How often do you take your BP?

[anon55]

Few times a week. Mostly because mine is quite low (95/65).

 

[Lifting88]

Did you guys use a armcuff of wirstmonitor


I use a xl cuff but the cuff is to large in lengte so i cant keep the 2 fingers off my forarm

I got readings from 130/140 to 70 when its lower to the forarm and 120 to 70 when its higher to shoulder very strange

 

[Juiced_lizard]

Did you guys use a armcuff of wirstmonitor


I use a xl cuff but the cuff is to large in lengte so i cant keep the 2 fingers off my forarm

I got readings from 130/140 to 70 when its lower to the forarm and 120 to 70 when its higher to shoulder very strange

I use an arm cuff - I think the biggest thing is consistency. Use the same cuff every day. If you use wrist cuff then use that every day. Each machine is going to have some type of difference. If you do the same thing, same machine and same spot every time it’s going to be accurate to that spot each time to another time.

 

[Lifting88]

I use an arm cuff - I think the biggest thing is consistency. Use the same cuff every day. If you use wrist cuff then use that every day. Each machine is going to have some type of difference. If you do the same thing, same machine and same spot every time it’s going to be accurate to that spot each time to another time.

Yes but i dont like it if my bloodpressure is really 140/70 on only trt and 20mg olmesartan

 

[Juiced_lizard]

Yes but i dont like it if my bloodpressure is really 140/70 on only trt and 20mg olmesartan

I’d monitor it on the same arm, same way over a few days. Track it same time. When you get up, mid day and at night. Around the same time each day for a week then see what it averages. Make sure you are setting it up the same way. Even your left arm vs right arm can get different readings.

 

[Bigoldguy]

If I take my BP right after sitting down I get around 145/55. I can force an “okay” BP of 130/55 by staying sat for half an hour, but I don’t feel very reassured by it when the reference ranges are established by a data set of participants who are not sat for half an hour.

I dunno why my BP has been going up over the last 3 years. I’m on less T now than ever before, eating better than ever, cut out all salt, and exercising for around 2 hours a day. But my BP is steadily going up.

Throwing AHTs at it crashes my DBP just as much as my SBP.

I’ve read some shit studies suggesting that isolated diastolic hypotension can be caused by endurance athleticism and is harmless in such cases. But I don’t think my 40 minutes of burpees a day counts.

If you chase some of the research, lowering your sodium intake too far can lead to hypertension when the body compensates by adding fluid. I had cut out all processed stuff, added no salt during cooking or after, etc. BP became kinda weird. My pcp, who loves to read medical stuff, chewed me out. Explained how just about every system needs sodium...he also pointed out that when someone comes into the ER with high bp, they almost start a drip of normal saline (9000mg sodium per bag if memory serves) so, if sodium was the main culprit, why do that? Ive started adding salt back in but keep track of how much Im getting..bp has stabilized where its not all over the place. Not saying adding salt will help you, this is just an fyi.

 

[Benf15harp]

Once annually.

 

[BamaCrazy]

I’d monitor it on the same arm, same way over a few days. Track it same time. When you get up, mid day and at night. Around the same time each day for a week then see what it averages. Make sure you are setting it up the same way. Even your left arm vs right arm can get different readings.

I check both arms every time. A few digits difference is likely insignificant. But a difference of more than 10 could be a sign of issues.

“A significant difference in the pressure recorded in the right and left arms can signal circulatory problems that may lead to stroke, peripheral artery disease, or other cardiovascular problems.”

 

[Juiced_lizard]

I check both arms every time. A few digits difference is likely insignificant. But a difference of more than 10 could be a sign of issues.

“A significant difference in the pressure recorded in the right and left arms can signal circulatory problems that may lead to stroke, peripheral artery disease, or other cardiovascular problems.”

On the topic of where to test. Slightly Different reading on forearm vs higher on shoulder that wouldn’t apply in my opinion.

If you want to check it all then you should do BP on both arms and both legs. Called an Ankle Brachial Index test.

 

[Havoc_Six]

I check both arms every time. A few digits difference is likely insignificant. But a difference of more than 10 could be a sign of issues.

“A significant difference in the pressure recorded in the right and left arms can signal circulatory problems that may lead to stroke, peripheral artery disease, or other cardiovascular problems.”

I do this as well, but yeah I do it at least once a day. if not twice. and check both arms for any differences.

 

[BamaCrazy]

Whenever I’ve had my BP checked at the Doctor’s office and they used a wrist unit my BP is always incorrect. Sometimes higher than an arm cuff, sometimes lower.

 

[Sampei]

I check both arms every time. A few digits difference is likely insignificant. But a difference of more than 10 could be a sign of issues.

“A significant difference in the pressure recorded in the right and left arms can signal circulatory problems that may lead to stroke, peripheral artery disease, or other cardiovascular problems.”

What one can do if you have 10+ from one arm to another? I mean is there anything one can do to fix it?

 

[HUGE McBIGLARGE]

Is your diastolic always that low? That definitely meets the definition of ISH.

