Did you know that the 17th of May was World Hypertension day? Well now you do! So let’s chat about hypertension.
Firstly, what is it, and why should we take it so seriously?
Hypertension, otherwise known as high blood pressure, is a serious medical condition that significantly increases your risk of heart, brain and kidney disease.
A study done in 2015 has shown that 1 in every 4 men, and 1 in every 5 women have hypertension. Crazy, right?
Let’s look at what contributes to hypertension:
- Age
- Genetics
- Stress
- Smoking
- Obesity
- Sedentary lifestyle
- High salt intake
- Alcoholism
- Kidney disease
- Thyroid disorders
So how can we prevent ourselves from developing hypertension?
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Increased weight puts increased stress and demand on your blood vessels and kidneys, resulting in increased blood pressure.
- Visit your biokineticist for a safe weight loss programme and your dietician for a healthy diet plan.
- Reduce your salt intake
- Salt causes water retention which results in increased blood pressure.
- Have a close look at your diet and find ways to reduce your salt intake.
- Exercise regularly
- Exercise helps control weight, decreases pressure on the heart and blood vessels, and minimizes stress.
- Visit your biokineticist or physiotherapist for a safe exercise programme.
- Manage stress
- Stress is a huge contributor to blood pressure so it is very important to find ways to control it.
- Try meditation, breathing exercises, journaling or yoga to help control your stress levels.
- Quit smoking
- Smoking damages your blood vessels, lungs and heart, all of which causes an increase in blood pressure.
- Make an active decision to quit smoking to save your own life.
Use these tips to help control your blood pressure, and most importantly make sure to work together with your doctor and biokineticist to treat and prevent hypertension!
