Higher Activity = Lower Blood Pressure

Everyone knows that regular exercise is good for you. Now a review of 54 clinical trials involving over 2,400 ?couch potato? adults has confirmed just how good exercise can be.

Published in the April 2, 2002, issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, the study concluded that regular exercise can decrease a person?s systolic blood pressure reading by an average of 3.8 mm Hg while reducing diastolic blood pressure by an average of 2.6 mm Hg. A blood pressure reading of 140/90 mm Hg or more is considered ?high.?

The study did not indicate just how much exercise is needed for lowering blood pressure, but it did show that aerobic exercises of any sort at nearly any frequency have a beneficial effect on previously sedentary individuals.

Most health authorities recommend at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise 5 days or more per week. It?s good for weight control, and now we know for certain that it?s a good way to lower your blood pressure.