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Managing High Blood Pressure

What are the things I can change? The main lifestyle areas that will affect your blood pressure are your weight, your diet, your salt intake, your physical activity and your alcohol intake.

What are the benefits of lifestyle changes? Addressing all of these lifestyle measures at the same time will have the best effect on your blood pressure. Doing this and taking medicines as directed by your doctor will control your blood pressure. In addition areas that will reduce the likelihood of cardiovascular problems such as heart disease and stroke are stopping smoking, controlling diabetes and controlling cholesterol levels .

According to British Hypertension Society Guidelines, lifestyle interventions for blood pressure reduction can achieve the following:

Intervention	Recommendations	Expected decrease in systolic blood pressure
Weight Reduction	Maintain ideal Body Mass Index (BMI) of 20-25kg/m³	5-10mmHg per 10kg weight loss
DASH* eating plan	Increase fruit and vegetables, low fat dairy products with reduced saturated and total fat	8-14mmHg
Salt reduction (2.4g sodium)	Reduce to 6g salt	2-8mmHg
Physical activity	Regular moderate physical activity for at least 30 minutes each day	4-9mmHg
Alcohol moderation	Men <=21 units per week, Women <=14 units per week	2-4mmHg

*DASH stands for Dietary Approach to Stopping Hypertension – an eating plan which was used in trials to assess the effect of diet changes on high blood pressure.

Maintaining a healthy weight

In people younger than 40, being over-weight can be the main cause of high blood pressure. Person on scales

Losing weight is not always easy and needs support and encouragement from health professionals and family alike. Better eating habits in the family may prevent problems for them in later life.

Being overweight increases the work the heart has to do, increases blood pressure, leads to abnormal fats in the body and is associated with diabetes, gall bladder disease and some cancers. Controlling your weight involves finding a balance between the food and drink you take in and the energy you use up.

For more information on ways to lose weight visit "Weight Control and High Blood Pressure".

Eat a healthy varied diet

The general healthy eating message is to eat a variety of high fibre, low fat foods, with saturated fat replaced by unsaturated oils and five portions of fruit and vegetables per day. To do this, you should:

Eat more:	Eat less:
Fibre (wholemeal bread/pasta/rice)	Saturated fat (animal fat/ fatty meat products e.g. sausages and burgers)
Fruit /vegetables /fruit juice /salad /beans	Full fat dairy products (butter/ cheese/ lard)
Fish (especially oily fish)	Salt
Low fat alternatives for spreading and cooking	Processed foods
Replacing with oils such as olive, rapeseed and sunflower oil
Healthy options in take-away food and ready-made meals i.e. low fat and low salt

For more information on healthy eating, visit "Healthy Eating and High Blood Pressure".

Reduce salt intake

Salt cellar The sodium in salt can affect your blood pressure through its effect on your kidneys. Your kidneys are one of the organs in your body that help regulate your blood pressure.

Reducing salt in your diet will not be enough on its own to greatly reduce your blood pressure. However if you have a high intake normally and reduce it substantially you can achieve blood pressure reductions of 2-8 mmHg.

For further information on salt, visit "Salt and High Blood Pressure".

Keep physically active

Keep fit class You will already be aware that exercise is good for you. However its role in reducing your blood pressure is very important.

By exercising regularly you can bring down your blood pressure by as much as 10mmHg which is as much as many blood pressure lowering drugs. The aim is to do some form of aerobic exercise such as brisk walking for 30 minutes most days of the week.

For further information on how physical activity can help reduce high blood pressure, visit the "Physical Activity and High Blood Pressure" page.

Moderate alcohol intake

Different types of alcohol Drinking large quantities of alcohol is a common cause of sustained high blood pressure in young males.

Alcohol in excess of the amount your body can easily tolerate can cause high blood pressure. If you find you are drinking heavily on a regular basis this will put up your blood pressure and increase your weight. Binge drinking (drinking to get drunk) at any age can cause a temporary but significant rise in blood pressure and an increased risk of stroke.

For further information on alcohol and blood pressure, visit "Alcohol and High Blood Pressure".

Stop smoking

Smoking can increase your blood pressure If you smoke, you are much more likely to develop life threatening conditions such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, circulation problems and chronic lung problems.

When smoking is combined with high blood pressure, the risk of cardiovascular disease increases substantially. To find out more about stopping smoking, visit the "Smoking and High Blood Pressure" page.

Control diabetes and high cholesterol

Healthy eating can reduce cholesterol It is important to monitor and control diabetes and high cholesterol levels to reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke especially if you also have high blood pressure.