Health & Fitness Blog

If you suffer from hypertension or high blood pressure then you will need to see about lowering high blood pressure. A normal blood pressure is considered to be at lower than 120/80 and anything above–0/90 is considered to be high and your heart is putting too much pressure on your arteries.

The blood pressure measurement is a combination of the systolic pressure and diastolic pressure. When the heart contracts the systolic pressure measures the force of blood in the arteries and the diastolic pressure measures the force of the blood in the arteries while the heart pauses to rest after each beat. The combination of these two give your blood pressure.

High blood pressure is an issue because it can lead to heart disease, kidney disease, hardening of the arteries, stroke, brain damage and eye damage. Organ damage is considered the end result of high blood pressure as you can go for years with high blood pressure before damaging your organs.

You can make lifestyle changes to assist in lowering high blood pressure. Many people have found much success with reducing blood pressure by implementing these changes. Following a healthy diet and exercising regularly is the best way to lower your blood pressure. You should also pay attention to the amount of salt in your diet as this a high salt level can cause high blood pressure.

If you are overweight then you have a greater chance of developing high blood pressure. For this reason, getting back to a healthy weight is very important. Other factors that can increase your blood pressure and which should be avoided include smoking and drinking alcohol excessively.

There are prescription medications that can be used to reduce your high blood pressure. Diuretics work by getting rid of excess salt in your body and flushing out additional water. They work directly on your kidneys rather then on your heart or arteries. Beta blockers will work on your heart to slow down its beating, therefore reducing the pressure in the arteries. Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor, also called ACE, works by regulating a hormone that causes the arteries to become narrow. By stopping this action your blood pressure will be reduced as there is more room in the arteries.

Having too much calcium in the heart can cause the heart to become tense. A calcium channel blocker can be used to relax blood vessels and the heart. Alpha blockers will affect your nervous system so that it allows for better blood flow by stopping some nerve messages. Alpha-beta-blockers are a combination of alpha blockers and beta blockers so this medication slows downs the heart and causes blood flow to be smoother.

Amongst the easiest ways to reduce your high blood pressure is to lose weight. Doing some of the south beach diet exercise routines may be the easiest way to lose those extra pounds.

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