I went to see the Nurse Practitioner today to see about getting some antibiotics for an infection. Of course, they took my blood pressure. 102/68. :eek: Normally it runs about 120/80. (Last time I was in, it was 122/82.)
Well, I’ve lost 15 pounds in the last four weeks with a change in diet and walking two miles a day, five days a week. The MA was not at all concerned about my systolic number, but it was a bit shocking to me for it to be so low. I wonder what Wifey RN will say?
What’s your change in diet entail? If you’re cutting back on sodium that might have something to do with it–IANAD, obviously.
Cutting out all added sugar, drastically reducing carbohydrates (e.g., no white bread, limited whole wheat bread, low-carb tortillas), eating more vegetables, choosing leaner meats, limited dairy, poached eggs instead of fried eggs, and much-reduced portions. Sodium? Not really paying any attention to that.
The Weight loss alone could’ve done it. I am anxious to hear what Wifey says too.
Plus, I hate you.
Congratulations! I hope you’re meeting your goals. 
I had that happen with a similar weight loss.
That sounds good to me! My wife has numbers similar to that. The new guidelines have 122/82 as borderline now. (“Stage I hypertension.”) My whole life, I’ve never been able to get under 140/85-ish until I finally went on medication a few years ago. Even when I was running 6 miles a day and eating like a champ (lost 40 pounds at one point. Didn’t make a lick of difference to my blood pressure.) So I’d be ecstatic if I were you! 
As I said, it’s a bit of a shock. How did you feel? I feel fine, but I’d hate to pass out!
I guess I shouldn’t have freaked out. According to this chart (the first thing that shows up on a google search just now), my BP is ‘ideal’. whew
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I once dipped into the 9x/5x range and felt a bit off but never passed out. I was on a mild diuretic and dropped it - BP went up to 115/65.
IME, my BP tracks my weight gains and loss and I keep going on and off low dose BP meds.
By making the dietary changes that you’ve made, you’ve significantly lowered your sodium intake by default as the foods you’re now eating are less processed and have less added salt.
From my understanding, the link between sodium and blood pressure is tenuous, except for certain individuals who are particularly sodium sensitive.
True. But I didn’t mention blood pressure in my post, I was referring to the sodium levels that the OP hadn’t specifically lowered in his diet.
Ah, I got it now.
I’m normally 100/60. The highest I’ve ever registered is 120/70 after biking to my doctor’s office and walking right in.
Hey, Johnny, I’ve been away from the Dope for a long time, and glad to see you are still around and that you are on a healthy diet. I turned 90 last summer.
Anyway, one thing I have leaned is that BP varies widely among people, during different times of the day, and for unknown reasons.
I was a distance runner for some 15 yeas in my 60s and low 70s. Like most who do daily strenuous exercise, I had very low readings, usually around 100/60 or so. Back then nurses and some docs got very worried about it, but I was in very good health. Now that I can no longer run or climb mountains, it has gone up to about 120/70.
My wife, however, who is 88 has an unusual problem. At an annual checkup about a year ago, they found she was up to 160/90 and started her on a diuretic med. We got a home BP machine, and the doc wanted her to take it every couple of hours and keep track of the results for a week.
What happened is that it was all over the clock, high, normal, low at each reading. The doc was puzzled but had her increase the dosage from one pill to one and a half a day.
This did lower the higher reading, but what she eventually found out is that when it was low, she felt awful, but when it climbed to above the “normal” she felt better.
Finally we went to a cardiologist who said these fluctuations were unusual, but not unheard of, and not much she could do but go back to one pill a day. This keeps it from getting too high, but it still bounces all over during each day.
All this just to show that some docs don’t really feel there is such a thing as “normal.” or “one size fits all.”
Hey, KlondikeGeoff, good to see you. When I was a couple of decades younger, 120/70 was my norm. Now, 120/80 makes me happy. Since the consensus, including among medical professionals, is that a systolic pressure of 100 or so it good, I guess that makes me very happy.
Your ‘one and a half pill a day’ comment reminded me that my PCP put me on one daily low-dose aspirin. I just now remembered, and no doubt that explains a bit.
I recently had some high BP readings, so put myself on a strict kidney-friendly diet. Two months of nothing but boiled cabbage, cauliflower, red bell peppers, onions, garlic, berries, and small amounts of proteins (mostly poultry). And no salt, not even light salt. My numbers came down dramatically.
Now I use that diet as the core of my meals, but include small amounts of other foods as well.
My BP has been running around 100/60 to 110/70 for years and years… I’ve always been told that as long as you’re not lightheaded on standing up and showing no other symptoms it’s a great number. Of course, if you have concerns talk to your doctor, but between the weight loss and better diet my guess would be it’s a reflection of better health.
Do you have any more info on this? When I was younger I had blood pressure low enough (diastolic in the nineties) that I would feel light-headed if I stood up too fast, though never light-headed enough to pass out. I wasn’t aware this was a sign that you were unhealthy.