Health and Fitness Information Center

National Blood Pressure Awareness Month, Part 2

• Health Topics

• Asthma/Allergies
• Blood Pressure
• Blood Testing
• Body Fat Measuring
• Breast Exam
• Breastfeeding
• Cholesterol
• Defibrillator
• Diabetes
• Family Health
• Fitness
• Nutrition
• Safety
• Stress
• Thermometry
• Weight Control

In general, everyone's blood pressure varies in the same way throughout a given day. It is usually highest at work and then drops slightly at home.

Blood pressure falls to its lowest level during sleep but suddenly increases at waking, the highest risk period for heart attack and stroke in those with severe high blood pressure. Devices that use a digital readout and a cuff that can be electronically inflated and deflated are proving to be as accurate as a stethoscope. Studies indicate that home blood pressure monitoring has been shown to improve blood pressure control and thereby reduce the risk of cardiovascular events.

Make exercise, weight control, and diet a part of your program. It is true that you can have high blood pressure even though you are slim and exercising regularly. But it is also true that being overweight and out of shape increases the risk of high blood pressure.

Most important, recent studies have confirmed that people with high blood pressure who are overweight and not exercising can lower their blood pressure by losing weight and exercising regularly. Many can control their blood pressure entirely without the use of drugs. Most others can reduce the amount of medication that they require. That means less expense and fewer risks and side effects.

Aerobic exercise conditions the cardiovascular system so that blood pressure is reduced. Too high a weight means too high a blood pressure, and reducing your weight is a reliable method for reducing blood pressure. Exercise and diet are, of course, the keys to weight control. Decreasing the salt, fat, and cholesterol in your diet and increasing the potassium and calcium in your diet helps to lower blood pressure and decrease the risk of heart disease.