Tips for Taking Your Blood Pressure Plus A Giveaway!

Keeping an eye on your blood pressure is essential to maintaining your overall health. You not only can monitor it – but you can control it, lowering it through diet and other lifestyle changes if you notice a rise in blood pressure.

Heart disease causes thousands of deaths in the United States alone each year. The leading cause of disability for disabled Americans is a stroke. Both conditions have a higher risk factor if blood pressure is high. According to the scientific guidelines for blood pressure that have been set by the American Heart Association, over 100 million Americans are classified as being hypertensive.

At Ascent ER in Houston, we are dedicated to keeping you healthy and encouraging healthy lifestyles and habits. The more information you have, the better you can keep your health on track when you are not in the doctor’s office.

Tips for Accurate Readings When Taking Your Blood Pressure Reading at Home

Many doctors perform blood pressure tests in the office, but readings may be falsely high due to what is known as white coat hypertension. This can be caused by anxiety, stress, pain, or any number of reasons – causing a second blood pressure reading to be taken. This false reading is what makes it great to take your blood pressure at home.

When taking your blood pressure at home, you should make sure that you are doing the process correctly. To ensure that you get an accurate reading, some tips include:

• Rest for at least 5 minutes before taking your blood pressure
• Avoid caffeine, alcohol, smoking, or exercising 30 minutes before getting a blood pressure reading
• Sit with your back straight with feet flat on the floor – do not cross your feet otherwise the reading may be false.
• Arms should be at the level of the heart, supported by a table or some other flat surface.

An emergency room in Houston can also take your blood pressure during emergencies to rule out further problems. For the best emergency care in Houston, as well as to find out about our exciting giveaway, visit Ascent ER.