High BP advice

The key figure is your resting blood pressure, which if 120/77 is pretty good (much better than mine). If higher at the doctors then you might be suffering from white coat syndrome. If you do a strenuous job then I assume you are getting enough exercise which is recommended to reduce it. Am sure you are reducing your consumption of oxalate foods (such as nuts and chocolate) which were the most likely cause of your kidney stones and also drinking enough liquid to avoid a recurrence.

I can't see why you would need to go on bp meds. However lower is always better, so if you are overweightthen lose some and do some cardio exercise if possible - cycling, walking or running. Reduce carbs , increase protein and healthy veg. Stay off the crisps and biscuits, keep alcohol consumption low and think about giving blood.

It is also likely your blood pressure will be higher in winter than summer.

Thanks, although I have had 120/77 readings they are more than often around the 135-140 / 85 -9- mark.

I am male, 50 yrs old, about a stone & half over weight, I do smoke and drink but only a couple of times a week and then only about 4 pints.

I never get low reading of either HR or BP at theDR's though.

Well if you manage to lose the weight and cut out the smoking then you would probably would manage to get your bp down quite quickly. You might also want to consider Co q10 which is an enzyme your body normally produces (but which declines after about 40 and has been shown to cut down bp especially systolic.

You might want to try the 5:2 and/or paleo diet, or possibly just try and avoid the 50:50 sugar/fat combo that we find so addictive. ( Recently they had this guy who had rats - on sugar alone they could regulate their weight, on fat alone also. But when given cheesecake they put on loads of weight).

Again I would also consider giving blood as at least one study indicated lower blood pressure from this.

Also get decent sleep. Ultimately its your choice - if you can lose the weight you might avoid meds, - but otherwise its meds. Longer term its best to get your bp down as it does reduce the chances of alzheimers, kidney disease and all sorts.

Hello Max

Although my 1st BP reading at home is usually high, it takes a few repeated rested readings to get it lower

It's fine to monitor your blood pressure this way. I have recently been seeing a renal consultant (I have just one kidney which isn't filtering at 100%) and he has a special interest in hypertension. At the hospital and surgery my BP was reading in the 200's but now with two different medications it is reading around 170/75 at my appointments. Whilst on the first medication only, the consultant asked me to record my home readings for 14 days, taking it three times in succession and record the average of the 2nd and 3rd readings for him. At this stage it was about 30 points lower at home than at the surgery, although still not within the normal range. After two weeks on the additional medication I and the GP were advised to double the dose, but the GP then recorded a reading of 170/75 so 30 points lower than before medication. However, having taken my BP at home in the week before the GP appointment my BP had reduced to between 140/75 and 136/65 - definitely an element of white coat syndrome, and I can feel the palpitations starting in the hours before my appointments! So I am now continuing to record my daily average to take to the renal consultant at my next appointment in the hope that I can avoid doubling the medication dose and, worse still, adding in a third medication which has been mooted.

I do try and watch my weight as a consultant told me some years ago that every stone lost can result in a 10% reduction in BP. Another tip is a brisk daily walk of at least half an hour - it really can make a difference. So go on, have a go at the weight loss (cut down all refined carbs such as potatoes/parsnips/white rice/white bread - they all turn to sugar in our bodies).

Re the blood in urine, have you had a PSA test to check the state of your prostate? Good luck with the test!

Many thanks for the replies.

But do you think the GP would just prescribe at their surgery if I need meds for the BP ?, rather than a hospital cause this I don't want !.

I would have though the blood & urine tests last week would have checked for PSA since the nurse said she had ordered a whole catalogue of tests from the samples ?.

Max, yes it is usually the GPs who prescribe BP meds.

Best to just wait for your blood test results and try not to worry in the meantime - hopefully all will be normal and worrying unnecessarily will just increase your BP. Do let us know how you get on.

Sorry, I should have explained better.

My blood test results came back as OK except slightly high cholesterol but not high enough for meds for it.

It just a repeat urine test I have to give them and I also have to drop off my home BP readings.

I have tested my own urine twice over the past 4 days and it appears neutral.

I suppose it will be when the Dr receives my BP reading from me that he will decide or not, to prescribe for high BP .

Deos this make sense ?.

Thanks again all support is welcome.

Yes, Max, it makes perfect sense. I should have realised it's just the repeat urine test you're waiting for. So good luck with that one!

Hello Maxx hope you are well what was the outcome of your bp readings... the 24 hour monitor

Hi

I never did the 24 hr monitor, instead I took my own readings over two weeks and sent them in. I never heard back from them , so I pressume they were OK.

Hi. Just come across this thread. Great advice from everyone on your query. Can I add my "bit"? I have a suggestion which sounds harsh and you have to be up for it. I had similar readings to you and decided to " shock" my body by changing lifestyle. I lost almost a stone in weight, gave up alcohol COMPLETELY, walked briskly for at least 30mins per day, ate lots of veg and beetroot and no crisps, chocs or ANY processed foods or food with added salt. I have never smoked so not an issue there for me. It was very very hard to do, but my bp is the best its been for years. I take 10mg of ramapril and 10mg of statins. Give it a go but you MUST get support of family and friends otherwise it won't work. In 4 weeks you should see a difference. Remember you are talking about your quality of life for the rest of your life. Good luck.