Last week, we learnt the effects of work-related stress and how to counter it. This week, on a related matter, let’s discuss blood pressure.
Blood pressure is a measure of the force that your heart uses to pump blood around your body. It is an important force because oxygen and nutrients would not be pushed around the circulatory system to nourish tissues and organs without blood pressure.
Blood pressure is also vital because it delivers white blood cells and antibodies for immunity and hormones such as insulin. Just as important as providing oxygen and nutrients, the fresh blood that gets delivered is able to pick up the toxic waste products of metabolism, including the carbon dioxide we exhale with every breath and the toxins we clear through the liver and kidneys. Blood itself carries a number of other properties, including its temperature. It also carries one of the defenses against tissue damage, the clotting platelets that prevent blood loss following injury.
But what exactly causes blood to exert pressure in the arteries? Partly — the heart creates blood pressure by forcing out blood when it contracts with every heartbeat. However, blood pressure cannot be created solely by a pumping heart. Circulation is similar to a highly sophisticated form of plumbing. A basic law of physics gives rise to blood flow, and this law also applies in a garden hose pipe. Blood flows through the body because of a difference in pressure.
Blood pressure is highest at the start of its journey from the heart — when it enters the aorta — and it is lowest at the end of its journey along progressively smaller branches of arteries. That pressure difference is what causes blood to flow. Constricting the pipe increases pressure at the point of constriction. Without the elastic nature of the artery walls, for example, the pressure of the blood would fall away more quickly as it is pumped from the heart. Your blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day.
While the heart creates the maximum pressure, the properties of the arteries are just as important to maintaining it and allowing blood to flow throughout the body. Your arteries adjust and become either narrower or widen in order to maintain a healthy blood pressure. The condition of the arteries therefore affects blood pressure and flow, and narrowing of the arteries can eventually block the supply altogether, leading to dangerous conditions including stroke and heart attack.
Maintaining a healthy blood pressure is very important because the higher your blood pressure is the higher your chances of having health issues are. High blood pressure is often related to unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as smoking, drinking too much alcohol, being overweight and not exercising enough. High blood pressure can damage your arteries by making them less elastic, which decreases the flow of blood and oxygen to your heart. Left untreated, high blood pressure can increase your risk of developing a number of serious long-term health conditions, including coronary heart disease. You also risk damaging the blood vessels in your kidneys or eyes.
Low blood pressure is less common. Some medicines can cause low blood pressure as a side effect. It can also be caused by a number of underlying conditions, including heart failure and dehydration.
Blood pressure is measured using two numbers. The first number, called systolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The second number, called diastolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart rests between beats. The guidelines used to diagnose high blood pressure may differ from health care professional to health care professional:
Some health care professionals diagnose patients with high blood pressure if their blood pressure is consistently 140/90 mm Hg or higher.2 this limit is based on a guideline released in 2003.
Other health care professionals diagnose patients with high blood pressure if their blood pressure is consistently 130/80 mm Hg or higher.1 This limit is based on a guideline released in 2017.
People with high blood pressure can lower their blood pressure into a healthy range or keep their numbers in a healthy range by making lifestyle changes. Getting at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week (about 30 minutes a day, five days a week). Not smoking. Eating a healthy diet, including limiting sodium (salt) and alcohol. Keeping a healthy weight. Managing stress.
Colour therapy for BP
There is a simpler, holistic and non-expensive self-treatment called Colour Therapy. We have a complex and in-depth relationship we have with colours. This psychodynamic relationship profoundly influences our thoughts, actions, and over all well-being.
How it works
Apply dark blue colour below the thumbnail on any hand for high BP, and orange colour in case of low BP (see pic). Blue colour is associated with the sea and sky - calming energy; while orange with fire - active energy. The point at which it is applied mimics the point where the brainstem or medulla is located. That part of the brain is the sensor for heart rate and blood pressure.
(For more holistic treatments log on to www.artofselfhealing.in)
