Author Topic: High blood pressure (Read 6055 times)

OIO · « **on:** December 02, 2004, 04:41:27 PM »

Welp, took me a physical checkup last day... hadnt had one for like 10 years.

turns out my blood pressure is 160 ... too high for someone my age (27).

the medic recomended the usual excercise, low sodium/salt diet and of course the mandatory go to a doctor to see if i needed to have drugs medicated for me.

Funny thing is, my diet is almost devoid of salty foods..as my dad has high blood pressure so its a rarity to have anything salty. Yes, it runs in the family but mine was a tad too high for comfort.

One of the nurses present recomended eating foods with garlic on them, as well as a small glass of wine or whiskey every day to lower the cholesterol and thus the blood pressure.

So aside from the excercise (taking a package handler job in ups for that...im really a sedentary person and my tech support over phone job did gain me a few pounds), I found the alchohol reference curious.

For you see, in my family we have my aunt's husband who is so, so fat he cant drive. His bulk wont let him steer the wheel or use the shift stick.

Of course his health is always a concern so he takes regular checkups. in all he's always had practically zero cholestrol and his blood pressure is perfect. And he used to be fat AND have high blood pressure and cholesterol.

then it turns out he had family problems before he married my aunt and became alchoholic.. drinking like 2 bottles of vodka a day.

So i wonder.. this alchohol thing may really work. Course im not talking of me drinking 2 bottles a day but certainly ill give the 1 glass a day thing a shot.

anyone else know of anything that might help?

doc appt next week id like to ask him about this stuff

Furball · « **Reply #1 on:** December 02, 2004, 04:44:32 PM »

im too stupid to offer any advice.

i wish you all the luck getting better though.

OIO · « **Reply #2 on:** December 02, 2004, 04:47:56 PM »

thnx. perhaps it a good excuse to try that craggenmore thingy that seems to make Hitech mistype.

hawker238 · « **Reply #3 on:** December 02, 2004, 04:48:03 PM »

I'm usually at 150 HR when I'm running distance.

ra · « **Reply #4 on:** December 02, 2004, 04:49:20 PM »

I don't think cholesterol is directly related to high blood pressure. In fact you can be an Olympic athelete and have high blood pressure.

Furball · « **Reply #5 on:** December 02, 2004, 04:53:12 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by ra
I don't think cholesterol is directly related to high blood pressure. In fact you can be an Olympic athelete and have high blood pressure.

A footballer called Marc Vivien-Foe suddenly collapsed and died in the middle of a game of a heart attack aged 28, just shows it can happen to anyone.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/3024360.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/medical_notes/3025550.stm

shocking

rpm · « **Reply #6 on:** December 02, 2004, 07:33:12 PM »

I have had high blood pressure since my 20's. Turns out there are several different types. The "don't eat salt" thing only works for 1 type, but it does'nt hurt to lower your sodium. My particular type of hypertension requires Beta Blocker meds. I take Atenolol and Verapamil once daily and it works great.

Cholesterol is a similar in that there are several types. Once again a healthy diet does'nt hurt and in many cases works wonders. My particular type is hereditary. My count is literally off the chart, over 600. They can't calculate the test with a score that high. I hear the stroke approaching as we speak. I'm not a fat guy either, 6'2", 200 lbs. I tried Lipitor for a year and had my count actually go up. Crestor is an option, but it has caused serious liver damage in some patients. I'll pass, tyvm.

The alcohol thing is true, kinda. In SMALL DOSES whiskey can help thin blood thereby lowering BP. Any more than a shot a day and you are doing more harm than good. Red wine actually does a much better job and can be taken more liberally. There are antioxidant properties in red wine that work great. If you've never tried red wine, start with something light like a Syrah.

The best thing to do is go to the doctor, get a blood test and find out exactly which type of hypertension and cholesterol problem you have.

myelo · « **Reply #7 on:** December 02, 2004, 07:58:31 PM »

1. If you smoke, stop.

2. Exercise 30-40 minutes most days.

3. If you’re overweight, loose weight if possible. Even modest weight reduction (5%) can matter.

4. Make sure you get enough calcium, magnesium and especially potassium (90 mmol per day)

5. Low levels of alcohol consumption have a beneficial effect on blood pressure, with reductions of 2-4 mm Hg. But 3 or more drinks per day are associated with BP elevation.

6. Keep in touch with your doctor. Hypertension is usually diagnosed if your pressure is high on 3 separate occasions. If the above measures don’t work, you may need to take some medication.

Don’t ignore this. Untreated hypertension for only 10 years carries a 30% risk of heart disease or stroke and a 50% risk of kidney or other organ disease. If your blood pressure is high, a\decrease in blood pressure of only 2 mm Hg reduces the risk of stroke by 15% and the risk of coronary artery disease by 6%.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #8 on:** December 02, 2004, 08:49:47 PM »

for those that don't know what RPM is talking about RE: the red wine thing.

