Joanna James
By simply following a healthy lifestyle and the below mentioned key steps, you can help lower blood pressure; thus reducing your risk of heart disease and the need for medication.
Weight increase is a contributory factor to a rise in blood pressure. Obesity also causes sleep apnoea, which is a disruption in your sleeping pattern. Therefore weight loss is the best solution to lowering blood pressure. In this context it is important to keep a check on your waist line, as a thick waistline causes high blood pressure; losing as little as 4.5kgs will help lower your blood pressure. To summarise men are at a high risk of high blood pressure if their waistlines are more than 40 inches and for women, it is over 35 inches. These numbers do vary depending on which ethnic group you belong to; consulting a doctor on this is best.
A regular session of exercise a day helps immensely to lower blood pressure. Physical activity for as little as 30 minutes a day helps; hence in home personal training in Toronto is very popular especially amongst blood pressure patients leading hectic lifestyles. Just 30 minutes of exercise a day lowers blood pressure by 4 to 9 millimetres of mercury. A specific workout to suit your needs will ensure the regime is interesting and targeted. Weight training too is a good option, check with your nearest gym; similar to programmes at First Class Personal Training there are many options. You can also indulge in walking, jogging and swimming as a good workout.
Consider eating a diet that is rich in vegetables, fruit, low fat dairy produce and whole grains; go easy on saturated fats and lower blood pressure by about 14 mm Hg. This kind of eating pattern is defined as DASH – Dietary approaches to stop hypertension. If you find it difficult to change your eating patterns considers the following tips. Keep a diary of food you eat for a week; this is a marvellous method to highlight food consumed, quantities and types. Increase potassium; a diet that's high in potassium will help lower sodium in blood pressure. Instead of supplements, obtain this from food; first, consult your doctor on ideal potassium levels for you. Shop smart; read labels and ingredients before you buy food and stick to a healthy eating plan.
The slightest reduction of sodium in your diet brings blood pressure down by 2 to 8 mm Hg. How sodium affects people varies, depending on race and age. Limiting sodium intakes to 2,300mg a day is considered a generally safe quantity. Those with a higher salt sensitivity should consider reducing sodium levels to 1,500mg.
Alcohol depending on the dosage could be good or bad for your health. In small doses, it can bring down blood pressure levels by 2 to 4mm Hg. This benefit, however, is lost if you exceed the number of drinks. For women and men over 65, the ideal quantity is one drink and men younger than 65, 2 drinks a day. One drink is denoted as such; 12 ounces of beer, 1.5 ounces of 80 proof liquor and 5 ounces of wine.
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