Five ways to prevent high blood pressure

Limit salt and weight, exercise regularly, quit smoking and limit alcohol, stabilize your mood, and monitor regularly. Don’t think it’s all clichés that you’re tired of hearing. I’ve been working in community chronic disease management for 6 years and have seen thousands of patients with hypertension. Only less than 30% of them can actually do these things right.

Regarding salt intake, there are actually two voices in the academic circles. One is to strictly follow the WHO recommendation of no more than 5g per day, which is about the amount of a beer bottle cap. The other is for people in northern areas who eat very heavy salt and people with heavy tastes. It is recommended not to cut it to 5g all at once, but to reduce it by 1-2g every month and gradually reduce it to the standard line. On the contrary, it is easier to persist in the long term and it is not easy to secretly eat pickles to supplement the taste. On the contrary, the effect is better. Last month, Aunt Zhang in the community was a typical example. She strictly used 2g of salt spoon when cooking, and only put one spoon in a meal. As a result, she had to eat porridge with two small packets of pickles every day, and she always stole her grandson's potato chips as snacks. Her sodium intake was measured to be higher than that of people who eat salt freely. Of course, her blood pressure was not stable. By the way, when it comes to weight control tied to salt restriction, you don’t have to pursue a “perfect figure” with a BMI below 20. As long as it is controlled within the normal range of 18.5-23.9, the waist circumference does not exceed 90cm for men and 85cm for women. The weight lost by starvation is easy to rebound, which is not good at stabilizing blood pressure.

Many people think that because they are young and have no symptoms of dizziness and headaches, they have nothing to do with high blood pressure, but this is not the case. Last month at a community free clinic, I met a 32-year-old Internet programmer. His annual physical examination at work was normal. I took a blood pressure test that day and it was 146/96. I was completely confused. After further questioning, I found out that he often stayed up late to catch up on projects, ate takeaways heavy in oil and salt, and would never take the initiative to measure his blood pressure. There is no unified standard for monitoring frequency: for ordinary healthy people, measuring once every six months to a year is enough. However, if you have a family history of high blood pressure, are overweight, or often stay up late, it is best to have a blood pressure monitor at home and measure it 1-2 times a week. As for whether to choose the upper arm or wrist type, there is no need to listen to people who say that the wrist type is not accurate at all. As long as it is calibrated regularly and daily monitoring is sufficient, it is more convenient for the elderly living alone to use the wrist type without having to roll up their sleeves.

When it comes to adjusting living habits, many people are very motivated at the beginning, but they tend to fall into traps. Last year, Mr. Liu was diagnosed with pre-hypertension. He heard from the doctor that more exercise could reverse the condition, so he started running 5 kilometers every morning. After running for half a month, his knees gave out. He gained 8 pounds in three months of recovery, and his blood pressure was even higher than before. Regarding exercise requirements, the current mainstream guideline recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per week, which is to the extent that you can talk but not sing during exercise. However, many studies in the past two years have proven that the effects of fragmented exercise are actually similar. For example, walking an extra two stops to and from get off work, climbing stairs for 10 minutes between work, and just enough 30 minutes a day is enough. You don’t have to squeeze out a whole time to go to the gym, which is more friendly to 996 office workers.

Rather than exercising, more people fall for the phrase "have a drink to enjoy yourself." Especially many people believe that drinking red wine can soften blood vessels, and they drink two ounces of it every night for dinner. Here is an objective conclusion: both the WHO and domestic hypertension prevention and treatment guidelines clearly state that there is no so-called safe amount of alcohol. Even just one drink a day will increase the risk of hypertension. However, in clinical practice, we will not force all drinkers to quit immediately. There are also popular data showing that people who limit their alcohol intake to less than 15g per day (about one or two white wines or half a bottle of red wine) have a 70% lower risk of disease than those who drink alcohol. If you really can't quit, you can reduce the amount to the minimum first, which will be more cost-effective than forcing quitting to cause anxiety, insomnia, and blood pressure fluctuations. As for smoking, regardless of whether it is first-hand or second-hand, you must quit if you can. This is a conclusion that is not controversial in the academic circles.

What many people overlook is that the impact of emotions on blood pressure is actually much faster than eating the wrong meal. There was a 72-year-old man whose blood pressure was usually very stable. He had a fight with his chess friends over a regrettable chess game. He became dizzy and couldn't stand. He was sent to the emergency room and his blood pressure was measured at 187/102. He was almost in danger. There is no unified standard for methods of emotional regulation. Some people say that mindfulness meditation is useful, while others think that it is an IQ tax. In fact, there is no need to worry about the form. Just take three to five minutes a day to be in a daze, avoid getting angry with others, and don’t get angry over trivial things. Any adjustment method is more effective than any other.

All in all, these five methods are not complicated, and there is no need to force yourself to achieve 100% in everything. I have seen many elderly people who have very good blood pressure control. Some of them really can't quit smoking after a lifetime of smoking, so they control salt very strictly. They can't stop walking for an hour after meals every day, and their blood pressure can be stabilized within the normal range. Preventing this is never about taking a test paper. You don't have to pursue perfect scores. The best method is what suits you and can be sustained for a long time.