Hello,

I'm on Cardiazim 120mg SR twice daily and it's not effective alone even when I added Lasix, my reading is always 140/100 I know it's not too bad ,because Cardiazim is the only Med that doesn't cause me side effects at all, but still I want reduce it to 130/85 or even less (I hope I can do that).

In the last 4 days I'm eating lettuce, orange, potatoes, apple, white rice and onions. Today my blood pressure is 130/95 after exercise. I feel that it's working because I have stopped sugar and salt consumption. That's good but I have a problem, I feel weak and I think it's because of the calories. I stopped the bread because they put a lot of salt in it and I replaced it with white rice which I don't add salt to it.

I just want to know if it's save to eat rice 2 times daily for the rest of my life ? What about red meat? some says it raises blood pressure and others say it's not so who I should believe?

I feel so weak but I know it's because of the sudden change in my eating style. No more pizza and no more fast food :D . I don't want add anything to Cardiazim.

Thanks,
Michael

Hello,

In the last 4 days I'm eating lettuce, potatoes, apple, white rice and onions. Today my blood pressure is 130/95 after exercise. I feel that it's working because I have stopped sugar and salt consumption. That's good but I have a problem, I feel weak and I think it's because of the calories. I stopped the bread because they put a lot of salt in it and I replaced it with white rice which I don't add salt to it.

I just want to know if it's save to eat rice 2 times daily for the rest of my life ?

In my opinion, in most cases, reducing too much salt is more harmful than good. If you notice, most people who reduce their salt consumption still suffer from high blood pressure. So...... does it really work?

You are very young to be experiencing such nasty symptoms and problems with your blood pressure. Does it run in your family?

If you are genetically predisposed to having insulin or calorie related problems, then eating white potatoes, or white rice, or white bread are among the worst things that you can do.

You might consider changing your diet to include brown rice, 100% whole wheat bread and 100% whole wheat pasta, with a reasonable amount of chicken, or beef or fish, and a nice salad, and some apple, and see if you feel better.

What about red meat? some says it raises blood pressure and others say it's not so who I should believe?

There are no health professionals, health students, or even nurses, on Healthboards, including myself. Those that can make a living in medicine aren't going to sit on Healthboards for hours each day giving away free advice. If you feel like you are getting confusing advice, including advice from me, you should consider the source(s). My opinion is based on what has dramatically turned my advanced heart disease around, and made me feel a thousand times better. But....... what works for me might not work for anyone else.

I feel so weak but I know it's because of the sudden change in my eating style. No more pizza and no more fast food :D . I don't want add anything to Cardiazim.

Thanks,
Michael

Sorry about you feeling so bad. I've been reading some of your notes for quite a while and you have been fighting these health problems for a long, frustrating time.

Regardless of the reasons for health problems, a good balanced diet with a reasonable level of calories is very healthy for almost everyone.

What do you think about the 100% whole wheat?

What meds do you currently take and what time of day do you take them?

In my opinion, in most cases, reducing too much salt is more harmful than good. If you notice, most people who reduce their salt consumption still suffer from high blood pressure. So...... does it really work?

You are very young to be experiencing such nasty symptoms and problems with your blood pressure. Does it run in your family?

If you are genetically predisposed to having insulin or calorie related problems, then eating white potatoes, or white rice, or white bread are among the worst things that you can do.

You might consider changing your diet to include brown rice, 100% whole wheat bread and 100% whole wheat pasta, with a reasonable amount of chicken, or beef or fish, and a nice salad, and some apple, and see if you feel better.



There are no health professionals, health students, or even nurses, on Healthboards, including myself. Those that can make a living in medicine aren't going to sit on Healthboards for hours each day giving away free advice. If you feel like you are getting confusing advice, including advice from me, you should consider the source(s). My opinion is based on what has dramatically turned my advanced heart disease around, and made me feel a thousand times better. But....... what works for me might not work for anyone else.



