Sunday 20 April 2008

Top Ten Causes Of High Blood Pressure

By Christian Goodman

While there is no exact cause of hypertension (or so the doctors say), several lifestyle factors have been found to raise blood pressure. In the tradition of making Here's my very own Top Ten Ways to Get Hypertension.

10.) Being stressed. Too much work can give you unnecessary stress that stays with you even after you leave the office. Stress has been proven to cause several sicknesses, one of which is hypertension.

Take it easy and pace your work, handling the harder ones first then do the easier ones.

9.) Worrying too much. Anxiety has also been found to cause spikes in blood pressure. Some experts claim that making worrying a habit can cause as much damage as chronic hypertension.

Some common anxiety remedies, such as meditation, Yoga, or massage, may help you cool down.

8.) Eating the wrong things. Unhealthy food can cause your blood pressure to rise, even though you are not overweight or you exercise regularly.

By "bad stuff," I'm talking about cholesterol, trans fats, and salt. For starters, the guidelines set by the new food guide pyramid should help you, and your blood pressure, get back on track.

7.) Lack of exercise. Nowadays, we spend most of our time sitting down. Lack of physical activity can lead to obesity. This is said to be a leading cause of hypertension.

Get up and walk the last few minutes to work, use the stairs instead of the elevator, and play a sport during the weekends.

6.) Being overweight. This is the primary reason for the previous two ways to get hypertension. Unhealthy foods and lack of exercise will force your heart to work double time to deal with all that extra weight.

A healthy eating and exercise regimen should gradually help you ease into your ideal weight (and blood pressure).

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5.) Too much caffeine. Many of us depend on coffee to keep us on track for the rest of the day. Caffeine has been found to cause a temporary rise in blood pressure, which becomes more sustained the more caffeine we take in one day.

Two cups of coffee (24 oz.) a day should be your limit.

4.) Binge drinking. Anxiety and stress tempt many of us to escape from reality with some alcohol. Binge drinking constricts blood vessels and can cause a 10% spike in your blood pressure. Sorry, but if you suffer from hypertension, you'll need to limit yourself to a glass of wine or a can of beer a day to stay on the safe side.

Of course, you can screw the whole thing and just follow my suggestions in #1, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Now for the top three:

3.) Smoking. Each stick you consume makes your blood pressure to increase by 5-10 mm Hg. Also, the nicotine decreases the amount of oxygen in the blood, making your heart work double time to keep the body's cells healthy.

Kicking this bad habit will manifest in numerous health benefits within minutes.

2.) Not getting enough sleep. Less than six hours of sleep per day will make you more likely to suffer from hypertension. Getting enough sleep will keep you from getting high blood pressure.

Lack of sleep lowers your energy level, which is compensated by the heart by making it work harder. If you can't get enough sleep, try to take midday catnaps-which can help lower the risk of heart disease.

And the number one cause for hypertension?

1.) Not using my hypertension program. This is serious - I've advised my clients to follow my tips on how to avoid the first nine items, but the only thing that made them lower their blood pressure to ideal levels is when they did the simple exercises in my hypertension program.

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1 comment:

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