Exercise to Treat High Blood Pressure

Treat high blood pressure with exercise

A common prescription to prevent or treat high blood pressure is exercise. But ever wonder what exercise is the most effective?

A recent analysis published by the American Heart Association, surveyed 93 trials that lasted at least 4 weeks and recorded the effects of various types of exercise with resting blood pressure. The researchers studied the exercise as dynamic aerobic (e.g., biking, running etc.), dynamic resistance training (using force to contract muscles while the muscles’ lengths change, when doing push-ups or lifting weights), and isometric exertion (sustaining contraction against object without altering muscle length, such as hand-grip exercises).

All 3 types of exercise significantly lower blood pressure

Supporting the idea that it is best for patients to be safely monitored by a personal trainer, the analysis found that all 3 types significantly lower high blood pressure. These results were both in people who don’t yet have hypertension and in people who have. In addition, all 3 types of exercises consistently lowered systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure.

Their analysis indicates that isometric exercise might be most effective in lowering systolic blood pressure. People who already have hypertension, researchers found that aerobic exercise appears to be more effective than dynamic resistance exercise. Men seem to have greater blood-pressure-lowering effect from aerobic exercise than do women.

Moderate to high-intensity aerobic exercise most effective

Moderate to high-intensity aerobic exercise appears to be most effective in lowering high blood pressure. The weight loss often associated with starting a exercise program may increase the exercise’s role in lowering blood pressure.

Ref: https://jaha.ahajournals.org/content/2/1/e004473.full