Sorry about you feeling so bad. I've been reading some of your notes for quite a while and you have been fighting these health problems for a long, frustrating time.

Regardless of the reasons for health problems, a good balanced diet with a reasonable level of calories is very healthy for almost everyone.

What do you think about the 100% whole wheat?

What meds do you currently take and what time of day do you take them?

Hello,

Yes I know that there's no health professionals here in those boards, I just want to know how people like you having a good life without too much medicines. When I go to a doctor and tell him that I have high pulse rate he/she put me on Beta-Blocker but I never liked it, I kept searching until I found that TEA is causing it and I just stopped drinking tea and I felt much more better.

I'm on Cardiazim 120 SR and I take the first capsule at 10 AM and the second at 10 PM. It has reduced my blood pressure but not as Beta-Blockers and I can't take ARBs or ACEs because it makes me sleepy and dizzy all the day plus feeling weird. Norvasc didn't do anything to me :(.

My fasting blood sugar is 86 and I have no problems about it. You know eating food that contains salt does raise my blood pressure and I have noticed that when I eat pizza or fast food my blood pressure goes to 150/100 or even 160/110 of course with medication and my pulse rate goes up too.

We don't have brown rice I can't eat bread because they put too much salt in it. What I'm thinking about is eating white rice and potatoes to give me the calories because eating fruit and vegetables will not give me 2,000 calories daily.

I'm 92 KG and 184 CM so I guess I have to lose 12 KG to have a good weight and also exercise reduces my blood pressure 5 to 10 points.

I hope that you can help me about what kind of food that can help reducing my blood pressure besides exercise and Cardiazim. You have a very good long experience as I have read many of your great posts.

By the way, my parents have high BP and also 1 of my sisters. But one thing that is driving me crazy is the medication. For example, my mother is on ACE and she doesn't experience the side effects that I have experienced :(.
Thanks for help,
Michael

Hello,

Yes I know that there's no health professionals here in those boards, I just want to know how people like you having a good life without too much medicines.

I am on two blood pressure meds, a calcium channel blocker and an Ace Inhibitor. I am on Digoxin to control my heart rate and for my heart failure. My condition has improved drastically over the past year, but I still have bad days when I make a mistake. I kick myself, for being so careless, and avoid making the same mistake again.

When I go to a doctor and tell him that I have high pulse rate he/she put me on Beta-Blocker but I never liked it, I kept searching until I found that TEA is causing it and I just stopped drinking tea and I felt much more better.

Good find!

I've had advanced heart disease for over twenty years. It has been a long difficult task to identify those things, like, in your case - TEA, that were making me worse or not allowing me to improve.

I'm on Cardiazim 120 SR and I take the first capsule at 10 AM and the second at 10 PM. It has reduced my blood pressure but not as Beta-Blockers and I can't take ARBs or ACEs because it makes me sleepy and dizzy all the day plus feeling weird. Norvasc didn't do anything to me :(.

Do you know your average daily blood pressure?

My fasting blood sugar is 86 and I have no problems about it. You know eating food that contains salt does raise my blood pressure and I have noticed that when I eat pizza or fast food my blood pressure goes to 150/100 or even 160/110 of course with medication and my pulse rate goes up too.

You have just proved the old adage that what is good for one may not be good for the other, and at the same time proved me wrong! I was on a low sodium diet for decades. After I got my "average daily" blood pressure at a very healthy level, I started adding sodium back into my diet. I keep including salty foods and snacks back into my diet and it has no effect on my blood pressure.

BUT! That is me. I am obviously not salt sensitive, and you apparently are. OTOH, I'd rather be salt sensitive and not have heart failure. Can't win them all.

We don't have brown rice I can't eat bread because they put too much salt in it. What I'm thinking about is eating white rice and potatoes to give me the calories because eating fruit and vegetables will not give me 2,000 calories daily.

