Spending an evening peering into the cosmos can be a great way to relax and maintain a healthy blood pressure. Use this blood pressure chart to find out what levels are healthy for you.
Blood pressure measures the amount of pressure that blood puts on blood vessels both when the heart is beating and when it is resting. The top number, or systolic pressure, measures pressure while the heart is beating while the bottom number, diastolic pressure, measures while the heart is relaxed.
A Blood Pressure Chart represents the different stages of blood pressure. Blood pressure can range from hypotension, which is too little pressure to hypertension, which is too high blood pressure. A normal reading is somewhere around 120/80. 90/60 usually marks blood pressure that is too low, while 140/90 is the beginning of blood pressure that is too high.
Majority of people have hypertension, which means it is too high. In a Blood Pressure Chart, hypertension can be divided into many different stages. If a person reaches 160/100 on a regular basis, they are generally put on a medication to help control blood pressure so it does not get any higher. Anything higher than 180/110 is cause for extreme concern as it can lead to heart-related illnesses, strokes, heart attacks, kidney disease, and ultimately death.
There are many different causes for high blood pressure. The most common causes can be diet, lifestyle, and sometimes it can even be genetic. Diet is a very important factor in affecting blood pressure. Diets high in salt and fat will have the biggest impact. Also, sedentary lifestyles can lead to high blood pressure because the heart, like any other muscle, needs regular exercise. In many cases, high blood pressure can run in the family, which means even with the right combination of diet and exercise, it may still be too high and medication or other medical treatments may be necessary.
Many different things can be done in order to help lower blood pressure. The first thing is to change one’s diet. This means eliminating sodium and fatty foods from the diet, and incorporating healthier options. A good diet should consist of high fiber beans, turkey and chicken rather than red meats, fruits, and vegetables. Avoid hydrogenated oils and substitute it with extra virgin olive oil instead. Do not get light olive oil, as this is only light in flavor not calories. Many vitamins and supplements can be used as well such as fish oils, flax seed, garlic, calcium, vitamin C, and potassium.
In addition to changing diet, lowering blood pressure also means getting regular cardiovascular exercise. With a doctor’s consent, this exercise should get the heart rate to at least 130 beats per minute and stay there. An easy way to measure if one is getting the right intensity of exercise is if they are sweating. One should begin and continue to sweat throughout the entire workout. Losing just 5-10 pounds can take a person from pre-hypertension to normal levels immediately following the weight loss.
Blood pressure can be a very tricky thing to navigate around; however, knowing what the different ranges are can help a person determine if they are healthy. If not, there are many different ways to help lower blood pressure and keep it normal.
