Preventing hypertension starts now.

by 60888888 on 2010-02-01 10:51:43

For hypertension, no matter which race it comes from, which age group it is in, which gender it belongs to, and which genetic gene it carries, some preventive measures can be taken to reduce the likelihood of developing hypertension. So how do we prevent high blood pressure? The following suggestions may be helpful to you:

1) Maintain a healthy weight; if you are overweight, you must lose weight!

As your weight increases, so does your blood pressure. The fact is that when a person is overweight, they are more likely to develop high blood pressure. Compared to people with normal weight, the likelihood of developing the condition can be 2-6 times higher.

By losing weight, you can reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure. Even if you only lose a little weight, it plays a crucial role in preventing high blood pressure. And if you already have high blood pressure and are overweight, losing weight can also help lower your blood pressure.

To achieve weight loss, the calories you consume must be less than the amount you burn. But remember, you shouldn't resort to extreme dieting for quick weight loss (please refer to hypertensive dietary therapy). The weight loss process should be gradual, aiming to lose about 0.5-1 pound per week, which is the healthiest and most sustainable way. Eating a little less each day, exercising more, and reducing your daily calorie intake by 500 calories means you can lose one pound in a week (equivalent to 3500 calories).

2) Exercise more

Exercising more is also very important because it helps burn calories. Exercising regularly while reducing fat and calorie intake allows you to lose even more excess weight.

In fact, besides helping with weight loss, exercising more has many other benefits: it reduces the likelihood of developing heart disease; lowers overall cholesterol levels; raises HDL-cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, the "good" cholesterol) levels; and lowers high blood pressure. Compared to those who don't exercise, people who exercise more have a much lower chance of developing high blood pressure, approximately 20%-50% lower.

To exercise more and stay fit, you don't need to train like a marathon runner. Even gentle exercise, if done consistently every day, can reduce the likelihood of developing heart disease. Therefore, you can adjust your exercise appropriately, not too intense, not too excessive, just appropriate and effective.

Fitness exercises offer numerous benefits; they improve the health of your heart and lungs, providing better protection against heart attacks. Swimming, brisk walking, running, and skipping rope all fall under aerobic exercises, meaning your body needs oxygen to provide energy for these activities. If the intensity of aerobic exercise is moderate and you can persist for 30 minutes or more each time, doing it 3-4 times a week will keep your cardiorespiratory system in good condition. If you don't have 30 minutes of free time, you can choose two sessions, each lasting 15 minutes, or even three sessions of 10 minutes each. In short, you should try to do as much aerobic exercise as possible each week.

3) Choose low-salt, low-sodium foods

Generally speaking, if patients with hypertension reduce their intake of salt and sodium, their blood pressure will drop; reducing the intake of salt and sodium can prevent blood pressure from rising.

In addition to what has been mentioned above, another important preventive measure is quitting smoking. Although smoking is not directly linked to hypertension, it increases the likelihood of developing heart disease and stroke (please refer to dietary restrictions for hypertension).