Don't have brown rice? Why not? I thought that brown rice was available throughout the world. I shop at super markets that seem as big as a soccer stadium. There are many different types of rice, whole wheat pasta and many different healthy foods. I guess, being in the US, I am kinda spoiled.

I'm 92 KG and 184 CM so I guess I have to lose 12 KG to have a good weight and also exercise reduces my blood pressure 5 to 10 points.

I hope that you can help me about what kind of food that can help reducing my blood pressure besides exercise and Cardiazim. You have a very good long experience as I have read many of your great posts.

Thanks for the kind words!

You would not like the kind of diet that I am permanently on. I love it. I eat five times a day, and I snack four times a day, so it seems like I am constantly eating.

It is a diet targetting Insulin Resistance, and it is also a very healthy diet.

It was Created by Sheri Barke, MPH, RD from the UCLA Arthur Ashe Student Health & Wellness Center, 2002

Here is the pdf explaining the diet:

www.snac.ucla.edu/pages/Resources/Handouts/HODiabetesandInsulinResistance.pdf

By the way, my parents have high BP and also 1 of my sisters. But one thing that is driving me crazy is the medication. For example, my mother is on ACE and she doesn't experience the side effects that I have experienced :(.
Thanks for help,
Michael

Let me know what you think about the diet? It might be too extreme for you, but it has really made a huge difference in my health, and my problems were and are quite severe.

I wish you all the luck in this world getting answers to your blood pressure and heart rhythm problems. One thing we both know for sure, the better the diet, the healthier the individual, especially in the long run.

Take care! :wave:

From what I've read, only about 20% of people with HBP are salt-sensitive. Apparently you are one of them. Just be cautious that you don't cut your sodium TOO low. My sister-in-law ended up in the hospital because she did just that.

A person needs to have a proper balance in the diet between sodium and potassium. Some blood pressure medications are "potassium-sparing" and you could potentially get too much if you eat a lot of high-potassium foods. Other BP meds are "potassium-depleting" and tend to flush potassium out of the system, so you need to eat extra. I didn't check if Cardiazim is in either of those categories, as it could make a difference in what you should eat.

I agree that if you could find brown rice or whole wheat bread that those would be better than the white ones, but as you say, they just might not be available locally. I know that in my small town, it has only been in the past year or so that our local store has started to carry whole grain pasta and I have to go to a neighboring town and bigger stores to get brown rice. I usually get it at a health food store.

One thing I wonder, though, is if you are eating enough veggies. Iceberg lettuce has relatively few nutrients, but if you are getting a different type of lettuce, that is probably better. Darker colored greens tend to be more nutritious than the pale colored iceberg. Other alternatives are spinach, broccoli, cabbage, asparagus, cauliflower, carrots etc. for the most nutritious veggies. You may have other colorful veggies and fruits there that we may not see often here, too. I know I keep talking about "get your veggies" in so many of my responses, but I thought I was getting enough veggies before. But then when I bumped that amount up considerably and found my SBP was reduced by 10-20 points and I was able to get off my meds, I was very surprised and delighted. I'd just like to see other people with HBP at least try it. It may not work for all, but if it helps some, my singing this same tune over and over will be worth it.

I love brown rice but I find it to be quite pricey. $4.49 for a small 16 oz bag of brown versus $2-something for a bigger bag of white rice.

I still have occasional spikes...though I recently woke up one morning with a BP of 109/77. I flipped for joy when receiving that one, which probably promptly raised it another 20 points...*LOL*.

I am on two blood pressure meds, a calcium channel blocker and an Ace Inhibitor. I am on Digoxin to control my heart rate and for my heart failure. My condition has improved drastically over the past year, but I still have bad days when I make a mistake. I kick myself, for being so careless, and avoid making the same mistake again.



Good find!

I've had advanced heart disease for over twenty years. It has been a long difficult task to identify those things, like, in your case - TEA, that were making me worse or not allowing me to improve.



Do you know your average daily blood pressure?



