High blood pressure – what to do?

1. Nuts against potassium deficiency

The risk of high blood pressure can increase if you consume too little potassium. There is a lot of potassium in fruit (e.g. apricots, bananas, plums), vegetables (e.g. fennel, spinach, chard), dried fruit (e.g. dates, figs, raisins) and nuts such as pistachios, peanuts, almonds etc.

2. Reduce stress

High blood pressure and stress often go hand in hand – so take a little break! Learn relaxation techniques such as autogenic training or progressive muscle relaxation. Before you get angry, take a deep breath and count to ten. Sometimes you feel better and your blood pressure drops.

3. Goodbye cigarettes

The great danger of high blood pressure: Complications such as vascular calcification and thus an increasing risk of a heart attack. Therefore, make sure to avoid additional risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. This includes quitting smoking!

4. Losing weight is easy on the heart

The more weight you carry around with you, the harder the heart has to work to properly supply all vessels with blood. Therefore, patients who are overweight should try to reduce their weight. The blood pressure then usually levels off at a lower level.

5. Movement in everyday life

If you exercise regularly, you train your heart and circulation. As a result, blood pressure also drops. Going to the gym or jogging every day is ideal, but more exercise in everyday life also helps: Ignore the escalator from time to time and take the stairs, walk or cycle to work – you can do something with such small measures for your circuit.

6. Proper training

Find a sport that you enjoy. Because regular endurance training is good for permanently lowering high blood pressure. Before you start, you should talk to your doctor: He can clarify how strong your personal physical strain can be.

7. Little salt, lots of fruit and vegetables

Caution, salt: High blood pressure patients should not consume more than six grams per day! Plenty of fruit and vegetables are also good. On the other hand, you should eat sparingly saturated fats, such as those found in animal foods such as butter, cream or meat. Variety in the diet also prevents risks from unbalanced diets.

8. Alcohol in moderation

A glass of wine is acceptable. However, it shouldn’t be anymore. Experts from the German Society for Nutrition (DGE) recommend men no more than 20 grams of alcohol a day. This corresponds to almost half a litre of beer or a glass of wine. Women should only eat half, i.e., ten grams.

9. Measure blood pressure regularly

People who are overweight or have high blood pressure in the family should especially keep an eye on their blood pressure. Regular measurements enable timely intervention.

10. Take your medication

If you need to take medication for high blood pressure, be sure to do it regularly. Talk to your doctor if you need or want to take other medications. Some medicines can increase blood pressure.

11. Acupuncture, Schuessler salts and Co.

Using alternative approaches to lower high blood pressure? Acupuncture, for example, has shown promising results in some studies and not in others. Some Schuessler salts or homeopathic remedies are also said to help get blood pressure values under control. This has not been proven either. Nevertheless, it can be worth a try – but best as an accompaniment to conventional medical therapy.

Managing blood pressure is a lifelong commitment. If you have high blood pressure, it’s vital that you listen to your doctor. Remember: You’re a part of your healthcare team. Educate yourself about HBP and learn how to monitor your blood pressure at home. Armed with this information, you can commit to living heart healthy.

By adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle, you can:

• Reduce high blood pressure.
• Prevent or delay the development of high blood pressure.
• Enhance the effectiveness of blood pressure medications.
• Lower your risk of heart attack, stroke, heart failure, kidney damage and vision loss.

One in eight deaths worldwide is thought to be the result of high blood pressure, or hypertension. Left untreated, the condition raises the risk of heart attacks, strokes and other severe health problems, and it condition plagues, on average, a quarter of men and a fifth of women. In certain places, the figures are far higher – in Central and Eastern Europe, it is as many as 40 per cent of men, and in the Sahel, more than a third of women. In the Middle East, hypertension levels are also high, ranging from 20 per cent in Iran, 29 per cent in United Arab Emirates and 30 per cent in Oman. Across the GCC, more than a third of adults have hypertension or diabetes, or both, and the average patient with heart disease is almost a decade younger than in the West.

You can fight high blood pressure, while heart disease is still the No. 1 killer around the world, death rates have decreased significantly. You can reclaim your health today for a better tomorrow. Earlier and better treatment of high blood pressure has played a key role in that decrease.

Why buying a Health Insurance Plan for a Hypertension Patient is Important?

The inflation in medical costs is making it really hard for an average-salaried person to take care of medical expenses like doctors’ fees, expensive medicines, hospitalisation charges, diagnostic tests, etc. By investing in a health insurance plan, you will not only be reimbursed for the hospitalization charges, but it will also safeguard you against out-patient or day-care costs.

People are increasingly switching to private hospitals for getting quality medical treatment. A well-researched and bought health plan will help you focus more on getting the best medical care rather than worrying about expenses.

You need to relax as worrying about medical costs can deteriorate your health further. After all, you can’t afford more tension when you are already a patient of hypertension!