Hypertension and Obesity
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Prolonged hypertension and obesity occurring together greatly increases your chance of having:
You can see that to be obese is to court so many unnecessary health problems, and waging a firm war against obesity will greatly improve one's health. A sensible and realistic dieting program combined with exercise is the first step in achieving effective weight control. In these days of high tech, you do not need to be physically in a gym for a great workout.
Where you have tried diet and exercise without good effect, it might be time to include a weight loss medication or even weight loss surgery. It is critically important to take what steps you can, to find treatments and cures that work for you.
But what is the target blood pressure for the obese and what can you do specifically to overcome obesity and hypertension?
Hypertension or high blood pressure is the presence of a high level of tension or force being exerted on the wall of your arteries due to blood flowing at abnormally high force. It's like pushing water down a hose at a very high pressure.
In proper medical parlance, hypertension is said to occur if your blood is greater than 140/90mmHg consistently after more than two readings at different times. Normal blood pressure is usually anything between 90/60mmHg to 120/80mmHg in the young, and no more than 140/90mmHg at any age.
The definition of hypertension is thus a quantitative reference. For anyone to be diagnosed with hypertension, their blood pressure reading has to be taken at least twice over three different occasions. A persistently high blood pressure above 140/90mmHg in anyone up to the age of 65 will meet the criteria for the diagnosis of hypertension.
Most people would not require treatment for high blood pressure until they have a persistently raised blood pressure of 160/90 or more.
The target blood pressure in the obese should not be higher than 140/90mmHg. A lower threshold (of 140/90mmHg) is required to treat hypertension in any one with a BMI of more than 28! Hypertension and obesity are truly an unholy mix. Do something about it today.
You can monitor your blood pressure at home by getting a blood pressure measuring device from reputable international medical equipments store like MedexSupply and check your blood pressure weekly.
Be sure to get a device with a cuff width that covers up to 75% of your arm length and the length of the cuff should be three times the width, or be able to go round your arm almost twice. Getting the wrong cuff size will give you a false blood pressure reading.
Numerous clinical and animal studies have show a clear causal relationship between hypertension and obesity. The American Heart Association in 2005, reports that an "accumulating evidence points to visceral obesity as the most important risk factor for hypertension".
Obesity causes hypertension by several mechanisms, including:
We can see that hypertension and obesity are so closely linked, and losing weight greatly reverses the effect of obesity on high blood pressure.
As mentioned earlier, if you are obese and have high blood pressure, please ensure that your blood pressure never gets above 140/90mmHg. If it is higher than that at the moment, you need to see your doctor.
After two or three checks and if it remains high, it is time to treat both the hypertension and obesity.
For the treatment of blood pressure, there are several different medications available, and the choice of the right medication will depend on your age, race, and presence of other medical conditions and allergies. So it is vital that you see your own doctor to assess you for the right medication for you.
As a brief guide, the initial management of hypertension in anyone below 55 years of age and is not of the Afro-Caribbean race, is the use of a group of medications called the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors (ACE Inhibitors) like Lisinopril, 5 or 10mg daily depending on how high the levels are, if not allergic to this medication.
For anyone 55 years or more, or of Afro -Caribbean extraction at any age, who is hypertensive, the right initial choice of blood pressure medication would either a calcium channel blocker like Amlodipine, 5mg to 10mg once daily, or a diuretic like Hydrochlorothiazide 12.5mg once daily or bendroflumethiazide, 2.5mg once daily.
Other classes of medications can be added to the above where the blood pressure is not responding to the initial medication choice.
Treating your blood pressure alone is never going to cure it. You can completely cure your high blood pressure by losing weight.
Loose weight by combining:
Do you or your loved have high blood pressure and are overweight as well? Having problems controlling your weight or blood pressure? Wondering if you can get any further help or great ideas? Or just have a question or comment on this topic? Share it here!
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