You have just proved the old adage that what is good for one may not be good for the other, and at the same time proved me wrong! I was on a low sodium diet for decades. After I got my "average daily" blood pressure at a very healthy level, I started adding sodium back into my diet. I keep including salty foods and snacks back into my diet and it has no effect on my blood pressure.

BUT! That is me. I am obviously not salt sensitive, and you apparently are. OTOH, I'd rather be salt sensitive and not have heart failure. Can't win them all.



Don't have brown rice? Why not? I thought that brown rice was available throughout the world. I shop at super markets that seem as big as a soccer stadium. There are many different types of rice, whole wheat pasta and many different healthy foods. I guess, being in the US, I am kinda spoiled.



Thanks for the kind words!

You would not like the kind of diet that I am permanently on. I love it. I eat five times a day, and I snack four times a day, so it seems like I am constantly eating.

It is a diet targetting Insulin Resistance, and it is also a very healthy diet.

It was Created by Sheri Barke, MPH, RD from the UCLA Arthur Ashe Student Health & Wellness Center, 2002

Here is the pdf explaining the diet:

www.snac.ucla.edu/pages/Resources/Handouts/HODiabetesandInsulinResistance.pdf



Let me know what you think about the diet? It might be too extreme for you, but it has really made a huge difference in my health, and my problems were and are quite severe.

I wish you all the luck in this world getting answers to your blood pressure and heart rhythm problems. One thing we both know for sure, the better the diet, the healthier the individual, especially in the long run.

Take care! :wave:

Hi,

My average blood pressure is 140/100 in winter and 120/80 in summer (because it's very hot out here :D I love that hot because any blood pressure medication works very well) and in the other seasons 130/90.

I don't know what's Insulin Resistance?? I remember that I had an Insulin blood test and it came back 6.5 something likethat the maximum was 29 and the minimum I think it was 3 so is that good or should I take it again?

I was very dizzy at night yesterday and I ordered some fast food, after 2 hours I felt good again but my blood pressure got higher 5 points also my heart rate got from 60 to 90. I guess I need salt but not that much like in the fast food.

I will look at the diet and tell you if I can do it but my only problem is that I can't get brown rice :( it's very very expensive here. There are pasta but I don't know what kind of pasta is the best for me???

Thanks for help,
Michael

From what I've read, only about 20% of people with HBP are salt-sensitive. Apparently you are one of them. Just be cautious that you don't cut your sodium TOO low. My sister-in-law ended up in the hospital because she did just that.

A person needs to have a proper balance in the diet between sodium and potassium. Some blood pressure medications are "potassium-sparing" and you could potentially get too much if you eat a lot of high-potassium foods. Other BP meds are "potassium-depleting" and tend to flush potassium out of the system, so you need to eat extra. I didn't check if Cardiazim is in either of those categories, as it could make a difference in what you should eat.

I agree that if you could find brown rice or whole wheat bread that those would be better than the white ones, but as you say, they just might not be available locally. I know that in my small town, it has only been in the past year or so that our local store has started to carry whole grain pasta and I have to go to a neighboring town and bigger stores to get brown rice. I usually get it at a health food store.

One thing I wonder, though, is if you are eating enough veggies. Iceberg lettuce has relatively few nutrients, but if you are getting a different type of lettuce, that is probably better. Darker colored greens tend to be more nutritious than the pale colored iceberg. Other alternatives are spinach, broccoli, cabbage, asparagus, cauliflower, carrots etc. for the most nutritious veggies. You may have other colorful veggies and fruits there that we may not see often here, too. I know I keep talking about "get your veggies" in so many of my responses, but I thought I was getting enough veggies before. But then when I bumped that amount up considerably and found my SBP was reduced by 10-20 points and I was able to get off my meds, I was very surprised and delighted. I'd just like to see other people with HBP at least try it. It may not work for all, but if it helps some, my singing this same tune over and over will be worth it.


