Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Blood Pressure

The last thing I would be doing is telling knuckleheads to gargle and gobble potassium rich foods till they get some lab work, especially if you got blood pressure issues, the beetus, pre beetus, muscle weakness in legs, recent heart palps or pvcs

I developed high blood pressure around the time I turned 50. Everything else is normal, weight is good and I've always exercised. I've inherited it from my mother's side of the family, and am on meds now for it. It was 180/90 when I got diagnosed and I could feel it thumping away when I went to bed. It seemed to come on suddenly - it was within normal range when I'd had a physical for a new job a few months earlier.

Seems that my sister inherited cholesterol problems from my father - I thought it was brought on by lifestyle but that's not always the case.

Edit: My doctor suspected a bad artery in/to the liver because of how quick it seemed to come on, but it wasn't, and he was disappointed since it's easier to fix apparently.

Mine goes up significantly after my bodyweight hits 180. You didn't mention your weight.

I take blood pressure medicine but if my weight stays below 220 I don't have to - at least for now.

Unfortunately I'm at 238 so I take them daily. I am religious about it.

One isolated reading doesn’t confirm high or low BP. Find a new MD if they want to immediately place you on meds. Elevated BP is diagnosed from multiple readings, especially if there are no obvious reasons.

BP can also be too low and cause pooling of blood in chambers of the heart. Which can sometimes cause a clot. Having a low continuous diastolic number, in older individuals is now considered a dangerous precursor to potential pooling of blood in a chamber.

Messing around with ones electrolytes can be dangerous.Or one could drink too much water and temporarily dilute out their lytes and cause a false BP reading. Dehydration can also cause a false lreading.

Drinking 8 glass of water a day is no longer a recommendation for all. Urine color is most often the indicator of water needs in otherwise healthy individuals. Although kidney issues may cause that not to be true.

One reading may or may not give a true BP average and BP variations over the course of a day are not uncommon. Sleep issues? Actual BP is best determined by a MD who takes into account multiple variables. Recently I went thru a couple week period of elevated BP, and took multiple reading through out the day with the same results. Then mysteriously it reverted to normal.

Body position and cuff elevation can also cause reading errors.

Cut out salt if its in your diet, eat more garlic.

Wow, lots of bad advice here. But here goes:

Blood pressure changes constantly. An isolated reading doesn't necessitate the need for meds. However, consistent readings do. Buy an automatic blood pressure cuff. Take it three or four times a day for two weeks. Once before each meal and again before bed. Write a log and take it to your provider. Be honest, no trying to fudge the numbers or changing lifestyles. Also record your pulse. Give this information to your provider so they can get an accurate idea of what is going on over time.

If your blood pressure consistently runs over 140 systolic, you're going to start medications; likely starting with an ACE-Inhibitor. If you do not want to take the meds long-term, lifestyle changes are necessary. No stimulants, no caffeine, and most importantly lose some weight and get regular exercise. Exercise will help your body's blood vessels remain elastic so that when your body compensates with extra blood flow, large amounts of pressure doesn't follow suit.

If you can't maintain pressures in a normal range without medication, just accept the medication so that you don't have stroke, heart attack, or fry your kidneys. If your labs show proper electrolyte balances, don't try to change your diet to "high potassium" or something like that. Your body has a way for remaining in homeostatic balance so long as your organs, particularly kidneys, are healthy.

Good luck!

This. Most of the time.

-Ken

And the human body isn't programmed to be obese as here...Look at some of the European countries for evidence. Obesity is rarely genetic, and BP has a definite correlation with obesity which here again is common. Obesity causes more BP issues than genetics most every day of the week.

You asked about supplements that "may" help cardiovascular health:

Complete Multivitamin - Centrum Silver
NOW Brand Blood Pressure Health
MegaRed - Omegas
CoQ10/Ubiquinol
Beetroot Powder + a Nitric Oxide booster - L-Arginine, L-Citrulline
Resveratrol

Otherwise it is Beta-blocker time.

I developed BP problems at around 40 years of age.
I fought like hell, lost 40 pounds .... still chewed, smoked and sat on my newly crippled a$$! (car wreck) and drank coffee, tea and brown soft drinks.
Cut back on caffeine. It's a big contributor. In my case anyway.
An 81mg aspirin a day helps.
I eat salt like it's popcorn, but my blood sodium stays normal.
I enjoy walking, but a crushed heel and a prosthetic hip (same car wreck) restrict mobility due to pain.
I'm NOT going to dope up just to walk. The dope is worse than the inactivity.
Reducing metabolic intake.
Stay away from "burgers and fries" as much as possible.
Saturday is my "cheat" day. One meal can be anything I want. Ham & cheese omelet, chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and gravy, etc, etc. The good stuff! 😉
The rest of the time, it baked chicken and boiled veggies...or whatever else is "healthy".

