Lowering Blood Pressure in the short-term

April 6, 2009 3:46 PM

What are immediate methods to lower my blood pressure?

I find that my blood pressure fluctuates several points, as does everyone's. What are methods I can use 24 hours before having my blood pressure measured to make sure it's as low as possible?

Methods I'm already aware of: refrain from ANY caffeine / salt, sit down for as long as possible, do breathing exercises in the morning.

Questions remain like would it be a good idea to do an intense workout the night before? Is it good to do it shortly after I wake up or later in the day?

What am I missing?

I am 27 yo with an average BP of 100/72. In very good health.

(The reason I am asking is because I have a fitness test coming up and I want to do everything in my power to pass. I am already doing long term solutions.)

posted by ilovehistory to health & fitness (12 comments total)

Also, refrain from alcohol for that amount of time.
posted by Danf at 3:48 PM on April 6

An intense workout will not affect your BP the night before, long-term solutions that you are already participating in will continue to help you. Also, what BP improvements are you looking for? You already have an satisfactory BP if you are averaging 100/72. Stay below 140/90 and you should pass any fitness exam.
posted by Asherah at 3:52 PM on April 6

Yeah, if 100/72 is your average, don't try to lower your BP. You don't get a better score the lower you go -- you just get a better shot of passing out from low blood pressure.
posted by mudpuppie at 4:14 PM on April 6 [2 favorites has favorites]

I wouldn't normally suggest someone do this as it could lead people to making unwise decisions. There are some fairly harmless ways to lower your BP. My first and foremost suggestion would be meditation and relaxation. Secondly, looking up natural vasodiolators brings up garlic and Ginko Biloba which both are benign enough to confidently suggest without complications.
I think you would seriously have to take a lot of that stuff to have a negative impact but as always be careful, and IANAD.
posted by P.o.B. at 4:40 PM on April 6

What everyone said about "you don't need to lower your blood pressure." If you lower your blood pressure very much, it might be perceived as too low. The generally accepted threshold for hypotension is 90/60.
posted by Sidhedevil at 4:41 PM on April 6

Meditation.
posted by Zambrano at 5:21 PM on April 6

I basically need to be an in shape as an astronaut... so I'm just trying to get it as low as is healthy.
posted by ilovehistory at 5:23 PM on April 6

I think this post calls out for a Gattaca tag.

Have you tried biofeedback?
Visualization (e.g. finding your happy place)
You might want to look at resources devoted to passing polygraph tests, there might be something there that works for you.
posted by bottlebrushtree at 5:29 PM on April 6

I'm told that oregano works as a natural ACE inhibitor.
posted by Caviar at 7:00 PM on April 6

That seems like a fine blood pressure to me- if you are talking astronaut-fit, there will be other more specific tests of your fitness that would be more intensive than your BP. Like, what happens to your heart rate and BP when under stress? I could probably put up some good numbers at rest, but if you put me on a stress test, it would probably go sky high.

That said, one thing I've noticed is that foods with Tyramine make my BP shoot sky high. Usually causing a headache, which I'd then take Ibuprofen for. Which would make my BP go even higher. (No, I'm not on any medications that would cause a sensitivity.) So that's one thing to try.
posted by gjc at 7:25 PM on April 6

Far be it from me to stop a budding astronaut from getting there, but trust me, you probably don't want your BP much lower than where it is. At 80/50 (thanks to beta blockers), I was regularly greying out on fast movements, such as jumping up to grab the phone.

Depending on what's involved in your physical tests, lowering your blood pressure that far may cause you to pass out, feel faint, see spots, or otherwise do things I would presume they don't want astronauts doing in flight. Be really careful if you opt to take any kind of short-term serious BP-lowering measures.
posted by fairytale of los angeles at 7:36 PM on April 6

I'm just trying to get it as low as is healthy.

It's not any healthier at 95/65 than it is at 100/70, is the thing. You're more likely to overshoot and get it too low than lower it by five points.
posted by Sidhedevil at 2:55 PM on April 7