Getting Your Blood Pressure Under Control
By Stephen R. Farris
High blood pressure, or hypertension, can lead to serious diseases such as heart disease or stroke. One out of 3 adults here in America suffer from high blood pressure. With these findings, it's very important to keep a good check on it to make sure your levels are in a safe range.
These levels start at the norm (120/80 or below) to stage I hypertension (130/80 and higher), and stage II (140/90 and higher). If it gets to 180, then it's time to seek emergency medical treatment.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, when measured too high, can cause headaches, shortness of breath, nosebleeds, chest pain, problems seeing and/or dizziness. A number of these symptoms usually don't begin to show until your blood pressure is at an elevated stage.
Even though you may have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, there are measures you can take to help lower it.
Being More Active
Inactivity is one of the worst things you can do when you have high blood pressure. It may seem like the right thing to do, but in reality, it's not. Keeping mobile through activity and/or exercise is the course to go.
Lose Weight
Losing weight seems to tie-in with many medical conditions, including high blood pressure. Excess weight can cause your heart to work harder. It can also lead to health problems such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and stroke. Choosing a balanced diet consisting of fresh fruits and vegetables, along with lean cuts of meat, whole grains and healthy fats, combined with exercise can help lead to weight loss.
Quit Smoking and Tobacco Use
Smoking has been linked to certain cancers, and it can cause shortness of breath, damage to blood vessel walls, along with inflammation and narrowing of the arteries.
Become Less Stressed
With today's fast-paced society, which includes work, traffic, social media and many other conditions that affect our lives daily, can lead to unwarranted stress. Exercise in some form or fashion, such as taking a walk when those stressful feelings begin to emerge, can help clear your head and calm you down. There are other things you can do, such as yoga or tai chi. Both involve techniques to help reduce stress.
There are a lot of ways you can help reduce your blood pressure back down to a more desirable range. But it all begins with you taking that first step to better health.
To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Rosemead, Calif.