3 Mistakes When Measuring Blood Pressure

Practice doesn’t necessarily make perfect, and this is especially true when taking blood pressure.

Many people don’t realize that WHEN and WHERE you take your blood pressure is as important as HOW.

This can lead to misdiagnosis where people who don’t actually have high blood pressure are forced on medications with serious side effects.

Today we’ll talk about the 3 most common mistakes people make when measuring their blood pressure.

#1 – The first mistake is taking your blood pressure only once per day. Because blood pressure levels fluctuate throughout the day, it is important to get a reading at different times during the day to get a better idea of what your average is.

It’s also a great way to pinpoint the times of day that cause the BP spikes so you can target those for lifestyle and stress adjustment if needed. You also want to make sure that you are checking it several times per week and not just sporadically.

#2 – The second mistake that people commonly make is to only have blood pressure taken at the doctor’s office, thinking that’s the only accurate way to get a reading. In truth, “white coat syndrome,” or an elevated blood pressure due to the anxiety of being in the doctor’s office, leads to a huge number of false readings. Getting a good home monitor and taking it frequently in the comfort of your own surroundings helps eliminate this mistake.

And follow your own readings. If your blood pressure at home is normally below 120/80 but your doctor wants you to take medications because his/her readings are higher, get a second opinion from a doctor who understands white coat syndrome.

#3 – Finally, make sure to read the instructions and follow them closely for all home monitors. User error contributes to a lot of avoidable mis-readings. You might even take the monitor to the doctor’s office and have the nurse or CNA help with your monitor for the first time.

Now if you actually have high blood pressure, you want to get it down as soon as possible. The simplest method to lower blood pressure naturally is a trio of easy exercises that drop blood pressure down to normal as soon as today…