It’s probably the most important number you should know about your health. Care to take a guess? The answer might surprise you. In this episode, Rally breaks down blood pressure in plain English: what those readings actually mean, and why they matter even more as we get older. Plus, learn how to help control your blood pressure with simple lifestyle changes. Don’t miss this one!
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Hey there, Beautiful People. Welcome back to the Silver Beast Podcast. I’m Rally Preston, your favorite septuagenarian podcaster, well, maybe – unless you like Howard Stern – ok, he’s a little bit older. But Howie has a lot more hair than me. Still dark and curly. And if anyone knows where he got it, just put a note in the comments. Yeah, thanks so much! Okay.
Alright, how are you? Hope you’re up for a little pop quiz today. No pressure. Ooops that might be a clue!
Alright, here’s the question: What’s the most important number you should know about your health?
Go ahead, take a guess, most important number.
Your cholesterol level, maybe? Your weight? Your resting heart rate? Maybe your golf score? Which, honestly, that one might be causing the problem.
Well, for most people, that all-important, must-know health number is…your blood pressure.
Oh and I’m betting most of you haven’t checked yours lately. Maybe not in months. Maybe since your last doctor appointment, and honestly, that’s me. Yep.
Well, I gotta tell you, after researching this episode, that blood pressure cuff I’ve got sitting on my shelf is going to become my new main squeeze. A little medical humor there! OK.
Let me tell you why.
High blood pressure can sneak up on you. It’s very stealthy like that. No obvious symptoms. You feel fine. Meanwhile, high blood pressure could be messing with your heart, your brain, your kidneys — and you might not have a clue.
Yeah, that’s why they call high blood pressure the silent killer. Nothing subtle about that nickname. But it’s kind of earned it, unfortunately.
So today’s episode is a good refresher for all of us I think. We’re gonna talk about what blood pressure actually means, why it matters more now more than ever since we’re a wee bit older — and what you can do to take control of it. Super simple stuff, but important.
So let’s get going.
Alright, — blood pressure. Two numbers. You’ve seen them your whole life. Like 120 over 80. OK so what does that actually mean?
The top number — that’s called systolic — measures the force your heart creates when it pumps. The bottom number — diastolic — is the pressure that’s left when your heart relaxes between beats, and fills back up.
So a nice, healthy blood pressure reading is somewhere around 120 over 80. And once your top number hits 130 or higher, that’s officially high blood pressure – or hypertension, they both mean the same thing.
The American Heart Association just updated its guidelines last year — and they’re saying the top number, the systolic, is the most important one for us older folks.
So get this… almost half of all adults in America have high blood pressure.
And a whole lot of them don’t know they have it. And that’s the scary part.
So let’s just zero in on us worldly and wise folks here. Once we hit our 60s and 70s, our blood pressure is more likely to change. The top number — systolic — may keep inching up. The bottom number, the diastolic, might kind of level off or even drop. That’s just an age thing. Your arteries get a little stiffer over time.
So yeah, keep your eye on that top number – if it’s already high or creeping up, that could be a problem. Check in with your doctor, like pronto.
Here’s why…listen to these stats…
High blood pressure triples, triples, your risk of a stroke and heart failure.
It doubles your risk of coronary artery disease.
And if those weren’t bad enough, there’s this little gem: there’s new evidence linking hypertension to dementia. The American Heart Association pointed that one out just a while back.
Okay, so how do you know what your numbers actually are?
Get them checked at your doctor’s office. That’s your first and best move.
The second thing to do, I’d suggest anyway, is get a cuff. A home blood pressure cuff. So you can check what’s going on anytime.
And a basic blood pressure cuff runs about forty to fifty bucks at any drugstore, Amazon, Walmart, whole lot of places.
Get one and start checking your blood pressure at the same time every morning. Write it down. Do it for a couple of weeks, and figure out your average. Then you know where you stand. It’s as simple as that.
And here’s the good news:
You can help your blood pressure a lot by making some simple lifestyle changes. And you don’t have to do everything at once. Take small steps…and they’ll add up.
So, according to the experts, here’s just a handful of ideas that may help bring your blood pressure down:
First one, move your body. Exercise helps a lot. Not the easiest route I know, but a good one. Just go for moderate exercise weekly, little workouts that add up to 150 minutes a week if you can. And if you want to put in a little more effort into this, the Mayo Clinic says a brisk walk, maybe for thirty minutes five days a week, can drop your systolic blood pressure by up to ten points in just a few months. And of course, hang on, it’s smart to get your doctor’s blessing before starting any new exercise routine – so do that first.
Ok, next suggestion to get your blood pressure in check is…watch your sodium intake. We’ve heard this before, forever, right? And it’s still true. Older adults are actually more sensitive to salt than younger people — so this one really matters. And they say no more than a teaspoon of salt a day is what’s recommended. There’s already so much salt, mostly hidden, in processed foods, restaurant meals, canned goods, snacks – yeah, you name it. Just be on the lookout for it, and avoid that extra sodium.
Next idea is to eat more potassium. Potassium actually helps your body flush out sodium. So things like bananas, potatoes, cooked spinach, melons, squash — all loaded with potassium. The potassium recommendation here is 3000 to 5000 milligrams a day…and just for reference here, a baked potato has almost a thousand milligrams…so it doesn’t take much. And by the way, most salt substitutes are made with potassium, so that’s good – might not be right for everyone, so run it by your doctor first before you sub out the salt for potassium.
Alright, next, mind the booze. The updated guidelines are pretty clear on this one: alcohol is a risk factor for high blood pressure. So cutting back or eliminating alcohol may get your blood pressure back in a much better place.
Next idea to help out your blood pressure is to lose a little weight if you need to. So if you’re carrying some extra LBs, see if you can lose some of those. That’ll help…and should get you a better blood pressure reading over time.
Look — I know some of you are going to need your doc’s help with medication to help control your blood pressure. Sometimes there’s no way around it.
But just keep in mind those lifestyle changes we just went over – they’re a great complement to your medication.
And I’d really suggest keeping a blood pressure monitor handy at home. Learn how to take a reading correctly – that’s important. And obviously, take the time to actually use it consistently.
And if you’re going to do these lifestyle changes, that cuff will help you see the results in real time. And you should see it moving down. And that feels good – that’s a great feeling of accomplishment right there.
So if you don’t have a blood pressure monitor, get one. Again, they’re pretty inexpensive. Your doc can recommend a good one. Or another way: CVS, Walgreens, and some grocery stores usually have those free blood pressure monitoring kiosks. I’m sure you’ve seen those. And at some libraries, you can even check out a BP unit with your library card. Some fire stations too…they might check out your BP for free. And community centers is another one. Lots of options – no excuses.
You really need to know those numbers. You can’t fix what you don’t know, right?
So please, Silver Beasties….stay on top of your blood pressure – especially that top number.
Oh, and keep in mind this: I’m not a doctor – not giving medical advice here. Let a healthcare professional help you manage your blood pressure and get that under control. Ok?
Ok, Rally Preston here, hey, thanks for hanging out with me on the Silver Beast podcast, and you know what, I’ll see you real soon. Take care!