BrianOCD Posted August 12, 2017 Share Posted August 12, 2017 Over the past 6 months as my meds and moods have been shakey, my blood pressure has steadily increased. 6 months ago it was 120/80. Steadily rose to 160/100. And now it has leveled off to 145/90 approx daily. So i want to get proactive. My first question is about caffeine and diet soda. I drink a lot of it, is this a big contribute to HBP? Also, any other advice from people who have successfully gotten their BP down, without meds. I want to try without meds first. I have been to my general doctor and he wants me to record BP daily for 3 weeks til I see him next. Thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyRedhead Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 (edited) 15 hours ago, BrianOCD said: Over the past 6 months as my meds and moods have been shakey, my blood pressure has steadily increased. 6 months ago it was 120/80. Steadily rose to 160/100. And now it has leveled off to 145/90 approx daily. So i want to get proactive. My first question is about caffeine and diet soda. I drink a lot of it, is this a big contribute to HBP? Also, any other advice from people who have successfully gotten their BP down, without meds. I want to try without meds first. I've never had a problem with HBP, although my dad did have it bad enough that he had to take meds for it. As to your question about caffeine, yes it can increase BP.....If you are drinking a lot of caffeine, I would suggest at least trying to cut down on the diet soda, or switching to caffeine-free diet soda. Also, I hope you don't smoke--that can increase BP. Additionally, I would suggest eating a low sodium diet----A diet high in salt can contribute to HBP: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/salt-and-sodium/sodium-health-risks-and-disease/ There are some other suggestions from a decent article I found about how to lower your BP naturally: https://www.drdavidwilliams.com/lower-blood-pressure-naturally Edited August 13, 2017 by CrazyRedhead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianOCD Posted August 14, 2017 Author Share Posted August 14, 2017 Thanks Redhead I am going to try cutting back on caffeine. I'm under a lot of stress and anxiety lately so that likely is causing some of this. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notloki Posted August 14, 2017 Share Posted August 14, 2017 Effexor can cause HBP. After I had been on it for years with no blood pressure problems I spiked to a pressure of 180/110 and stayed there until I stopped Effexor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Also, if you're overweight at all, losing weight even by a few pounds can help lower your BP a little. Cutting way back on salt and sodium, and then reducing the caffeine should help. Unfortunately I have to take meds for mine, I take verapamil and it's usually now at 120/90 which is the best it's going to get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shimmeree Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 My blood pressure has been pretty high for years because of my Effexor. I'm supposed to not have any caffeine, and I monitor my BP at home. About a year ago I started taking atenolol for my HBP, and also my anxiety. Now I'm mostly at normal, healthy range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sugarsugar Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 I seem to be salt sensitive. I don't drink much caffeine so I don't know if that would affect me. Salt is a big culprit for many, apparently. Not just table salt, but salt in processed or fast food. That's something to consider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien Navel Cord Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 On 9/11/2017 at 9:41 AM, sugarsugar said: I seem to be salt sensitive. I don't drink much caffeine so I don't know if that would affect me. Salt is a big culprit for many, apparently. Not just table salt, but salt in processed or fast food. That's something to consider. I like how we're talking about salt salt and your username is sugar sugar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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