Hi All -
I've got a high BP question that I'd appreciate some feedback on. I'm a 32 year old male in otherwise good health.
My BP tends to fluctuate between 130ish/70ish on the low side to 160ish/90ish on the high side. (It's been that way for the past 4-5 years.)
(I actually had a reading a couple of months ago that was 120/70!
)
However, when I've checked it lately it's been trending a bit high, generally around 150ish/80ish. (The lowest reading I had was yesterday when it was 136/78).
My doctor tells me that he's reluctant to drop my BP given my age, it's not terribly high to begin with and that it can drop lower on its own. Basically, he's working under the assumption that my bp isn't always high.
Also, my wife has been on the South Beach diet for a while so we've been eating more salty meats, cheese, etc. In addition, I tend to drink about 2-4 drinks during the week and then 4-6 on the weekends. I also enjoy a cup of morning coffee and work out about 4 times per week.
A couple of days ago I started a DASH type diet and have cut out drinking and cut back caffine in the AM (down to one cup). However, work's really busy and I'm in an evening MBA program so my day's are very full (and often stressful). I'm also trying to get in my 30 minutes of cardio each day.
I'd prefer not to take meds but I guess if I need to I will.
What do you recommend? Should I give the DASH diet, regular exercise and reduced caffine/alcohol a month or so?
