The average person, growing up, probably didn’t concern themselves with their blood pressure reading. Eventually coming to a point where we may have high blood pressure and it becomes important to be more “heart healthy”. When this happens, the most common recommendation from a doctor to improve high blood pressure is usually diet, exercise, and possibly medication. However, scientists have now shown another method for lowering blood pressure, and it’s something we all do every day anyway. Breathing.
Breathing To Lower Blood Pressure
It’s common knowledge that resistance training and building muscle is good for your health. Usually, people think of toned biceps, abs, or quadriceps when they think of muscle building. But did you know that building the muscles you use to breathe can have health benefits too? New research shows that daily diagram training can help to lower blood pressure and improve heart health.
Typically some form of resistance technique is used in the process and a new device called the PowerBreathe can do just that. It creates resistance with a valve system that is calibrated causing the user to breathe only when they are using enough lung strength to force the valve back open. The diaphragm has to work harder in order to inhale and thereby becomes strengthened over time.
It is recommended to do the breathing exercise for 30 seconds every day for around 6 weeks in order to see notable changes in high blood pressure.
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The Science Behind it
“The muscles we use to breathe atrophy, just like the rest of our muscles tend to do as we get older. We found that doing 30 breaths per day for six weeks lowers systolic blood pressure by about 9 millimeters of mercury and those reductions are about what could be expected with conventional aerobic exercise.” explains researcher Daniel Craighead, an integrative physiologist at the University of Colorado Boulder. [1]
Daniel and his colleagues conducted a study in which they had healthy volunteers, ages 18-82, try daily 5-minute training using the PowerBreathe device. Diaphragmatic breathing, used during meditation, can help lower blood pressure. The device works in a similar fashion. It engages the breathing muscles to promote the production of nitric oxide.
He further states, “it requires less time to get the benefit because the small machine adds the resistance that gives the muscles a good workout so, we suspect that IMST consisting of only 30 breaths per day would be very helpful in endurance exercise events. It’s a technique that athletes could add to their training regimens.”
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There are a great many things we can do every day to live a life as healthy as possible. We can exercise, meditate, eat well, brush our teeth, and so on. With such busy lives and schedules, it’s hard to find the time to do everything suggested by experts to remain healthy and in good shape.
This breathing tool has been proven to increase stamina and help lower blood pressure, making it a great addition to your healthy habits. It is important to note that this tool will not eliminate the need to exercise and eat well, nor should it be used in place of medications or other prescribed treatments.
What does your blood pressure reading mean and what is considered high blood pressure?
Our bodies require a great deal of maintenance. Most people give very little thought to the in-depth workings but our bodies are actually very complex, almost like their own ecosystem. One of the many incredible things about the body’s abilities revolves around blood pressure. The reading has two numbers and is generally measured using a cuff that pumps up and creates pressure in order to calculate whether or not you have high blood pressure.
The first number is called systolic blood pressure and the second is called diastolic pressure. According to the Red Cross, the first number measures the maximum pressure being exerted against your artery walls when your heart beats. The second measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart rests between beats.[5]. The CDC explains that a normal reading is around 120/80 and that the diagnosis for hypertension, or high blood pressure, is around 130/80.
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