Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a condition in which blood flowing through the body exerts a force on the arteries sufficient to eventually cause heart disease, such as stroke and heart attacks. Aerobic exercise can help hypertensive people achieve a lower blood pressure, and jogging is one way to improve your health in this and other areas.
Causes of Hypertension
According to the Mayo Clinic, there is no identifiable underlying cause in most cases of hypertension. This type of high blood pressure is called primary or essential hypertension. In contrast, secondary hypertension results from an underlying condition such as kidney disease, congenital vascular disorder and the use or abuse of prescription or recreational drugs, particularly stimulants. Risk factors include advancing age, inactivity, obesity, a family history of heart disease, excessive alcohol use, stress, diabetes, tobacco use and too much sodium in the diet.
Role of Exercise
Aerobic exercise such as jogging is an established way for people with hypertension to control or lower their blood pressure. A 2002 study in "Annals of Internal Medicine" demonstrated that regular aerobic exercise lowered both systolic blood pressure, the top number in a blood pressure measurement, and diastolic blood pressure, the bottom number, by a statistically significant amount. This was true of people with hypertension and those with normal blood pressure. These results agreed with the majority of 50 previous studies on the subject.
How Much to Jog?
If you are not currently exercising, it is important that you work up gradually from walking to walk-jogging to steady jogging over a period of weeks or months, depending on your age, overall health and weight. Always get your doctor's clearance before undertaking an exercise program. According to Net Doctor, 30 minutes of exercise five days a week is an optimal target for maximizing improvements in not only hypertension, but other markers of heart health. You can break up the 30 daily minutes into more manageable 10-minute segments at first.
Other Treatments for Hypertension
Dr. Cathy Fieseler says in "Running Times" magazine that jogging alone is rarely sufficient to correct hypertension. The first line of treatment is modifying your overall lifestyle -- not only exercising, but also reducing your sodium intake, losing weight if necessary and quitting smoking if you're a tobacco user. If these don't lower your blood pressure to normal levels, your doctor may prescribe medications such as calcium-channel blockers, such as Cardizem, and ACE inhibitors, including Capoten.
References
- Mayo Clinic: High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)
- "Annals of Internal Medicine"; Effect of Aerobic Exercise on Blood Pressure: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized, Controlled Trials; Seamus P. Whelton, et al.; April 2002
- "Running Times"; Ask the Doctor: Hypertension in Endurance Athletes; Dr. Cathy Fieseler
