High blood pressure on Keto or is it my weight?
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Fat2FitChick
Posts: 451 Member
I have been on Keto for about 6 months or so. My pressure used to be normal but a tragic event in my life took my pressure up. I started Keto shortly after this but my blood pressure has not returned to normal. It has actually gotten worse/higher. It is almost impossible for me to lose weight any other way so I don't want to stop if I don't have to but I think Keto is causing my blood pressure to go up.
I'm only 34 and not on medications and I am predisposed to it because my mother has it and depends on medication to regulate it. What should I do? I was trying to wait one more month just to see if it improves as I lose more weight because I am still obese weighing 184 and I am 5'0" and I am thinking this has a lot to do with my pressure and not the keto.
I do not want to depend on blood pressure medicine like my mother which is why I made this lifestyle change but it may be working against me.
Please help!!
I'm only 34 and not on medications and I am predisposed to it because my mother has it and depends on medication to regulate it. What should I do? I was trying to wait one more month just to see if it improves as I lose more weight because I am still obese weighing 184 and I am 5'0" and I am thinking this has a lot to do with my pressure and not the keto.
I do not want to depend on blood pressure medicine like my mother which is why I made this lifestyle change but it may be working against me.
Please help!!
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Replies
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If I understand your post, you were obese, had normal blood pressure, then started keto, and blood pressure went up?
I'm inclined to believe that it's your weight vs the keto diet that's got your BP so jacked up. How jacked up btw? Are you checking it at home?
What did your doctor say? I'm also 5' and started at 160#'s. I was undiagnosed T2D and that sent my cholesterol, BP and of course BG up. 6 months later with the first 22#'s coming off during the first 8 wks, all my values are within normal range again.
The majority of my elders have T2D in my family, though they never talked about it, so I never knew my risk factors were so high.
What was your starting weight?0 -
Are you exercising? Walking is supposed to be a great way to lower your blood pressure.0
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My starting weight was 218 and I'm down to 184 but for the life of me I can't figure out why my pressure is so high all of a sudden. It used to be 100/79 steadily most of my adult life and now it reads 120/119 and I have low grade headaches all day.
It's scaring me and my doctor is about to put me on medication, the one thing I have been dreading my whole life. I'm worried that all those years eating horribly have just set me up to be medicated to control my bp no matter what healthy changes I have made. I want to wait another 4 weeks or so but I just don't know. My doctor by the way does not support the keto lifestyle.0 -
Are you exercising? Walking is supposed to be a great way to lower your blood pressure.
Yes 5 days a week for 1 hour, I don't want to do anything more strenuous because I don't want to pass out litterally.0 -
Neither does mine :laugh: but for me, it doesn't matter. I only keep him around for writing scripts as needed :blushing: If I followed his advice and ate 'healthy' whole grains, I'd still be running 260 mg/dl on the regular, but that's another story altogether.
The person who suggested walking might be onto something. I do a great deal of walking. I have a fitbit and ever since I was able to meet and exceed my goal of 10k steps per day, my medical stats have been steadily improving.
I was concerned about my BP at one point as well because my doctor ALSo wanted to put me on meds...I didn't want to start the cycle of taking meds to control side effects of my meds :grumble: That's when I started increasing my low intensity exercise (walking) and keeping a log of my BP.
I got one at the drug store (a small machine with a cuff) and looked up how to monitor it. It's possible white coat syndrome may play a part as well and this is why I started checking at home.
I checked it using both arms (left first, then right, but I go by the reading off my left arm as they do in the doctor's office)....and I started with it by my bedside. Before I got out of bed, I took a baseline reading.
At various points of the day for instance; when sitting for a time, after moving around the kitchen a bit while cooking, directly after exercise etc. and I was able to see when it went high and what numbers were my baseline.
It turned out that for me, that there were 2 separate things that increased my BP, one was a medication to lower my blood sugar and another was an OTC supplement designed for blood sugar support.
I know you said you were not on any meds (and I'm assuming this means OTC supplements as well) but if you were to monitor it at home, through trial and error, you may be able to find your problem. I know I found out pretty quickly....and was able to tell my cardiologist to go hassle someone else :laugh:
I do weight training 3 x wkly, and I walk every-freekin-where :laugh:0 -
I monitor my bp at home with my arm cuff and I walk 5 days a week. I think I am going to try a hawthorn gold supplement and see if it helps because I refuse to go on medication and start that cycle. Thank you both for your help, I appreciate it.0
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Make sure the right sized cuff is being used as well.
