By adopting a “DASH” diet, losing weight and doing aerobic physical exercise, it is possible to reduce treatment-resistant hypertension, reveals a study.
- Conducted on 140 patients, the study shows that a change in diet and the practice of physical activity can lower systolic blood pressure in people with resistant hypertension, which improves heart health.
According to a study by Public Health France, more than one in three French people are affected by high blood pressure (HTA), half of whom are unaware of their condition and therefore do not take any treatment. This silent disease can however have serious consequences: by stiffening the walls of the arteries, the hyperpressure of the blood causes them to age prematurely, which exposes them to a major risk of cardiovascular accidents, in particular myocardial infarction, but also to strokes and kidney failure.
To reduce blood pressure, there are many treatments, which all act differently on hypertension. However, approximately 5% of the general adult population, and up to 30% of adults with hypertension are affected by resistant hypertension. The latter is associated with target organ damage and a 50% increased risk of adverse cardiovascular events, including stroke, heart attack and death.
In a study published in Traffic, the journal of the American Heart Association, however, American researchers explain that they found that these patients could significantly lower their blood pressure and improve their cardiovascular health by adopting the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet and increasing their level of physical activity. The DASH diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy, and limited salt.
A decrease in systolic pressure
The four-month clinical trial involved 140 adults with resistant hypertension. Participants were randomly divided into two groups: 90 participants received dietary counseling and exercise training three times a week as part of intensive, supervised cardiac rehabilitation. The other 50 participants received a single briefing from a health educator and written guidelines on exercise, weight loss, and nutritional goals to follow on their own.
The results showed that participants in the supervised program experienced a drop of about 12 points in their systolic blood pressure, compared to 7 points in the self-guided group. Participants in the supervised program also experienced greater improvements in other key indicators of heart health, suggesting they had a lower risk of suffering a heart attack in the future.
“Our results showed that lifestyle changes in people with resistant hypertension can help them lose weight and increase physical activity, which has the effect of lowering blood pressure and potentially reducing their risk of heart attack or strokeexplains James A. Blumenthal, professor at the Faculty of Medicine at Duke University (United States) and first author of the study. While some people can modify their lifestyle on their own, a structured program of supervised exercise and dietary modification conducted by a multidisciplinary team of health care professionals within the framework of cardiac rehabilitation programs is probably more effective.”
The researcher stresses that the success of the supervised program does not mean that people with resistant hypertension can stop taking their medication. However, it is important to discuss with your doctor the possibility of reducing the doses or modifying your medications according to the drop in your blood pressure. “The most important point is that it’s not too late to lower blood pressure by making healthy lifestyle choices”he concludes.
Below, Dr. Denolle’s interview on treatment compliance in hypertension:
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