High Blood Pressure Help?

[bluemarlin04]

I seem to have abnormally high blood pressure. I have passed all 5 previous class 2 flight physicals but am concerned health wise. I am also afraid it'll catch up to me later in life. My last physical I was pushing 135/90. It seems to always hover around there. Sometimes it'll be lower around 128/85 but sometimes I have pushed 145+ and the Doc's just told me it's more than likely from morning coffee. I exercise daily and am in incredibly good shape, eat right, don't abuse alcohol with excess and don't smoke. Is there anything I can do to get it to come down? I've been told it can be genetic. Furthermore, should I be concerned since I am only 24 and this has been going on since I was 18.

Thanks,
V/R Bluemarlin

 

[sickboy]

Mine does the same thing, in fact it was 140/82 today at the doctors. I didn't have any problems at NAMI with it. Just skip your coffee the day you go.

 

[Swanee]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_coat_hypertension

 

[bluemarlin04]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_coat_hypertension

Thanks for the link. Never even heard about this. My brother is a HM and all he told me was you'll be fine.

 

[The Chief]

For reasons of your health, it is too high. Take charge. Go buy a sphygmomanometer, about 20 bucks, and establish a baseline of readings at home, at least two or three times a day.

White coat syndrome is real IMHO, but you need to find out if that is the cause of the high readings.

 

[scoolbubba]

Cut out sodium, at least in the short term before a physical. Long term it can help, too.

 

[das]

Agree on cutting out the sodium. I always hovered near the dreaded 140/90 mark, even with good diet and exercise. I did two things: eliminate all extra sodium (i.e., don't add salt to anything and eat low sodium items), eliminate caffeine (I know this is tough for some people, but I didn't really consume much as it was), and drink a glass of pomegranate juice every day (because some say it "could" help). After a few weeks and no other changes, my blood pressure is around 120/80 -- and sometimes under. Perhaps it was only one of those things that helped me, but I can't argue with success.

Now, some people aren't "sodium sensitive" with respect to BP, and white coat syndrome does affect some people (including myself a bit). So as others have said, it's probably not a bad idea to invest in a BP monitor, and start tracking your BP at home outside of the doctor's office, and perhaps try cutting out caffeine and sodium (if you haven't already) to see if it helps. I know it worked for me.

 

[SynixMan]

I too had pretty high BP in college. Eating healthier (low fat, high protein, lots of fruit/veggies) over the long term helped the most. Salt and Caffeine are big players too. Try to limit to one caffeinated beverage a day.

In terms of salt, I cook a lot, so I'm not afraid of salt, but I am aware of it. Processed food had shit loads of salt. Even the healthier organic frozen meals/soups will have half your daily sodium intake in one package. It's just a fact that salt is the original preservative and flavor enhancer, and it works really well. So try to limit processed foods as much as possible, but feel okay about seasoning that piece of salmon with some salt before you grill it.

 

[feddoc]

Some pretty good gouge here so far...get yourself a blood pressure device as the Master Chief says. I prefer the electronic ones since my hearing is limited.

Hydrate and hydrate again, cut out sodium and caffiene and being around smoke and alcohol for at least 24 hours prior to your exam. No exercising for at least 12 hours prior and you should be ok.

 

[Picaroon]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_coat_hypertension

I used to get this bad. They took mine twice at MEPS because it was too high. Yet when I do it in a pharmacy or using someone's home blood pressure reader it's always perfect. Being nervous about the blood pressure while you're at the doctor makes it a self fulfilling problem and I could literally feel myself reacting to that anxiety.

As others said, cut sodium and hydrate. The sodium in food you buy is often way higher than food you make, even if you're adding a good amount of salt to a recipe. When they take your blood pressure, don't think about much, just sit there, breathe deeply and slowly, and close your eyes.

It went away after I went to OCS. It was fine at NAMI, my 3rd class, and the dentist. I'm not sure why, but maybe once you've had "drill instructor hypertension" the docs just don't give it to you anymore. Or maybe the extra exercise helped.

 

[bluemarlin04]

Thanks for the replies. I am definitely going to start tracking it on my own. I am more concerned health wise especially when I get older. I eat really healthy (follow a bodybuilding diet) and watch my sodium intake. I do drink two cups of coffee in the morning and sometimes have diet soda in the afternoon. I think I will cut back on the caffeine consumption and try to stick to water. I remember in boot camp I was 19 and had a 140/85 but had a 45 resting heart rate. Hopefully it'll drop down when I cut back on caffeine.

 

[NTXRockr]

I'm in the same boat as most of you. I'm a standard 120/80 at 55bpm with minor glitches up and down, but when going to MEPS or somewhere that it really matters other than the PCM or dentist, etc, I'm up like a rocket. My initial MEPS physical I was 147/87, 148/85 and then 152/95 (yikes!). After they DQ'd me I went to a local clinic at 8am and 5pm for a week, and like clockwork I was at 120/80 +/- 1 or 2 each time, so I'm a full believer of white coat syndrome. I do find that if I cut out high-salt foods and processed foods, as well as the caffeine, and hydrate at least 80-100 ounces per day I'm usually golden. I haven't heard about the pomegranate juice so I'll have to look into it and try it. My biggest problem is losing the weight; if I keep at or below my goal weight I'm usually having little to no problems with blood pressure, but being as little as 5 or 10 pounds too heavy (in my case 20) can make a huge difference.

Picaroon, I hope after my stint in Newport this summer that I, too, have had a healthy dose of "drill instructor hypertension" that it disappears completely.

 

[squorch2]

FWIW, "high salt" and "processed foods" are pretty much the same thing. Cut out the frozen dinners, dial back on eating out and add little, if any salt to the things you do eat - which should be mostly fresh vegetables/fruits anyway.

 

[NightVisionPen]

In addition to cutting out processed foods, I would look into a paleolithic diet. Check out robbwolf.com. He has a book called The Paleo Solution which I recommend as well.

 

[Sapper!]

not a good idea, disregard