I end up with high blood pressure because they always use a cuff that is too small.0 -
Thank you, it is the right size.Make sure the right sized cuff is being used as well.
I end up with high blood pressure because they always use a cuff that is too small.0 -
everything I've read suggests that keto typically results in BP improvement. It sounds like that there are some additional stressors on your life that may be contributing. Have you thought about trying meditation or yoga to try to help you de-stress?0
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I am leaning towards something else causing the high blood pressure. I haven't ever had high blood pressure but it has gone down even since starting keto as has my resting heart rate. The other thing is the headaches, that doesn't sound great or related to keto unless going through adaption which you are past. I really hope you start feeling better and get this figured out!0
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everything I've read suggests that keto typically results in BP improvement. It sounds like that there are some additional stressors on your life that may be contributing. Have you thought about trying meditation or yoga to try to help you de-stress?
I lost my brother last August in a very violent accident. He was only 31 and it hit me harder than I thought possible, I've tried everything I can think of but nothing seems to be able to lessen the effects of extreme grief. I've been focusing all my energy on work and my health because that seems to help me get through my days.
I am starting a supplement regimen (multivitamin, calcium, vitamin d, potassium, magnesium) because I have not been taking any and my levels are low on top of that my fiber has been extremely low. I may add in Hawthorn gold for heart care and see how my body reacts. My pressure may be up due to the fact that my levels are all completely off.0 -
I'm sorry for your loss! I think the vitamins should help and keep up your walking. You may also want to try reading a daily meditation to help with your grief.
http://www.amazon.com/Healing-After-Loss-Meditations-Working/dp/0380773384/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381324828&sr=1-1&keywords=meditation+for+grief
This is a great book with short daily readings.0 -
I don't have any science to back me up, but my own experience is that unless I have about 5 grams of sodium a day, my blood pressure is too LOW and I get dizzy when I stand up.
I'd say keep calm and keto on; trying the medication for a month if you have to, but telling your doctor it's not gonna be permanent solution for you. Also, like everyone said, light cardio?0 -
It sounds a lot like your grief is taking a serious toll on your body. I am sorry for your loss and can't imagine how hard that must be. I agree with the other poster who suggested meditation or yoga. Both of these will help the mental side of your stress and that should be a big help. If you are able, you might also want to consider grief counseling to help you get through this obviously painful and difficult time.
Here's an interesting article about the connection between grief and high blood pressure: http://www.drsinatra.com/high-blood-pressure-reduce-grief
I hope that you are able to control the blood pressure without medication, but perhaps taking medication for a time while you work through your grief might not be too bad of an idea. At least something to consider.
Best wishes to you!0 -
Thank you everyone!!! I really do appreciate all of your help and suggestions. I will try them all and see what helps. I started taking the supplements yesterday so after a few weeks we'll see how they work. If that doesn't work then I about the temp meds to get it back down. I will continue to work 1 hour per day like I always do, helps clear the mind even for a short amount of time.0
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I'm so sorry for your loss. Grief/depression can affect bp, you might want to ask your doc about that. Also, did he check your kidneys? That was the first sign of kidney issues for my sister - high bp. It should be noted that my sister was a body builder and had less than 15% body fat, wore a size 0 pant, so weight was not a factor in her BP. It took a lot of doc visits before they found the root cause, but I thought I'd mention checking your kidneys.0
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Physical Stress of Grieving
http://connect.legacy.com/inspire/page/show?id=1984035:Page:25210 -
My obgyn was shocked to see my bp higher than my last appointment and has suggested some intense cardio and yoga as my stress has been insane with work and personal life. Maybe lowering the red meat a bit and watching your sodium will improve bp as well.0
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Take the pills and keto on, darlin. You can get back off of the pills once your weight stabilizes and you are able to get things back into normal ranges. If you are getting headaches from this, there's no other good option - just do everything you can to get your health back under control (including monitoring your sodium intake, which should be a little higher for keto).
Some of us are prone to hypertension due to genetics. It's okay and it's not a personal failing of yours. You need to take care of you, and that may require a $4.00 prescription from Walmart every 30 days.0 -
Take the pills and keto on, darlin. You can get back off of the pills once your weight stabilizes and you are able to get things back into normal ranges. If you are getting headaches from this, there's no other good option - just do everything you can to get your health back under control (including monitoring your sodium intake, which should be a little higher for keto).
Some of us are prone to hypertension due to genetics. It's okay and it's not a personal failing of yours. You need to take care of you, and that may require a $4.00 prescription from Walmart every 30 days.
:drinker:
OP: hope all is well with you
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