Miller County Newsletters
Haley's Comment
Healthy Blood Pressure is Possible
February 27, 2008
Chances are you may have heard of someone who has high blood pressure; in
fact, it may even be you. You are not alone, according to the National Heart,
Lung and Blood Institute; 65 million American adults have high blood pressure.
It occurs more often in African Americans than in Caucasians. In fact, when
compared to other groups, African Americans tend to get high blood pressure
earlier in life, have it more severely and have a higher death rate from stroke,
heart disease and kidney failure.
Many will get high blood pressure as they get older. Over half of all
Americans aged 60 and older have high blood pressure. This is not part of
healthy aging. You can help fight off high blood pressure by making some simple
changes.
Start with eating a healthy diet, such as the DASH (Dietary Approaches to
Stop Hypertension) eating plan. This plan emphasizes fruits, vegetables and
low-fat dairy foods and is low in saturated fat, total fat and cholesterol. The
DASH plan includes whole grains, poultry, fish and nuts and has reduced amounts
of fats, red meats, sweets and sugared beverages.
To have a healthy diet, we also need to choose and prepare foods with less
salt and sodium. Most of us consume more sodium than we need. The current
recommendation is to consume less than 2,400 milligrams (mg) of sodium a day.
That equals about one teaspoon of salt a day, including all salt and sodium
consumed in cooking and at the table.
Another key to healthy blood pressure is to maintain a healthy weight. Being
overweight increases your risk of developing high blood pressure. In fact, blood
pressure increases as body weight increases. Losing even 10 pounds can lower
blood pressure, and it has the greatest effect for those who are overweight and
already have hypertension.
Being physically active is one of the most important steps you can take to
prevent or control high blood pressure. It also helps reduce your risk of
developing high cholesterol and diabetes, two more major risk factors for heart
disease. In fact, any moderate level activity will help. This might include
brisk walking an extra 30 minutes a day, bicycling and even gardening. Plus, you
do not have to do it all at the same time. It can be broken down into short
periods of 10 minutes each. As always, if you are just beginning an exercise
program, it is a good idea to check with your doctor first.
If you are lucky enough not to have high blood pressure, you may be unaware
of what it is. Blood pressure is the force of blood against the walls of
arteries. Each time the heart beats, it pumps blood into the arteries. Your
blood pressure is at its highest when the heart beats, pumping blood. This is
called systolic pressure and is the top number when written down. When the heart
is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls. This is the diastolic
pressure and is the bottom number when written down.
A normal blood pressure reading would be below 120/80. In general, lower is
better, although sometimes if a blood pressure reading is too low, it can be
cause for concern and should be checked by a doctor. A reading of 140/90 or
higher is usually considered high. One exception would be people with diabetes
or chronic kidney disease. A blood pressure reading of 130/80 or higher would be
considered high blood pressure in this case.
If you already have high blood pressure, it is important to take steps to
keep it under control. If you don’t, the same steps will work to help you avoid
high blood pressure. Remember those steps as mentioned above: have a healthy
diet, maintain a healthy overall weight and be physically active. These three
steps are important in all aspects of being healthy.
If you are interested in more information concerning healthy blood pressure,
you may contact me at the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture,
Cooperative Extension Service in Miller County at 870-779-3609, or e-mail me at
Chaley@uaex.edu. I will gladly send you
“Healthy Steps to Healthy Blood Pressure” and information on how to get the DASH
eating plan. You may also visit our website at
www.uaex.edu/miller and follow the links.
We appreciate your feedback!
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