get outside to work out, I would just find some videos you like (Amazon Instant Video has awesome options that you can stream from your computer or digital video player). I bought my kettlebells on Amazon for a great price too (15lb, 25lb, 50lb with free shipping!)

Smaller changes I made at the same time were: taking B vitamins, D3, and cinnamon supplements.

Feel free to friend me if you like!

newmein2013

Set sodium to 2000 mg & potassium to 4000 mg. Have at least 5 servings of dark colored veggies daily (green, orange, etc). Have berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries) and/or citrus fruits daily. Do cardio 45 - 60 minutes 5 - 6 days a week. Ask the doc to check your vitamin d level. Consider taking... vitamins c, d, e, and calcium, as well as fish oil & flaxseed. Also, deep breathing several times a day. You should see significant improvement within 2 - 3 months. No one can force you to take the meds. It's your body. Explain to the doc that you're diligently working on controlling your bp through diet & exercise. Tell him/her the changes you've made and that you will comply if you're not satisfied with the results after 3 months. Once they see improvement, they'll lay off of you. Good luck.

PS: Magnesium & Evening Primrose Oil also help.

nataliescalories

Set sodium to 2000 mg & potassium to 4000 mg. Have at least 5 servings of dark colored veggies daily (green, orange, etc). Have berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries) and/or citrus fruits daily. Do cardio 45 - 60 minutes 5 - 6 days a week. Ask the doc to check your vitamin d level. Consider taking... vitamins c, d, e, and calcium, as well as fish oil & flaxseed. Also, deep breathing several times a day. You should see significant improvement within 2 - 3 months. No one can force you to take the meds. It's your body. Explain to the doc that you're diligently working on controlling your bp through diet & exercise. Tell him/her the changes you've made and that you will comply if you're not satisfied with the results after 3 months. Once they see improvement, they'll lay off of you. Good luck.

I eat tons of veggies and a ridiculous amount of strawberries, so I'd definitely agree about including those to round out your diet, but I'd watch the calcium supplements. My father-in-law and cousin are both medical researchers and recently warned me about calcium supplements. I've cut out my calcium supplements since then.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120523200752.htm

"But when the analysis looked at vitamin/mineral supplements, it found that those who took calcium supplements regularly were 86% more likely to have a heart attack than those who didn't use any supplements."

I have no trouble hitting 80-100% of my calcium needs just through foods alone.

highervibes

I spent a month in the hospital due to some health issues that were unrelated to weight and they checked my blood pressure every day and I was on th ehigher end of normal 135-140/80-85 when I went to my family doctor for some follow up appointments he measured me in the 160/90-95 range. This has happened also at another follow up appointment, so I'm definitely hoping to lower it by losing weight and becoming more active. We will see when I go to him mid April if my changes have made a difference, although I'm pretty early in the game. I will take a PP advice and mention that I am trying to lower it naturally.

irsleepy2

I'm not recommending that you delay starting B/P meds if that's what the doctor thinks you should do, ....but (having said that) I've been able to reduce the amount (dosage) I take by half, by dropping weight and watching my salt, etc. It CAN be done. Good luck

newmein2013

I eat tons of veggies and a ridiculous amount of strawberries, so I'd definitely agree about including those to round out your diet, but I'd watch the calcium supplements. My father-in-law and cousin are both medical researchers and recently warned me about calcium supplements. I've cut out my calcium supplements since then.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120523200752.htm

"But when the analysis looked at vitamin/mineral supplements, it found that those who took calcium supplements regularly were 86% more likely to have a heart attack than those who didn't use any supplements."

I have no trouble hitting 80-100% of my calcium needs just through foods alone.

It's very good to keep this in mind and reinforces how we have to be our own advocates as patients. You can have your calcium, potassium & sodium levels checked through a simple blood test (CMP - comprehensive metabolic panel). This gets done at the yearly physical. I've been getting my bloodwork done every 3 - 6 months for over 10 years now. (The joys of being diabetic.) So I just ask them to throw in a CMP every once in a while. My diet includes anywhere from 115% - 600% of calcium from food. I've been taking 1200 mg of calcium every evening for many years & I'm still within normal limits. I have no idea why my body needs so much calcium but apparently, it does, lol. It just really depends on the individual & how the body responds. But definitely, being an informed patient is a must.

drift

Thanks for all the responses, such a supportive community!