I found this. I assume you are not older than 50? ISH can be a sign of stiffened large arteries or valve disfunction.


“Isolated systolic hypertension is the most common form of high blood pressure after age 50. In this condition, the diastolic blood pressure may be lower than normal. If this reading is <70 mmHg, diastolic blood pressure is low. ”

I’m 31. My diastolic is always below 70. Sometimes in the low 40s. Averages at about 55.

Problem is there’s no treatment for stiffened arteries (unless something like high cholesterol is to blame), and I don’t really want heart surgery. So I’ve gotta weigh up the cons of high SBP vs the cons of low DBP, and consider AHTs.

I had an echocardiogram which was apparently fine.

If you chase some of the research, lowering your sodium intake too far can lead to hypertension when the body compensates by adding fluid. I had cut out all processed stuff, added no salt during cooking or after, etc. BP became kinda weird. My pcp, who loves to read medical stuff, chewed me out. Explained how just about every system needs sodium...he also pointed out that when someone comes into the ER with high bp, they almost start a drip of normal saline (9000mg sodium per bag if memory serves) so, if sodium was the main culprit, why do that? Ive started adding salt back in but keep track of how much Im getting..bp has stabilized where it’s not all over the place. Not saying adding salt will help you, this is just an fyi.

Funnily enough I added a lot of soy sauce to my dinner last night because I was so frustrated at eating the same disgusting dinner every night I said “fuck it let’s make it tasty”.

And today my BP is around 120/55. The lowest it’s been in a very long time. Of course n=1 so that doesn’t mean much, but going forwards I might add some salt to my dinner and check the BP. I guesstimate I get around 2g of salt a day ordinarily, so I’ve got a lot of wiggle room before my salt consumption is “high”.

I do drink around 5L of water a day, eat around 100g of fiber a day, and I have 5 heaped teaspoons of instant coffee a day. All of which can deplete sodium.

Maybe the answer is salt. I hope so. I love salt.

 

[BamaCrazy]

What one can do if you have 10+ from one arm to another? I mean is there anything one can do to fix it?

Not that I could find. It’s more of a marker for heart disease risk. Harvard did a study where they checked BP of 3,400 men and women over the age of 40 with no signs of heart disease. 10% had a difference of over 10 between both arms. They followed those participants for 13 years. Those 10% were 38% more likely to have a heart attack, stroke, or related incident.

 

[Sampei]

I’m 31. My diastolic is always below 70. Sometimes in the low 40s. Averages at about 55.

Problem is there’s no treatment for stiffened arteries (unless something like high cholesterol is to blame), and I don’t really want heart surgery. So I’ve gotta weigh up the cons of high SBP vs the cons of low DBP, and consider AHTs.

I had an echocardiogram which was apparently fine.



Funnily enough I added a lot of soy sauce to my dinner last night because I was so frustrated at eating the same disgusting dinner every night I said “fuck it let’s make it tasty”.

And today my BP is around 120/55. The lowest it’s been in a very long time. Of course n=1 so that doesn’t mean much, but going forwards I might add some salt to my dinner and check the BP. I guesstimate I get around 2g of salt a day ordinarily, so I’ve got a lot of wiggle room before my salt consumption is “high”.

I do drink around 5L of water a day, eat around 100g of fiber a day, and I have 5 heaped teaspoons of instant coffee a day. All of which can deplete sodium.

Maybe the answer is salt. I hope so. I love salt.

I get an average of 6gr of salt a day. Increase your sodium

 

[Havoc_Six]

Whenever I’ve had my BP checked at the Doctor’s office and they used a wrist unit my BP is always incorrect. Sometimes higher than an arm cuff, sometimes lower.

The wrist one always seems to be incorrect. not sure why they use those. I always ask for the arm cuff. One time they had me do it standing up which seemed to honestly screw the results up over me sitting down relaxed. (as expected) just depends on the nurse and where you're at when they do it. But I do it at home on my own relaxed, using a arm cuff on both arms and get reliable results.

 

[narta]

Once annually.

 

[BamaCrazy]

The wrist one always seems to be incorrect. not sure why they use those. I always ask for the arm cuff. One time they had me do it standing up which seemed to honestly screw the results up over me sitting down relaxed. (as expected) just depends on the nurse and where you're at when they do it. But I do it at home on my own relaxed, using a arm cuff on both arms and get reliable results.

And they know they are doing incorrectly. That’s why they don’t make a big deal when your BP is high in their office. Between their laziness and your possible white coat syndrome, your BP may or may not be truly high. That’s why we should monitor it ourselves. If you suspect issues perform a 7 day BP check morning and night to get a baseline. Take that data to them and ask to be treated. Otherwise they just ignore your high readings.

 

[AlexDavis43]

I do drink around 5L of water a day, eat around 100g of fiber a day, and I have 5 heaped teaspoons of instant coffee a day. All of which can deplete sodium.

That's a lot of fiber.

 

[Ateam2023]

is it best to take your BP right away when you wake up or after you been moving a bit? Or as long as you take it at the same time of day?