There is only so much you can do.
Do what you can.
I've been on "lysinopril HTCZ" 1×/day for several years now.
It works.

Some things that might help:

1. Research shows that taking your BP meds at night gives a stronger, more lasting effect;

2. Take beet root powder by Humann each morning (link below);

https://www.humann.com/products/superbeets-superfood?variant=29389025935471

3. Take L-arginine + L-citrulline supp morning and night (link below);

https://www.amazon.com/L-arginine-Pro-Now-Supplement-L-Citrulline

4. Take Nattokinase supp (link below----3x daily, thins the blood);

https://supplementfirst.com/product...msclkid=08d0c0d6134015db8015a230882f706e


5. Take Complete Blood Pressure solution from Newport Natural Health.

https://www.newportnaturalhealth.co...-solution-natural-supplement-nattokinase



6. Lose weight and exercise!

This is great advice. The 140 number is a little high in my opinion.

If you need the meds you need the meds. Drop the male arrogance and take them. Then, as another poster said, after your diet and exercise changes kick in, you can discontinue the meds.

My product portfolio is specific to cardiology so I’m in cardiology clinics daily. I see younger and younger people, almost all of them men.

Pride means shìt to your heart.





P

First, if your blood pressure is high, get it down, don't "try something". If it's high, you're doing damage, get it down.

As far as "life style": diet and exercise have been mentioned. Reducing stimulants, carbs, salt, for sure.

What hasn't been mentioned is that you should increase your intake of "heart healthy fats". These are shown to increase (or at least slow the decrease) of the elasticity of the blood vessels, which in turn educes blood pressure.

Try adding fish and oils like olive oil, avocado, coconut oil, walnut oil and flax oil to your meals. Other sources include free range eggs, wild game, pastured beef and pork.

Generally, anything with high levels of MCT (Medium Chain Triglycerides) will have benefits, and using a variety of these types of foods and oils is much better than using just one, or supplements, although I take a fish oil supplement every day.

Viking: I remember years ago reading about a long term medical study where folks in America that had taken high blood pressure "medication" lived an average of 51 days longer than those who did not take the "medications".
Now if a person were at or very near end of life that 51 days would be a very enticing reason to take the meds!
Luckily I have been blessed with very low blood pressure (no medication).
Best of luck with your situation.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

We as Americans spend a lot of money on our healthcare and we can amazingly keep people alive a long time, despite terrible disease. Sure, you can let your blood pressure go hog wild, and you may leave for the most part, just as long. But you may do so post-stroke which you may have half your body you cannot use. You may spend months of your life working in rehab learning to use your body again. Or perhaps you destroy the arteries that feed your kidneys and spend the last years of your life on dialysis. Perhaps even your legs will get cut off, but you'll only live 51 days less. Let us ignore chronic health issues and overall quality of life, like we Americans tend to do.

Or perhaps those taking blood pressure medicines are being kept alive just as long as those that don't need them; truly indicating what a life-saver blood pressure medications can be.

I don't know, but I wouldn't rely on a reading at the doctors office as the final word. Get a monitor and check it home at different times for a couple weeks or so. Doctors love to put people on BP medicine.

Mainly to prevent the leading cause of strokes, some fatal and many debilitating for life or what’s left of it.

You can always reduce the medication or even get off of it completely later.

First things first.

Jmo

Just now checked mine 139/61 left arm, 134/63 right arm, pulse 66. Have been on BP medication since I was 30. Accidently found out when a home health nurse was visiting an older relative and I got her to check mine. It was150/100 at a time when I was under no particular stress. She checked it a time or two more and told me I needed to get treated for it. My old doctor told me that wasn't high (1982) but I told him it was and he wrote a prescription for Aldoril which helped some. Now I'm on Norvasc 5mg once a day and Bisoprolol Fumarate 5mg twice a day. I understand the bottom number should be 1/2 to 2/3 of the top number but since I have the beginnings of right side heart failure that ain't happening.

My maternal grandfather dropped dead of a heart attack at age 49 and my father died of heart failure so I guess I'm lucky to be up and going pretty good for coming 70yo in 5 days. Would probably be dead by now if not for BP medicine.

^^^

Good thing you did what you knew that you needed to do years ago.

None of us can outrun our genetics but lifestyle and medications as required can sure extend the quality of life.