Hi,

Yes that's exactly what happened to me yesterday, I was dizzy because I had no salt at all and when I have eaten food that contains salt I felt better but in the same time BP an heart rate became higher. Yes vegetables are the best also the fruit but I can't make a balance so far :(.

Could you please tell me what's the difference between whole wheat bread and white one?

I'm really happy that you were able to manage your blood pressure without medication and that's what gives me hope. :)
Thanks for help,
Michael

Hi,

My average blood pressure is 140/100 in winter and 120/80 in summer (because it's very hot out here :D I love that hot because any blood pressure medication works very well) and in the other seasons 130/90.

Get your parents to send you to Las Vegas each winter, where it is nice and hot (in more ways than one), with low humidity. It used to be one of my favorite haunts. :cool:

I don't know what's Insulin Resistance?? I remember that I had an Insulin blood test and it came back 6.5 something likethat the maximum was 29 and the minimum I think it was 3 so is that good or should I take it again?

I don't really know how to test for Insulin Resistance. It is a precursor to Diabetes Type II. From what I have read, the most common test for Insulin Resistance is "belt size". If the belt, holding up your pants, is bigger than it should be, it indicates a probability for Insulin Resistance. The bigger the belt size, the more probability of Insulin Resistance.

The reason why I keep harping on Insulin Resistance is that it is a very common ailment, due to diets constantly too high in calories. A meal too high in calories causes the Pancreas to increase Insulin production to handle the excess calories, but the cells of the body can't handle the excess Insulin, so the cells start, very slowly, becoming resistant to Insulin, so it takes more Insulin to make the body's cells happy. As someone continues to consume meals too high in calories, the Pancreas continues to increase it's production of Insulin, causing the cells of the body to further restrict sensitivity to Insulin, creating a very vicious cycle of bad health and nasty symptoms. Insulin is one of the most important hormones, and when it isn't being handled correctly by the body, all hell breaks loose.

I was very dizzy at night yesterday and I ordered some fast food, after 2 hours I felt good again but my blood pressure got higher 5 points also my heart rate got from 60 to 90. I guess I need salt but not that much like in the fast food.

Man! Do I miss fast food. I would kill for a PIZZA! I would kill for Chicken Wings and French Fries smothered in melted cheese! How about a Philly cheese steak sub smothered in mushrooms! ARGHHHHH! :dizzy:

I will look at the diet and tell you if I can do it but my only problem is that I can't get brown rice :( it's very very expensive here. There are pasta but I don't know what kind of pasta is the best for me???

Thanks for help,
Michael

Well...... you might just try to watch total calories. You said that you are aiming for 2000 calories a day, which is recognized as a reasonable amount of calories. Try to stay close to that for a few weeks and see if you feel better.

Take care! :wave:

Hi,

I'm living in Egypt so it's very far away from Las Vegas although I hope to visit this place one day I can't go now :D. So do you think that if I have my blood pressure 120/85 6 monthes of the year is good? the other 6 monthes range from 140/100 to 130/90.

I will watch for my calories and consume small amount of salt because I don't want get dizzy all the time specially that it gets so hot here in summer. I will add much more fruit and vegetables to my diet.

You know if I will be living healthy without fast food then I will never eat it or even think about it. I feel so bad and I need to make a big change in my life now.
Thanks for your help,
Michael

So do you think that if I have my blood pressure 120/85 6 monthes of the year is good? the other 6 monthes range from 140/100 to 130/90.

How many readings is that based on, over how many years?

If indeed, your blood pressure problems are seasonal, then you have found a relationship between either seasonal allergies, temperature, or some other environmental factor and your blood pressure.

You've got me thinking. I've got about 18,000 BP readings, by hour and date, over the past 7 1/2 years. I'm going to run some seasonal stats to see if I can determine any seasonal patterns in mine, if I can. In my case, with all the different changes to meds, environment, lifestyle and diet, it's not always possible to associate cause and effect.

