HealthCareMagic is now Ask A Doctor - 24x7 | https://www.askadoctor24x7.com

How To Keep BP In Control?

Posted on Sat, 8 Mar 2014

Question: Hi there and thanks for taking my question, I'm a 33 y/o male, fairly healthy (a bit overweight but exercising). I'm trying to control my blood pressure as while not yet Stage 1 hypertension, I am prehypertensive (120's to 130's systolic and 80's diastolic; once in a while the latter hits 90 but not often or consistently). I have some anxiety about taking my BP (causing it to increase), but have been doing better on a regular schedule. That said, I made the mistake of taking my blood pressure during and immediately after sex the other day and became concerned as my systolic was up to 144 and diastolic was around 100. That said, within minutes it fell to normal levels. In researching, I couldn't find much on the subject, except for this: WWW.WWWW.WW This seems to indicate up to 180 for systolic and 140 for diastolic is normal briefly during sex. (I also found a journal article that seemed to indicate systolic can increase between 40-100 points during sex and diastolic 25-55 points). Is this correct that it's normal for both to raise during sexual activity? Is there any reason to worry about this, or is it perfectly normal, and I should only worry about monitoring my BP at rest? Thanks much!

Answered by Dr. Indu Kumar (58 minutes later)

Brief Answer: Blood pressure normally rises during and after sex Detailed Answer: Hello XXXX Thanks for writing to HCM Yes,Blood pressure normally rises during and after sex due to increased sympathetic activity. But,you are definitely in Prehypertension stage and you can delay the progression by life style changes and diet modification. You should lead active life and go for walking,exercise. Relaxation technique like yoga and meditation is also very helpful. You should take lot of vegetables and fruits in your diet. Avoid alcohol and smoking if you take these things. You should also avoid red meat,high fat milk products,fried and junk food. Take restricted amount of salt in your diet.Use olive or canola oil for cooking. You also need few investigations like routine hemogram,Random blood sugar(RBS),Liver function test(LFT),Renal function test(RFT),Lipid profile. Besides this,you also need monitoring of Blood pressure.If you have more fluctuations in blood pressure then Holter B.P monitoring for continuous 24-48 hours can be done. Any medicines should be started after confirmation. Get well soon. Hope i have answered your query. Further queries are most welcome. Take Care Dr.Indu XXXXXXX

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Indu Kumar (25 minutes later)

Thanks much for your answer! I am exercising, eating healthy, moderating alcohol, and not smoking, along with working on my anxiety. I also just had a blood panel done and am awaiting results! So I am hopefully making the right changes to see my blood pressure decrease over time! Just to clarify, you are unconcerned with the blood pressure readings I gave (144/100) during sexual activity as that would be normal, as long as blood pressure at rest is good (ideally ~120/80)? Thanks!

Answered by Dr. Indu Kumar (1 hour later)

Brief Answer: You are following right measures. Detailed Answer: Hello XXXX Thanks for writing back You are following right measures.You should continue these methods. Yes,blood pressure rises during excitement,it shouldn't be the cause for worry. You should wait for blood reports,hope it is fine. Get well soon. Hope i have answered your query. Further queries are most welcome. Take Care Dr.Indu XXXXXXX

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Indu Kumar (16 hours later)

Thank you! It was a question I really wanted to know but was a bit shy to talk about with my doctor. =) Good news though! Saw my doctor today (with my complete BP chart), and no need for BP meds at this time! She did eliminate a soy supplement I'm taking, and I'm increasing probiotics and fish oil. One last question for you if you don't mind. I take fish oil for general cardiovascular and brain health, its blood thinning ability, and its BP lowering ability. We talked about upping the 2.2g combined EPA/DHA per day I was taking to 3.6g EPA/DHA combined - do you think this dose is reasonable? I've read a few things about concerns over in-body oxidation or immunosuppressive behavior for megadoses of fish oil (sometimes 6g or more though), and just want to make sure I'm not overdoing it. My doctor seemed to think 3.6g should be fine (that also includes some krill and phytosterols), but I wanted a second opinion as well. As far as my blood lab results, cholesterol was much improved from past tests and very good (HDL was a bit low, but total cholesterol was great), insulin resistance was good as well, and no diabetes. She said sugar was just a tiny tad high, but not unreasonably so and nothing she would worry about since insulin/diabetes tests were normal. Also, the echo they did on my heart to check for any damage caused by BP spikes was clean as a whistle, so that's very good news! Thanks much for your help!

Answered by Dr. Indu Kumar (5 hours later)

Brief Answer: It is great that all investigations are normal. Detailed Answer: Hello XXXX Thanks for writing back It is great that all your investigations are within normal limit. Fish and its products are very good for general health and heart.You should continue it. You can take combined EPA/DHA up to 4 gram/day. Hope i have answered your query. Further queries are most welcome. Take Care Dr.Indu XXXXXXX

Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar