Control and Prevention

If you have high blood pressure, you can control it with proper treatment. If you don't have high blood pressure now, you can take the following steps to help to control and prevent it from developing:

• Limit Your Alcohol Use. If you drink alcohol, have no more than one drink per day. That means no more than 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1 1/2 ounces of hard liquor.

• Use Less Salt. Try seasoning foods instead with herbs, spices, and lemon juice. Keep in mind that sodium, an ingredient in salt, is “hidden” in many packaged and processed foods. Check product labels for the amount of sodium in each serving. Many experts advise a total daily salt intake of no more than 6 grams, which equals about 2,400 milligrams of sodium--this includes whatever is added during the cooking and at the table. If you would like to try a salt substitute, talk with your doctor first, because they are not safe for everyone.

• Be Physically Active. Even low-to-moderate intensity activity, if done regularly, can help control and prevent high blood pressure. Examples of such exercise are walking for pleasure, gardening, yardwork, moderate-to-heavy housework, dancing, and home exercise. Try to do one or more of these activities every day.

• Lose Weight If You Are Overweight. Taking off excess pounds will help to control and prevent high blood pressure, and will lower your chances of developing cardiovascular disease in several other ways. Weight loss will help to prevent and control diabetes, and it can also lower blood cholesterol levels. Finally, since being overweight raises the chances of developing heart disease, losing weight can lower your risk.

The following are some suggestions for making weight loss an easier, safer, and more successful process:

• Eat For Health. Choose a wide variety of low-calorie, nutritious foods in moderate amounts. Make sure that these foods are low in fat, especially saturated fat. Remember, fat is the greatest source of calories. If you have a lot of weight to lose, ask your doctor or a nutritionist to help you develop a sensible, well-balanced plan for gradual weight loss.

• Keep Milk On the Menu. Don't cut out dairy products in trying to reduce calories and fat. Dairy products are rich in calcium, a nutrient that is particularly important for women. Instead, choose skim or low fat, lower calorie dairy products.

• Get Beyond Dieting. To keep the pounds off, change your basic eating habits rather than simply "go on a diet." Learn to recognize social and emotional situations that trigger overeating and find ways to cope with them that work for you.

• Avoid Fads and Diet Pills. Most fad diets provide poor nutrition and cause a number of side effects. Although fad diets can give quick and dramatic results, the weight returns quickly once you stop dieting. Also avoid diet pills. Most have troublesome side effects and none of them work for long-term weight loss.

• Get a Move On. While physical activity alone won't take off many pounds, exercise can help burn calories, tone muscles, and control appetite. It will also help you keep off the weight you lose.

• Ask For Support. Tell your family and friends about your weight loss plans and let them know how they can help you. You might also want to join a self-help group devoted to weight control. These groups provide support and practical suggestions on nutrition and long-term weight control.

Another Consideration

It is also important to know that if you take birth control pills, your blood pressure is apt to increase slightly. The risk appears to increase with age and with length of use. If you are taking oral contraceptives, you should get your blood pressure checked regularly. If hypertension develops, you should stop using the pill.

Taking Medication

If you have high blood pressure and it stays high even after you make the changes described above, your doctor will probably also prescribe medicine. The amount you take may be gradually reduced, especially if you are successful with the changes you make in your lifestyle. If you feel any uncomfortable side effects from the drug, ask your doctor about lowering the amount you take, or possibly switching to another type of medicine.

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Exercise

Besides losing weight, there are other reasons to be more active: being physically active can reduce your risk for heart disease, help lower your total cholesterol level and raise HDL-cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol that does not build up in the arteries), and help lower high blood pressure. And people who are physically active have a lower risk of getting high blood pressure--20 to 50 percent lower--than people who are not active. You don't have to be a marathon runner to benefit from physical activity. Even light activities, if done daily, can help lower your risk of heart disease. So you can fit physical activity into your daily routine in small but important ways. See table below.

More vigorous exercise has added benefits. It helps improve the fitness of the heart and lungs. And, that in turn, protects you more against heart disease. Activities like swimming, brisk walking, running, and jumping rope are called "aerobic". This means that the body uses oxygen to make the energy it needs for the activity. Aerobic activities can condition your heart and lungs, if done at the right intensity, for at least 30 minutes, three to four times a week. But if you don't have 30 minutes for a break, try to find two 15-minute periods or even three 10-minute periods. Try to do some type of aerobic activity in the course of a week.

Although most people don't need to see a doctor before they start exercising, since a gradual, sensible exercise program has few health risks, it is advised that you do. But if you have a health problem like high blood pressure; if you have pains or pressure in the chest or shoulder area; if you tend to feel dizzy or faint; if you get very breathless after a mild workout; or are middle-age or older and have not been active, and you are planning a vigorous exercise program, you should check with your doctor first. Otherwise, get out, get active, and get fit--and help prevent high blood pressure.

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Nutrition

General Principles for Cardiac Diets:

• Choose foods low in saturated fat and low in total fat.

• Read labels for sodium and fat content.

• Increase intake of complex carbohydrates.

• Decrease intake of concentrated sweets.

• Don't fry foods.

• Eat broiled fish, skinless chicken or turkey as alternatives to meats high in saturated fats.

• Use polyunsaturated vegetable oils.

• Choose foods high in starch and fiber: breads, cereals, pasta, grains, fruits and vegetables.

Behavior Modification Tips for Dieters:

• Keep a diet diary.

• Eat only in the kitchen or dining room.

• Take at least 30 minutes to eat.

• Do not engage in any other activity while eating.

• Listen to soft music while eating.

• Keep snacks out of the house or at least out of sight.

• Have snack packs of low calorie foods ready and easily accessible for stressful, rushed moments.

Diet Tips to Decrease Fluid Retention:

• Identify sodium content from labels.

• Be aware of non-food items that contain sodium (e.g. seltzer, certain antacids).

• Check with physician before using a salt substitute. It may be contraindicated. Remember: fat foods and convenience foods are often high in sodium.

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