1. Blood Effect
One of the effects of a good drink is the high the drinker experiences. Elevated blood pressure levels create part of that high. Your genes and chemical make-up will determine the amount of booze your body can take before it starts affecting your blood pressure. Safe amounts for most people are no more than one ounce a day for women and one-an-a-half or two ounces for most men.
2. Change Your Lifestyle
When high blood pressure appears, you can arrest the problem with lifestyle changes. Quit drinking altogether, especially if you have a family history of alcoholism or heart disease. Avoid salt and eat more fruits and vegetables. In addition to adding to your high blood pressure episodes, excessive drinking also can be a precursor to poor eating and lifestyle choices. These choices can create even more stress, leading to a cycle of high blood pressure related incidences.
3. Ignoring Heart Disease Symptoms
Heart disease, created by high blood pressure, is the number killer in the United States. Coupled with the rise in alcoholism statistics, the news is not good for patients at risk for both diseases. When wondering which came first, always look to drinking as a cause. Your life may depend on it. Heart attacks can be insidious intruders and can occur in an instant. If you are drinking when your heart is in trouble, chances are that you may not even recognize the symptoms. Many deaths occur because early warning signs such as mild chest pain, tingling in the arms and hands and dizziness are ignored or attributed to the alcohol.
4. Get Help With Alcoholism
Substance abuse programs are widely available. While you might be put on a waiting list because of the great demand, get on that list if you fear for your life. Programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous are free and active in most communities. Heart medicines have improved greatly and, coupled with lifestyle changes and an absence of alcohol, your high blood pressure can be reversed.
5. Mixed Drinks, Mixed Results
Some recent studies report that people with high blood pressure who take in small amounts of alcohol can reduce their stress significantly enough to lower their blood pressure. However, it is a tricky proposition since alcohol can have such an unpredictable affect on the blood system and on the efficacy of other medications. Alcohol can interfere with blood pressure medication, leaving the patient at risk for heart disease. On the other hand, a nip now and then can boost the immunity of the blood for some people who have a mild case of hypertension and do not take drugs for it.
