How much loss before BP is affected?

maria1993
maria1993 Posts: 112
edited September 29 in Health and Weight Loss
How much did you have to loose before your blood pressure was affected?

When I went to the doctor about 2 and a half months ago her main concern was my blood pressure.. At 18 years old my pressure put me at borderline hypertensive.. She told me to work on loosing weight and watching my sodium.. I went because of issues with my cycles (none for 5 months) I was put on BC to regulate everything so I'm supposed to go back on the 27th so she can see how everything is doing.

I've already lost 23 or 26 pounds since my last visit, and I may loose some more by the time I see her.. But do you think there will be a diffrence in my blood pressure?

Replies

  • TeamLeela
    TeamLeela Posts: 3,302
    I lost 15 pounds before my bp was down and I was off the meds. after the first 10 pounds, it was still slightly high. but I also cut out a lot of sodium and drank more water. I avoided seasonings with sodium, laid off the chips and pretzels. also drained my canned veggies. I looked for labels that said, low sodium, no sodium added, 50% less sodium, things like that.
    It has mde a big difference I have been off my bp meds for over 2 months. I still regularly check my bp and it has been better than when I was on meds!
    Good luck!
  • rwd5046
    rwd5046 Posts: 302
    Beleive it or not, just a pound can have an effect on your blood pressure for the good. You might not see it in a BP reading but one pound is one pound less stress the heart has to expend pumping the blood throughout the body. So, one pound less is less stress on the heart and lowers the pressure. Make sense?
  • tropicalicyicy
    tropicalicyicy Posts: 83 Member
    i was considered hypertensive a few years ago and my doctor told me the same thing- lose weight, stay away from sodium, caffeine, smoking or i'd have to go on BP meds. Since then and losing 20 lbs in 2 months my BP dropped dramatically and i am not considered hypertensive anymore, it's normal high. i just went to the doctor about 3 weeks ago and the nurse told me as long as i keep losing and exercising it will keep lowering. yay! good luck to you..i think you will be fine, just keep up the good work!!!
  • mariposa1976
    mariposa1976 Posts: 1 Member
    Hi there. You are doing a great job. You just want to make sure you don't lose weight too quickly (0.5-2lbs/month is very good). I am sure that the weight loss you have already sustained IS going to make a difference. We know that even a 10% decrease in weight will reduce your blood pressure. You have already done this! You are already preventing yourself from going on BP meds! That's awesome! Here's a great little pamphlet I found on the web for you: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/hbp_low/hbp_low.pdf

    Good luck!

    Signed,
    Doctor in NY
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
    so, there are some very cool things about blood pressure, it goes up when we gain weight, sometimes because of plaque, sometimes because fat constricts the organs and arteries, sometimes because as you gain weight, you become more sedentary, and becoming sedentary means less efficient lungs, less efficient mitochondria, and more blood needed to supply needed oxygen.

    so by contrast, weight will help lower BP, but so will eating healthy diets, and exercising, any one of these will help, doing them all together will REALLY help.

    Sodium isn't great for blood pressure either, but really it's all about the 3 main components of moving from overweight to healthy (I.E. calorie deficit, better nutrition, and exercise).
  • candiigraham
    candiigraham Posts: 53 Member
    I agree with everyone. I have high BP on both sides of my family. We all eat wrong. Just lose 5 pounds will significantly reduce your BP ONLY if your sodium intake has dropped as well. I'm assuming it has with the great weight loss that you have had. Also, I switched to sea salt (not iodized sea salt) and I use that sparingly. If I use canned veggies I drain and rinse them. Congrats on the weight loss and keep it up.
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