It’s invisible, odorless and painless. Its four to six digits depict a hydraulic function and it’s a great signal of your cardiovascular condition. What is it? It’s your blood pressure measurement. These are two numbers you should know by heart, for your heart’s health. You can’t see your blood pressure and you can’t feel it if it’s going higher or lower. But these numbers don’t lie.
Your blood pressure measurement consists of two numbers: the Systolic pressure (the higher number and usually the one recited first) is the measure of how much pressure the blood is exerting on the inside walls of your blood vessels each time the heart beats. The systolic number should be under 120.
The bottom number is called Diastolic pressure and is the amount of pressure the blood pushes on the inner walls of the vessels between each heart beat. The diastolic should be under 80.
Together, the numbers are written as 120/80mmHg, and pronounced as "one twenty over eighty."
If you are measured to have a systolic of between 120 and 139 and a diastolic between 80 and 89, you will be diagnosed to be pre-hypertensive, which means you almost have high blood pressure. With pre-hypertension you have an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. As you age the risk goes even higher. It means your heart has to work harder than usual/healthy to pump blood through your vessels to the outer reaches of your limbs and organs. Left untreated, it can lead to full-blown high blood pressure and all the associated risks. It’s estimated ½ of the US population has pre-hypertension and many people don’t know it.
Here are some ways to help yourself control your blood pressure.
Weight! What are you waiting for?
If you are overweight, losing as few as 10 pounds can help your blood pressure. When you weigh more, the body has to grow many more blood vessels to service the extra mass and it becomes harder and harder to pump the blood farther and farther.
What Moves you?
Physical activity of any kind is better than holding still all day. When you move more your heart is strengthened and finds it easier to pump the blood. 10,000 steps a day is the healthy amount of movement for general health. Add to that, 30 minutes of moderate level aerobic exercise, on most days and you will be on the way to make your heart as strong as can be.
Toss the Salt!
Cut down on your sodium intake. Most Americans each about three times more salt than needed for health. Eating prepared and processed foods are the major culprit. Check for yourself: for a week or so, keep a tally of the sodium levels on the nutrient labels of the foods you eat. If you are like most of us and consuming too much, begin to cut it out where you’ll notice it the least and try to limit your daily intake to 2,300 mg per day.
Do the DASH
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension is a program funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. They advise us to focus on eating foods low in saturated fat, cholesterol and salt. That means plenty of fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Aim at food rich in protein, potassium and magnesium. They are all part of the Good Mood Diet favorites list!
Alice Lockridge,
MS Phys Ed,
Exercise Physiologist for Everybody
PRO-FIT