Lower your BP

Want to lower your blood pressure? Add more soy or low-fat dairy to your diet.

Partly replacing refined carbohydrates with foods or drinks high in soy or milk protein may help prevent and treat high blood pressure, according to a new study.

Study participants who took a milk protein supplement had 2.3 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) lower systolic blood pressure, compared to when they took a refined carbohydrate supplement.

Participants who took a soy protein supplement had a 2.0 mmHg lower systolic blood pressure when compared to the refined carbohydrate supplement.

The 352 adults in the study were at increased risk of high blood pressure or had mild cases of the condition.

"The systolic blood pressure differences we found are small for the individual, but they are important at the population level," said Jiang He, M.D., Ph.D., lead researcher of the study.

The study has been published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Lack of Sleep...Increased B.P.

Not getting a proper night's sleep increases the risk of high blood pressure in older men by 80 pc compared to those who got longer, less interrupted sleep, according to a new research.

Slow wave sleep (SWS), one of the deeper stages of sleep, is characterized by non-rapid eye movement (non-REM) from which it's difficult to awaken. It's represented by relatively slow, synchronized brain waves called delta activity on an electroencephalogram.

Researchers from the Outcomes of Sleep Disorders in Older Men Study (MrOs Sleep Study) found that people with the lowest level of SWS had an 80 per cent increased risk of developing high blood pressure.

"Our study shows for the first time that poor quality sleep, reflected by reduced slow wave sleep, puts individuals at significantly increased risk of developing high blood pressure, and that this effect appears to be independent of the influence of breathing pauses during sleep," said Susan Redline, M.D., the study's co-author and Peter C. Farrell Professor of Sleep Medicine in the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass.

The researchers measured how long 784 men with an average age of 75 spent in SWS.

Those for whom SWS took up less than 4 per cent of sleep time were significantly more likely to develop high blood pressure during the 3.4 years of the study.

Men with reduced SWS had generally poorer sleep quality as measured by shorter sleep duration and more awakenings at night and had more severe sleep apnea than men with higher levels of SWS.

However, of all measures of sleep quality decreased SWS were the most strongly associated with the development of high blood pressure. This relationship was observed even after considering other aspects of sleep quality.

The findings remained consistent even after the researchers took weight, race and age into account.

The study has been detailed in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Self care tips for high blood pressure

Lifestyle changes can help control and prevent high blood pressure, even if one is on blood pressure medication.

Eat healthy foods

Try a diet, which emphasises fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy foods. Get plenty of potassium, which can help prevent and control high blood pressure. Eat less saturated fat and total fat. Limit the amount of sodium in the diet. Avoid coffee and colas.

If overweight, losing even 5 pounds can lower blood pressure.

Regular physical activity can help lower blood pressure and keep weight under control. Strive for at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day.

Even if you're healthy, alcohol can raise your blood pressure. If you choose to drink alcohol, do so in moderation.

Tobacco injures blood vessel walls and speeds up the process of hardening of the arteries. So quit smoking.

Use little or no salt to food. Develop a taste for low salt in food. Do not use table salt.

Reduce stress as much as possible. Practice healthy coping techniques, such as muscle relaxation and deep breathing. Getting plenty of sleep can help, too.

In addition to diet and exercise, the doctor may recommend medication to lower blood pressure. Which category of medication the doctor prescribes depends on the stage of high blood pressure and whether or not you also have other medical conditions.

Follow-up regularly with your doctor and get a blood pressure machine at home for monitoring the changes.