Uniquely Health
High blood pressure can significantly affect your life, limiting daily activities, causing health-related anxiety, and even straining relationships with loved ones.
Introduction
However, there are ways to improve your blood pressure and manage these challenges alongside.
Services that support positive lifestyle changes and promote a healthy mindset are increasingly invaluable for individuals managing high blood pressure. Uniquely Health is a trusted partner in this journey, offering practical recommendations, building confidence, and providing ongoing support to help you in the management of hypertension.
So, what areas of your lifestyle could benefit from attention?
Key risk factors that you can influence
- Body weight
- Salt intake
- Exercise levels
- Caffeine intake
- Smoking
- Stress levels
These are called modifiable risk factors. This is because they can be controlled or changed by you.
Research has shown effective lifestyle modification may lower blood pressure as much as a single blood pressure-lowering drug. A combined lifestyle approach can achieve even better results than antihypertensive drugs and reduce the need for medication (1).
Weight
Carrying excess weight puts a strain on your heart, contributing to around 65-75% of hypertension cases, especially in those with high levels of visceral fat (2). Aiming for a healthy weight is one of the most effective ways to manage your blood pressure.
Diet (3)
Your diet plays a crucial role in managing your blood pressure. Here are some top tips to maintain a healthy blood pressure:
- Increase fruit and vegetable intake
- Reduce sodium intake
- Reduce processed food consumption
- Choose wholegrain options
- Lower consumption of red meat
- Add nuts, seeds and olive oil to your diet!
Exercise (4)
Regular physical activity is essential for managing blood pressure. Aerobic exercise and resistance training both help in the lowering of systolic and diastolic pressure by improving cardiovascular health and relaxing blood vessels.
- Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week
- Try brisk walking, swimming, or cycling, and also aim to add strength training to your routine
Other tips
- Limit caffeine intake to 2 cups per day
- Quit smoking
- Manage stress levels
Where to go for help?
At Uniquely Health, we offer personalised support for managing pre-hypertension and hypertension. Our GP-led service brings together Dietitians and Exercise Scientists to help you make sustainable lifestyle changes. If you’re unsure where to start, get in touch for expert-led guidance on lowering your blood pressure.
Interested in finding out more?
(Please note this is an external editorial not written by Blood Pressure UK)
References:
- Nicoll, R. and Henein, M.Y., 2010. Hypertension and lifestyle modification: how useful are the guidelines?. British journal of general practice, 60(581), pp.879-880.
- Hall, J.E., do Carmo, J.M., da Silva, A.A., Wang, Z. and Hall, M.E., 2015. Obesity-induced hypertension: interaction of neurohumoral and renal mechanisms. Circulation research, 116(6), pp.991-1006.
- Maniero, C., Lopuszko, A., Papalois, K.B., Gupta, A., Kapil, V. and Khanji, M.Y., 2023. Non-pharmacological factors for hypertension management: a systematic review of international guidelines. European journal of preventive cardiology, 30(1), pp.17-33.
- Ghadieh, A.S. and Saab, B., 2015. Evidence for exercise training in the management of hypertension in adults. Canadian Family Physician, 61(3), pp.233-239.