Chronic Anger May Contribute to High Blood Pressure

A recent study in the Annals of Family Medicine shows that getting angry on a regular basis may shorten the path to heart disease in men with prehypertension (blood pressure above normal but less than the high blood pressure range).

Data came from 2,334 U.S. adults aged 48-67. They were followed for four to eight years during the 1990s.

Compared with less angry men, chronically angry men with prehypertension were moderately more likely to develop high blood pressure (hypertension) and heart disease during the study.

The same wasn't true of women, perhaps because few women developed heart disease during the study, note Marty Player, MD, colleagues. For men and women alike, long-term psychological stress was linked to heart disease. The results didn't change when the researchers factored in participants' age, sex, race, smoking status, and LDL ("bad") cholesterol.

The take away message is if you find you get angry often, you need to find ways to eliminate or control it better.

Watching TV May Help Improve Blood Pressure

A new study by researchers at the University of Southern California suggests that some TV may be good for you.

According to researchers found that a storyline on the primetime NBC network drama ER that dealt with teen obesity, hypertension and healthy eating habits had a positive impact on the attitudes and behaviors of viewers, particularly among men.

The study, published in the Sept. 14 Journal of Health Communication and now available online, offered researchers a rare opportunity to evaluate the impact of health messages in entertainment, says Thomas W. Valente, Ph.D., associate professor of preventive medicine and member of the Institute for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention Research (IPR) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

“This study demonstrates the importance of interventions and programs targeted at a population level,” says Valente. “We have so many public heath issues to deal with, we can’t restrict ourselves to any one strategy. We have to do everything and anything we can to help people improve their health.”

The storyline depicted an African-American teen who is diagnosed with hypertension during a visit to the emergency room and is advised to eat more fruits and vegetables and to get more exercise. The story aired over three episodes from April 29 to May 13, 2004.

Results showed that ER viewers were 65 percent more likely to report a positive change in their behavior after watching the episodes. The results also suggested that the storyline had modest impacts on knowledge, attitudes and practices, Valente notes. Those who watched ER also had a five percent higher rate of knowledge about nutrition than those who did not. Researchers accounted for a number of factors, including age, sex, ethnicity, income and education.

Based on your previous post on the impact posture may have on blood pressure, if you are watching a TV program with a positive health message....sit up straight!

Bad Posture Could Raise your Blood Pressure

According to an article in the New Scientist there is research that shows that poor posture may be responsible for raising your blood pressure...

"A link between the muscles in the neck, blood pressure and heart rate has long been suspected. Now Jim Deuchars and colleagues at the University of Leeds, UK, have found a direct neural connection between these neck muscles and a part of the brainstem - called the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) - which plays a crucial role in regulating heart rate and blood pressure.

Deuchars's team was using mice to investigate how the brain responds to a variety of stimulatory and inhibitory proteins. They noticed that a group of brain cells connected to the neck muscles kept firing in response to both types of proteins, suggesting the cells played a very active role in the brain.

"The cells lit up time and time again, so we looked at what they were doing," says team member Ian Edwards. It turned out that these cells are also connected to the NTS (The Journal of Neuroscience, DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0638-07.2007).

Edwards says the finding could explain why blood pressure and heart rate sometimes change when the neck muscles are injured - through whiplash, for example. Similarly, it is possible that hours spent hunched over a computer may raise blood pressure. "The pathway exists for bad posture to really have an effect," Edwards says."

Coffee and Hypertension

A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition describes the link between drinking coffee and the diagnosis of high blood pressure. In this study from Finland , 24,000 without hypertension were assessed over a 13-year period. During this time 2500 of them started antihypertensive treatment. The likelihood of being prescribed a blood pressure-lowering drug was increased in low-to-moderate coffee drinkers (two to seven 100 mL cups a day), but there was no increased likelihood in those drinking about one cup a day, or those drinking more than 8 cups a day.

The results indicate that more than one "cup of joe" a day may be a factor in the development of hypertension.

Lower your Blood Pressure with Foods, Supplements and Herbs

According to an article by Dr. Maxine Barish-Wreden and Dr. Kay Judge, there are some smart foods, supplements and herbs that can help you lower your blood pressure naturally.

Here the list of common supplements and herbs that can lower your blood pressure:

• Fish oil (EPA/DHA) has been shown in several small studies to modestly lower blood pressure; doses used were 3-4 grams of EPA/DHA per day (also good for your heart and triglyceride levels).
  
  
• Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). This plant-based precursor to EPA/DHA is found in flaxseed, canola and soybean oils, walnuts, green leafy veggies and chocolate (yes!). Higher dietary levels of ALA are associated with lower blood pressure.
  
  
• Protein and fiber. One small study in Australia showed that soy protein and soluble fiber (psyllium) together produced a significant drop in blood pressure.
  
  
• Extra-virgin olive oil may help to reduce blood pressure.
  
  
• Calcium supplements may lower blood pressure in some people; 500 mg three times daily with meals is an average dose.
  
  
• Garlic. Several small studies have shown that the dried garlic product Kwai can modestly lower blood pressure.
  
  
• Coenzyme Q10, 60-100 mg twice daily, has been shown to lower blood pressure.
  
  
• The polyphenols in chocolate (especially dark chocolate) can also help to lower blood pressure; just watch out for the calories.

Sleep-Deprived Women at Risk of Developing High Blood Pressure

If you are a woman that is not getting enough sleep you are are at greater risk than men for developing high blood pressure or hypertension.

"A study, published in the journal Hypertension, revealed women who slept five hours or less were twice as likely to suffer from hypertension as women who slept seven hours or more a night. There was no difference between those men sleeping less than five hours and those sleeping seven hours or more.

The research team analyzed data from a study of volunteers from 20 civil service departments based in London. The sample included 6,592 participants -- more than 4,000 men and more than 1,500 women.

Hypertension increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. The Warwick team defined hypertension as blood pressure equal to or higher than 140/90 mm Hg -- or if the subject made regular use of blood pressure medications."

If you are a woman, make sure you are getting at least 5 hours of sleep per night.