Wine is made from grapes (more or less) and grapes are these great things called ANTIOXIDANTS. Antioxidants basically break down harmfull stuff that is contained in the other foods that you eat. Salads are loaded with antioxis. and that is one reason to eat a nice salad before a nice thick juicy steak....just go easy on the dressing. Antioxis also include lettuce, tomato, corn, and most other fruits and vegetables.

myself.....I had a high BP one day that sent the docs nuts when it was 147 over somthing i can't remember. I was stressed out that day to say the least and I tried to explain that. I'm 27 and my BP is above average. I'm also a moderate to heave drinker plus smoker. Next week I get to try Zyban to quit smoking. I started running/working out regularly a month ago, and I started my first "Diet" ever (wich basically means I don't go for seconds) after I realized I weighed 195 at 5'11" with not much muscle mass to show for it. so far it's working great, I eat a salad with every other dinner....healthy lunch and light breakfast. I only drink 3 times a week. I'm quitting smoking next week. I've lost 15lbs in about 2 months. Side note: I'm worried that I'm gonna eat like a horse next week after I quite next week, but zyban supposed to not have those side effects.

Drunky · « **Reply #9 on:** December 02, 2004, 08:54:05 PM »

I'm in college going for my teacher certifcate and I'm in a class named Child and Adolescent Health.

We just finished discussing high blood pressure and cholesterol.

First, there are two types of cholesterol, LDL and HDL (low density and density lipoproteins). The LDLs adhere to the artery walls while the HDLs helps to remove some of the LDLs fromt he blood.

While total cholesterol levels are important, it is actually the ratio of good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol that is most critical. A high HDL level relative to a low level LDL is most desirable.

Atherosclerosis (the buildup of fatty deposits on the inside walls of the arteris) causes the arterial space for blood flow to be narrowed. This is how cholesterol can effect blood pressure.

We also discussed the use of wine (preferrably red wine) and grape juice to help reduce the LDLs. A single glass a day of either has shown to reduce LDLs. Drinking more a day doesn't really help.

We didn't discuss using whiskey to help reduce the LDLs so I cannot comment on it.

rpm · « **Reply #10 on:** December 02, 2004, 09:08:22 PM »

Guns, you are lucky. My highest recorded resting BP was 179/130. I thought the doctor was gonna freak.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #11 on:** December 02, 2004, 09:27:13 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by rpm
Guns, you are lucky. My highest recorded resting BP was 179/130. I thought the doctor was gonna freak.

But for a realativly "healty" Marine who PTs three times a week the 140s was completly unacceptable. Seriously they made me lay down and take a nap. The reason it was so high was because I just left the finance office and found out that I wasn't going to be getting almost $1000 a month in housing pay because one b*tch of a Msgt. didn't think I rated it as a reservist (This was when I was recalled to active duty after 911 for enduring freedom.....my wife was back home 3 months pregnant and my employer "forgot" to pay me my last paycheck.....this all two weeks before christmas) Mine was mostly due to stress. I feel as a Human that the Marines conditioned me that I need to PT myself almost to the point of pain in order to burn off my stress. Stress is a major cause of High BP, I feel fortunate that I've learned recenlty how to manage my stress but It's not allways possible. Hear Attacks run rampant in my family so I've taken it apon myself to live a healther life style. At my reletivly "young" age I've grown out of the thinking that I'll put off my health till later.

OIO · « **Reply #12 on:** December 02, 2004, 09:29:49 PM »

red wine it is then. hate the stuff but what the heck, its just 1 glass.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #13 on:** December 02, 2004, 09:32:13 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by OIO
red wine it is then. hate the stuff but what the heck, its just 1 glass.

Think of it as fermented fruit juice....fruit is healty

opus · « **Reply #14 on:** December 02, 2004, 10:29:12 PM »

160 over what? Its quite possible to get a 160 over 90-100 if you're in pain or had a tough time parking or walked a ways to the office. One reading doesn't mean a whole lot (unless its malignant hypertension (say 215 over 125+). Get yourself a machine and monitor it for a couple of weeks. The bottom number (Diastolic) is more telling. If it constistantly runs over 90, its time to start a low sodium diet, get more exercise and maybe medication. But from what you posted, one 160 systolic reading means nothing.

If it was 160 over >110 (and you weren't walking or exercising before), I'd look into it with a doctor. If it was 160 over >98, I'd get a machine and monitor it for a couple of weeks. If the diastolic was in the 90-95 range I'd chalk it up to stress of the physical and not worry much - maybe recheck it in a week.