Hypertension – Introduction

HyperTension

 

Every year May 17th is dedicated to World Hypertension Day (WHD).  The purpose of WHD is to promote public awareness of hypertension.  In keeping with the spirit of the day, I am going to blog about Hypertension throughout May.

So what is Hypertension?

It is a stage of great psychological stress which causes abnormally high blood pressure.  The graphic to the left, indicates what is considered, low, normal, pre-high blood pressure and high blood pressure.

We all know that if we go to the GP they check our blood pressure, but why is it so important?

Firstly high blood pressure or hypertension is very common, according to the NHS it affects 1 in 4 adults in the UK.  Secondly it has no symptoms hence it is often referred to as the silent killer.   Thirdly it is the simply most significant risk factor for a range of diseases including:

  1. heart disease
  2. congestive heart failure
  3. stroke
  4. kidney disease
  5. dementia

The good news is that high blood pressure or hypertension is very easy to treat with mediation.  In addition there are a wide variety of lifestyle changes and therapy treatments that may assist hypertension.

Read part 2

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  • Hypertension – Dietary Factors

    Following on from my introduction to hypertension and lifestyle factors, I want to explore the link between diet and hypertension in this blog. Optimise your Gut Flora Compared to a placebo, people with high blood pressure who consumed probiotics lowered systolic blood pressure (the top number) by 3.56 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) by 2.38 mm Hg1.  Including taking probiotics, its is helpful to avoid sugar and processed foods.  I should mention that naturally fermented foods in your diet, may contain about 100 times the amount of bacteria than found in a bottle of high potency probiotics. But I appreciate form a practical point of view, buying probiotics is much easier! Eat a Healthy Diet I appreciate this is very common advice.  In 1998 in the journal of Diabetes reported that nearly two-thirds of the test subjects who were insulin resistant also high high blood pressure.  Insulin resistance is directly attributed to a high sugar, high carbohydrate diet especially if combined with inadequate exercise. Avoiding processed foods (due to their being high in sugar/fructose, grains, trans fat, and other damaged fats) is my number one recommendation if you have high blood pressure2. Instead, make whole, ideally organic, foods the focus of your diet. As you reduce processed foods, and other sources of non-vegetable carbs, from your diet, you’ll want to replace them with healthy fat. Read Part 4 References 1 Hypertension July 21, 2014 2 Metabolism. 2012 May;61(5):641-51.

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    • flush out all the waste products in the tired muscles
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  • What happens to your muscles when you sit?

    SittingMusclesChair sitting is unique in that Gluteus maximi are totally relaxed at the same time as having an upright torso, and they are therefore not able to contribute to lumbar extension and back stabilization as they usually do. Without the help of the Gluteal muscles, the Erector Spinae muscles above become tired and painful in a very short time, and give up fighting to maintain the correct "hollow" in the lumbar spine. The diagram on the left indicates what happens to three key muscles when you spend long periods of time sitting. The Hamstrings (H) are shortened by sitting.  Also, during sitting, the Gluteus Maximus (GM) is relaxed and unable to tension the lumbosacral fascia.  This means the Errector Spinae (ES) muscle group must therefore perform the entire lumber extension workload. This article discusses the link between lower back pain and the following muscle problems:-

    1. Shortening of the hamstring muscle.
    2. Overworking of the Erector Spinae muscle group and the development of trigger points.
    3. Overworking of the Iliopsoas muscle group and the development of trigger points.
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    • Relief of pain is often experienced by sitting down.
    • Worse upon lengthening the iliopsoas, i.e. when one stands up, or straightens the hip joint.
    • Worse for doing situps.
    • Worsened by externally rotating the hip (i.e. making the knee cap look outward) when the hip joint is fully extended.
    • In patients with sciatic nerve pain, lying flat on one's back with the legs out straight causes the trigger point tightened iliopsoas to compress the lumbar vertebrae together, with the result that the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve are compressed too.
    • When lying flat on one's back, doing a straight leg raise reveals weakness on the affected side.
    • In patients with sciatic nerve pain due to nerve root compression, lying flat on one's back with legs out straight stretches that trigger point tightened iliopsoas. The result is that the iliopsoas compresses the lumbar vertebrae together, and the the nerve roots of the sciatic nerve are compressed at the same time.
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