How to prevent high blood pressure

If you don’t have high blood pressure, you can take steps to prevent it. healthy habits can help you maintain normal blood pressure.

Healthy nutrition. limit the amount of sodium (salt) and alcohol you consume.

Do physical activities. Regular physical activity can lower high blood pressure and the risk of other health problems.

stay at a healthy weight. This can help control blood pressure and lower the risk of other health problems.

Monitor your blood pressure

Home monitoring can help you control your blood pressure. That way, you’ll know if medications and lifestyle changes are working.

Home blood pressure monitors are widely available without a prescription. Talk to a healthcare provider about home monitoring before you start.

Regular visits with a healthcare provider are also key to managing your blood pressure. If your blood pressure is well controlled, ask your healthcare provider how often you should check it. You may need to measure it once a day or less often.

If you have high blood pressure, you may be wondering if you need to take medication to lower it. However, lifestyle plays a vital role in treating high blood pressure. Controlling blood pressure with a healthy lifestyle may prevent, delay, or reduce the need for medication.

Here are 10 lifestyle changes to lower your blood pressure and keep it down.

Help prevent high blood pressure

You can still take steps to prevent the long-term problems it can cause. Healthy habits and medicines can help you live longer and more active lives.

Follow the treatment plan your doctor prescribes to control your blood pressure. This treatment can help prevent or delay coronary heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, and other health problems.

stay at a healthy weight. This can help control blood pressure and lower the risk of other health problems.

Do not smoke. Smoking can damage your blood vessels and increase your risk of high blood pressure. In addition, it can worsen health problems related to hypertension.

Control stress and learn to manage it. learning to manage stress, relax and deal with problems can improve emotional and physical health

People who adopt these healthy habits can prevent or delay the onset of high blood pressure. The more changes you make to your lifestyle, the more likely you are to lower your blood pressure and prevent the health problems associated with this disease.

Lifestyle changes

Blood pressure often increases with weight gain. Being overweight can also lead to sleep-disordered breathing (sleep apnea), which further increases blood pressure.

Losing weight is one of the most effective lifestyle changes to control blood pressure. If you are overweight or obese, losing even a small amount of weight can help lower your blood pressure. In general, your blood pressure may drop about 1 millimeter of mercury (mm Hg) with every kilogram (about 2.2 pounds) of weight you lose.

Approaches to stopping hypertension

Having supportive friends and family is important for good health. They may encourage you to take care of yourself, take you to your health care provider’s office, or start an exercise program with you to keep your blood pressure down.

If you think you need help beyond your family and friends, consider joining a support group. You may meet people who can give you an emotional or moral boost, or who can offer practical advice for coping with your condition.

Reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure

A small reduction in dietary sodium can improve heart health and lower high blood pressure by about 5 mm Hg to 6 mm Hg.

The effect of sodium intake on blood pressure varies from one group of people to another. In general, limit sodium to 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day or less. But a lower sodium intake (1,500 mg per day or less) is ideal for most adults.

Recommendations to reduce sodium in the diet:

Read food labels. Look for foods and drinks that are low in sodium.

Eat fewer processed foods. Only a small amount of sodium is naturally present in foods. Most of the sodium is added during processing.

Don’t add salt. Use herbs or spices to add flavor to foods.

Kitchen. By cooking, you can control the amount of sodium in foods.

Physical activity

Regular physical activity can lower high blood pressure by about 5 mm Hg to 8 mm Hg. It is important to continue exercising to prevent your blood pressure from rising again. As a general goal, try to get at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day.

Exercise can also prevent high blood pressure from turning into high blood pressure (hypertension). In people who have high blood pressure, regular physical activity can lower blood pressure to safer levels.

Aerobic exercises that can lower blood pressure include: walking, jogging, bicycling, swimming, or dancing. Another option is high-intensity interval training. In this type of training, short periods of intense activity alternate with periods of lighter activity.

Drinking too much alcohol

Limiting alcohol consumption to less than one drink per day for women or two drinks per day for men can help lower blood pressure by about 4 mm Hg. One glass is equal to 12 ounces (355 ml) of beer, 5 ounces (148 ml) of wine, or 1.5 ounces (44 ml) of 40% alcoholic liquor.

Drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure by several points. It can also reduce the effectiveness of blood pressure medications.

EMOTIONAL STRESS

Long-term (chronic) emotional stress can contribute to high blood pressure. More research is needed on the effects of stress reduction techniques to see if they can lower blood pressure.

Still, it doesn’t hurt to establish the cause of the stress, such as work, family, finances, or illness, and find ways to reduce it. Try the following:

Avoid demanding too much of yourself. Plan the day and focus on your priorities. Learn to say no. Allow enough time to do what you have to do.

Focus on the problems you can control and make plans to solve them. If you have a problem at work, talk to your supervisor. If you have a conflict with the children or your spouse, find a way to resolve it.

Avoid stress triggers. For example, if rush hour traffic causes you to stress, travel at a different time or use public transportation. Avoid people who cause you stress, if possible.

Take some time to relax. Take some time each day to sit quietly and take a deep breath. Make time for fun activities or hobbies, like going for a walk, cooking, or volunteering.

Practice gratitude. Expressing gratitude to other people can help reduce stress.

Diagnosis

High blood pressure is usually diagnosed at a medical checkup. You have to make several measurements and verify that there are high blood pressure figures. Sometimes, some of its harmful consequences or complications are discovered when they appear: heart problems such as heart failure, kidney failure, or brain damage.

The study of arterial hypertension is aimed at determining the cause, the presence of other cardiovascular risk factors (hypercholesterolemia, hyperglycemia, etc…), and its impact on different organs.

It begins with a complete medical history, physical examination, and analytical studies. Arterial hypertension is almost always essential (with no apparent cause), but it can be secondary to other diseases.