I will watch for my calories and consume small amount of salt because I don't want get dizzy all the time specially that it gets so hot here in summer. I will add much more fruit and vegetables to my diet.

You know if I will be living healthy without fast food then I will never eat it or even think about it. I feel so bad and I need to make a big change in my life now.
Thanks for your help,
Michael

Do you have any known allergies? How about chemical sensitivities? Have you even walked into a room and gotten instantly sick, or touched something, or breathed something, or ate something, or put a shirt or other clothes on and felt sick, dizzy, etc?

Are there times during the day when you really feel good? How about when you get up? How about before breakfast, lunch, dinner? Is there any part of the day when you usually feel the worst?

Do you sleep well all night long? Does your heart seem to jump around, and is it worse during the day or night?

Is your breathing ever labored? Do you ever notice that, sometimes it is a little more difficult to breath, than at other times?

Do you ever break out into a sweat when you don't expect it?

Do you ever get brain fog? It's where your mind seems cloudy and concentration and short term memory really seem to be operating poorly.

Perhaps the answers to these questions could get you closer to finding out what is making you sick?

Best of health and luck to you! :wave:

Hello Dear,

You have done something that most people can't do and this gives me hope that I can and I will manage my blood pressure problem with ONLY Cardiazim and without adding any other medication.

Yes in summer my blood pressure is always 120/80 no matter if I eat 10 pizza daily or not :D but my problem is the winter it's very difficult to get my diastolic less than 90 and sometimes it's always 95 but until recently I was eating a lot of fast food and I'm very overweight so I guess that I have to do something about that.

No I don't have any known allergies as far as I know. Yes sometimes during the day I feel breathless and others not specially when I go out of home. Maybe because when I walk my blood pressure become better? or because I have Anxiety and when I walk I feel better? I'm not sure!!!

Yes I sleep good about 8 to 9 hours daily and I'm always sleep at 1:00 AM or earlier than that. My heart rate become higher at night which is my biggest problem and that's why I have used Zebeta 5 mg for 3.5 years.

And Yes :) you are also right about my breathing I feel that sometime I need a little labor to breath. I can't concentrate but I don't think that I have that brain fog.

So what do you think?
Thanks,
Michael

Do you eat any differently in the summer than in the winter? I've found that during the few months a year that I can get fresh asparagus at a decent price that my BP is lower. No doubt that is because asparagus is my favorite vegetable and when it is reasonable, I eat it every day. And it just so happens that it seems to be one of the veggies that seems to help my BP the most. Besides, I probably just eat a total of more veggies at that time of year.

Hi,

Actually in summer I eat more fast food and I notice that my blood pressure still at the normal range but the salt in the fast food increases my heart rate. I lose weight in summer too, about 10 lbs and maybe more sometimes. I know that the only thing that makes a big difference is the hot weather. If I can find some good place in the world that has that type of weather the whole year I will go to live there :D and forget about the medication.

Thanks,
Michael

Hello Dear,

You have done something that most people can't do and this gives me hope that I can and I will manage my blood pressure problem with ONLY Cardiazim and without adding any other medication.

At your young age, I'd be willing to bet that you could manage your blood pressure, eventually, without any meds and feel great, most of the time, just via a good diet.

... and I'm very overweight so I guess that I have to do something about that. ... Yes sometimes during the day I feel breathless and others not specially when I go out of home. ... My heart rate become higher at night which is my biggest problem and that's why I have used Zebeta 5 mg for 3.5 years. ... And Yes :) you are also right about my breathing I feel that sometime I need a little labor to breath. I can't concentrate but I don't think that I have that brain fog.

So what do you think?
Thanks,
Michael

You have several symptoms of Insulin Resistance. Even if you are not Insulin Resistant, the fact that you are having so many health problems, and feel lousy so often, demands that you go on a proper diet.

