Category: Blood Pressure
More Americans meet criteria for high blood pressure under new guidelines
Under the mew guidelines patients are categorized as having “elevated blood pressure” if their blood pressure is 120-129 over less than 80 mm Hg, or stage 1 hypertension if they are 130-139/80-89. A reading of 140/90 or more is considered stage 2 hypertension, and a reading of 180/120 or greater is a hypertensive crisis. In essence, the bar has been lowered, and this change may impact millions of Americans.
UW researchers develop test to predict preeclampsia
Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle have developed an approach that can predict preeclampsia in pregnant women as early as the first trimester by using cell-free DNA in blood samples. Such a screening test could enable earlier interventions and help prevent the severe complications of preeclampsia.
Many people don’t measure their blood pressure properly at home – here’s how to get accurate readings
Measuring your blood pressure at home means you can take readings over several days to get a better picture of your health, instead of one-off measurements at the doctor’s clinic. But it’s important you follow specific steps to get an accurate reading.
This salt alternative could help reduce blood pressure. So why are so few people using it?
It’s hard for people to change the way they cook, season their food differently, pick low-salt foods off the supermarket shelves and accept a less salty taste.
Now there is a simple and effective solution: potassium-enriched salt. It can be used just like regular salt and most people don’t notice any important difference in taste.
Prescriptions for fruits and vegetables can improve the health of people with diabetes and other ailments, new study finds
Patients’ blood sugar levels, blood pressure and weight improved.
Planks and wall sits are best for lowering blood pressure – here are six more reasons they’re such great exercises
Each sessions consisted of four two-minute bouts of isometric exercises–such as doing planks or wallsits–with a one-to-four minute rest period between each. The resulting blood pressure reduction was comparable to that seen in people taking standard blood pressure medication.
What is POTS? And how is it related to long COVID?
POTS or “postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome” is a poorly recognised condition we’ve been hearing more about recently. Before COVID, this debilitating condition was not widely talked about. But during the pandemic, we’ve been learning about the strong similarities with long COVID.
Many Americans wrongly assume they understand what normal blood pressure is – and that false confidence can be deadly
Nearly half of Americans ages 20 years and up – or more than 122 million people – have high blood pressure. And even if your numbers are normal right now, they are likely to increase as you age; more than three-quarters of Americans age 65 and older have high blood pressure.
Remind me again, why is salt bad for you?
Salt is a chemical compound made of sodium and chloride, and this is the main form in which we consume it in our diet. Of these two elements, it’s the sodium we need to worry about.
Eating Too Much Salt? Ways to Cut Back…Gradually
About 70% of the sodium you eat comes from processed (packaged) foods and restaurant foods.
There is no great salt debate: we should be consuming less
A gradual decrease in salt intake across the whole population remains an achievable, affordable, and effective strategy to prevent premature death worldwide.
The Top 10 Sources of Sodium in Your Diet May Surprise You – CDC
Many are surprised to learn which foods are on the list because the foods do not always taste salty.
Mediterranean diet cuts heart disease
People who followed the Mediterranean of diet had 25 percent less risk of developing cardiovascular disease over the course of 12 years.
Salt: Cut back without losing flavor
Can we reduce the salt in our diet yet keep all the delicious flavours we crave? This is a problem the food industry has been working on for years.
The latest blood pressure guidelines: What they mean for you
High blood pressure starts at much lower pressures than previously thought, so it’s important to start paying attention to your blood pressure early.