Off to do more research based on yor pointers and possibly get a bp monitor for home

Thanks

mockchoc

I started exercising, stopped drinking and lost weight. I also ate less salt but not sure if that made any difference. I was on two types of medication and now on zero.

mockchoc

I am confused, you lost weight and your blood pressure went up???

Weight loss is probably one of the best things you can do for weight loss.

Thanks PU. I didn't spot she said it went up when she lost weight. Odd. Yes should be the opposite.

drift

I am confused, you lost weight and your blood pressure went up???

Weight loss is probably one of the best things you can do for weight loss.

I lost the first half towards my goal, then went back to work and had less time to exercise, maintained the loss but didn't lose any more. Bp went up during that maintenance period, so it's back to losing (the other half) and shoe horning exercise in where I can.

bpmichael

BP is a tricky thing and it is very dependent on nerves / anxiety, etc. Many people have white coat hypertension (high readings at doctors but normal at home). I can tell you from personal history of this for over 30 years that the more you worry about BP the higher it will go especially at doctor.

As you mentioned in previous post, I would get a monitor and check it at home and log it. This way you can really see what it is and also good to take to your doctor visits.

MsDaraElaina

I have to watch my BP like a hawk bc I'm also salt sensitive so I have researched and tried different things. As others have said lower sodium intake because there's such a high amount in nearly everything you eat that it constantly builds all day. Other things that help me are taking a regimen of fish oil and garlic oil pills. You can also get these by eating a lot of fish like tuna and salmon and by using natural fresh garlic... I choose to take the supplements in case I don't eat those things daily. The supplements really help but you have to keep taking them which is not bad bc they help other things as well such as your heart and brain function.

Exercising does wonders.... Even 30 mins of walking a day will help you bp.... When you do any form of exercise it forces your heart to pump harder which works your vessels causing them loosen and become adjusted. If you don't do your bike or some type of aggressive workout WALK or run, and you'll see a mega difference.

blackberries are also key. I had to make myself like them at first but they are packed with all types of powerful antioxidants which help your body function overall. EAT THEM!

Hopefully with all of the information you've gathered your bp will be down in no time

pineygirl

I went from being hypertensive to having normal blood pressure without medication. I did initially try meds but due to the side effects I ended up stopping them. I wouldn't advocate not taking BP meds if you need them but I felt like I could lower my blood pressure without them. I know at some point later in my life I might need them, but now isn't that time.

My BP used to be on on average 160/95, as high as 219/118, and never below 140/90.

By changing my diet, taking magnesium supplements and doing intense cardio for 45 minutes 3-4 times a week I was able to lower it to usually no higher than 120/80.

Turns out my BP was sodium sensitive if I was deficient in magnesium and potassium. Eating super low sodium alone was not helping much. Eating low sodium (under 1500mg/day...usually around 1200mg/day) and making sure my potassium was 2-3 times my sodium intake really helped, even more so if I had enough magnesium. I take magnesium glyconate every day to make sure I have enough magnesium.

The cardio also made a big difference. The magnesium, sodium and potassium only lowered my BP from hypertensive to pre-hypertensive (around 135/85). The cardio is what lowered it to normal.

This morning it was 114/69.

themedalist

Thanks for the fresh approaches. I don't think sodium is an issue for me, don't cook or eat with it much, wasn't aware of the potassium link - will look into that.

You don't have to cook with salt or add it to your food to be getting a lot of sodium. That's a huge misconception. Sodium is in most foods we eat, even things that don't taste salty...eggs, bread, and carrots all have salt in them.

You may be getting more salt than your realize. Many items in the MFP database are incorrectly listed as having zero sodium. It pays to double check and be a salt sleuth.

As others have done, I'm controlling my borderline high bp by keeping sodium around 1500 mg/day and potassium in the 3500+ range. No meds (yet).