I love my Insulin Resistant diet. I was a compulsive eater for many years. I had quite a big pot belly, which is mostly gone right now, but I was only 20 pounds overweight no matter how much I ate. I could consume a full bag of potato chips, two large bowls of ice cream, a large piece of cheese, a half of a pizza, and NEVER put on any weight. I don't know why. This over eating and over drinking probably was the reason why my heart disease got so much worse.

The Insulin Resistant diet that I am on has brought me down four pant sizes and has me feeling pretty good most of the time. Almost all of my extra weight was around my waist. In fact, I am feeling much better, stronger, more alert, more energy, including sexual energy, than I have felt in many years.

And....... the diet is FUN!

Hi,

First of all, you made me very happy when you said that I can manage my blood pressure without medication :D.

I can't coordinate Insulin Resistance diet with a doctor because I have spent all my money on doctors and nothing left also I have got no health imporvements at all so this time I will try to do it on my own.

I will write down all the food that I can eat and try to organize it for each day. I hope I can do it.

Thanks for help,
Michael

Hi,

First of all, you made me very happy when you said that I can manage my blood pressure without medication :D.

I can't coordinate Insulin Resistance diet with a doctor because I have spent all my money on doctors and nothing left also I have got no health imporvements at all so this time I will try to do it on my own.

I will write down all the food that I can eat and try to organize it for each day.

Thanks for help,
Michael

My wife makes big pots of chilli, and hamburger casserole, and chicken casserole, and spaghetti and meatball sauce, and freezes it into small containers. She also makes me a pot of cooked brown rice, or 100% whole grain pasta. When I need to eat, I just take two containers out of the fridge, combine about ½ cup of the two, and heat it up in the microwave. Makes it fast and easy.

I will also take some casserole, a piece of cheese and place it on ½ slice of 100% whole wheat bread, for an occasional meal. There are all kinds of ways to makes meals interesting. I LOVE the diet. It feels like I am eating or snacking ALL OF THE TIME! How great is that!? I continue to slowly lose weight and continue to feel better. At first, though, my weight loss was more dramatic.

I hope I can do it. Thanks for help,
Michael

You can do it. You have the type of determination that is unique. I think that, once you see positive results, for both you and your mother, it will give you the incentive to continue the diet. I am just hoping that it works for you and that you see results soon enough to convince yourself that it is a right thing to do.

Good luck! :wave:

You say that you lose weight in the summer, Michael, and that your blood pressure is best in the summer. It is possible that the difference in your BP might be almost entirely due to your difference in weight! For some people, just ten pounds difference in weight can make the difference between needing BP medication or not! And the point where it makes the most difference varies from person to person. Some can get away with being 20 pounds overweight, but their BP can't take 30 pounds overweight. Others can't handle middle-normal weight for their height and have to get it down to low-normal. At least that's what it has sounded like from reading people's reactions on this and another health board, as well as some of the literature on the subject.

You say that you lose weight in the summer, Michael, and that your blood pressure is best in the summer. It is possible that the difference in your BP might be almost entirely due to your difference in weight! For some people, just ten pounds difference in weight can make the difference between needing BP medication or not! And the point where it makes the most difference varies from person to person. Some can get away with being 20 pounds overweight, but their BP can't take 30 pounds overweight. Others can't handle middle-normal weight for their height and have to get it down to low-normal. At least that's what it has sounded like from reading people's reactions on this and another health board, as well as some of the literature on the subject.

I really would like to know why my blood pressure is much more lower in summer :confused:. I guess it's the hot weather but maybe because:

1- I eat less, although I eat fast food a lot in summer
2- I walk about 3 hours daily
3- I lose 11 pounds and sometimes 15

I want to know which one of those factors is effecting my blood pressure or maybe all of them are helping. I will try to organize my diet then lose the extra weight and see what would happen. But I have the feeling that I can manage getting off Cardiazim after 1 year :D.
I'm happy to be here, you really give me hope.
Thanks,
Michael