blood pressure tagged posts

New marathon runners reduced blood pressure, arterial stiffness equivalent to a 4-year reduction in vascular age. The new year means it’s time to set resolutions for 2020 and new research from the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggests running a marathon for the first time could have several health benefits. The study found that for first-time marathon runners, training and completion of the marathon was associated with reductions in blood pressure and aortic stiffening in healthy participants that were equivalent to a four-year reduction in vascular age, with the greatest benefits seen in older, slower male marathon runners with higher baseline blood pressure.

“As clinicians are meeting with patients in the new year, making a goal-oriented exercise training recomme...

When combined with a diet low in saturated fats, eating walnuts may help lower blood pressure in people at risk for cardiovascular disease, according to a new Penn State study.

In a randomized, controlled trial, researchers examined the effects of replacing some of the saturated fats in participants’ diets with walnuts. They found that when participants ate whole walnuts daily in combination with lower overall amounts of saturated fat, they had lower central blood pressure.

According to the researchers, central pressure is the pressure that is exer...

Catching some midday shut-eye linked to similar drops in blood pressure seen with other lifestyle changes, some medications. It seems that napping may do more than just reboot our energy level and improve our mood. New research being presented at the American College of Cardiology’s 68th Annual Scientific Session found that people who took advantage of a midday snooze were more likely to have a noticeable drop in blood pressure compared with those who didn’t nap.

“Midday sleep appears to lower blood pressure levels at the same magnitude as other lifestyle changes...

Diet has already impacted guidelines in Canada and Europe. The research, published today in Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Disease, was a secondary analysis of data collected for a 2011 study on the effect of the ‘portfolio diet’ on cholesterol. The portfolio diet lowered blood pressure by ~2%, when compared with another diet recommended to reduce hypertension.

The portfolio diet includes foods that are scientifically-proven to lower cholesterol including mixed nuts, soy protein, plant sterols (found in vegetable oils and leafy vegetables) and viscous fiber (found in oats, barley and eggplant). The comparison method, a dietary approach to stopping hypertension, or DASH diet, emphasizes fruit, vegetables and whole grains, reduced meat and dairy intake, and eliminating snack food.