Alcohol

ALCOHOL AND BLOOD PRESSURE

So does alcohol contribute to high blood pressure and if so is it to do with quantity. If you have high blood pressure do you need to give up drink all together or does the ‘All Things in Moderation Rule apply.

Fist things first does alcohol make our blood pressure rise, well yes it does and there are plenty of tests and experiments that have been done to back this. But the point is that if you are a sensible drinker then alcohol probably won’t have any effect on your blood pressure. By sensible it is considered that for an average male 21 units per week or 3 units per day is OK but we should not exceed this especially on a regular basis. For an average female it is 14 units per week or 2 units per day.

Some research says that a moderate amount of alcohol lower than the figures above can be good for our bodies and help against heart disease, I can’t believe I have just written that, but that is what some research says. So it seems like the Moderation Rule does apply to alcohol and hypertension.

The other factor to take into account is that if you are a regular heavy drinker then alcohol contains a lot of calories and it is inevitable that you will gain weight over time. Now this will hit your blood pressure on two counts as the excessive alcohol will raise your blood pressure and being over weight will also raise your blood pressure. So is it time to take a look at the amount of alcohol that you are consuming on a daily or weekly basis. Even if you think you are below the levels above it is still worth keeping an alcohol diary for a week or two just to see if you are going above the recommended levels.

Blood pressure really is quite a serious subject and should not be taken lightly. I don’t mean to get to heavy here but the point is that there are to many people out there with high blood pressure and they don’t even know they have got it. Remember there are not always any symptoms, this is why it is known as the silent killer.

So do yourself a favor and get your blood pressure checked and then do that drink diary.