WHY BLOOD PRESSURE NUMBERS DO NOT MATTER

[@TheMississauga333]

Years ago I had calf cramp issues. No one could figure it out. I took the mag and potassium etc. Nothing worked. I ended up seeing a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. He just looked at me and said man you're blood pressure is low. He said that was causing the cramping. The blood flows to the feet and as it comes back up because of low pressure it kind of slows down around the calfcarea, he tells me start taking a pinch of sea salt in every glass of water, problem solved. Felt better than I had in years. He claimed low pressure is way more dangerous than high. He was like 75 years old, looked 35 with approx 40 years experience. My wife cents

[@Aria-cd6dq]

Who else just randomly found Dr. Adam Story videos one day and had been watching ever since?! 🤷

[@BillCut]

@@Aria-cd6dq you talking about me? 🤔

[@shalaswilks902]

Hi Dr. Story I agree with you 💯. I recently realized that my anxiety kept raising my blood pressure. So now I am working on managing my anxiety so it does not raise my blood pressure. Thank you.

[@georgiegills]

I have the same issue and as soon as that blood pressure cuff goes on i can hear my heart beating in my ears and neck is pulsing like i had done a work out even though i am trying to relax, I am working on my anxiety but its a bit of a hard nut to crack at the moment.

[@jayanthisrinivasan9055]

@@georgiegills Same here

[@eileenlemmon8379]

I like your distinction between health management and disease management.

[@Sergedb74]

Excellent take, Dr Adam. Not a doctor but here is my take after much researching: 1) Apparently, the safe blood pressure level used to be higher in the past. What if they lowered it to sell more medications? It used to be 100 plus age, so a 50 years old would have 150 over 80-90. What if arteries stiffen with age, the body balances out by raising the BP. It makes sense. The body wants to function at best. If one lowers that BP to 120, perhaps it is dangerous because now the blood struggles to reach the "periphery" so to speak. In fact, when I use various methods to lower my BP, I can't function, I fall asleep during the day. Of course, we need to work on improving those arteries but, according to some studies I read, lowering BP too much could be counterproductive unless the whole body is rejuvenated. Just a thought.

[@barrywilkinson4847]

Very interesting, thanks for the thinking! I’ve been eating one whole watermelon a week, my feet are now warm. It seems to help.

[@dinahsoar6982]

Good point...I have thought the same about the whole thing.

[@uschiuschi3232]

Exactly my opinion

[@frankmiller7721]

My mother-in-law was a nurse for decades and learned to start telling everyone that 120/80 is the new standard for normal blood pressure. It put lots of patients on meds immediately.

[@markn4526]

The old standard for "normal" blood pressure used to be 140/90. People should look into this to find out why the standard changed.

[@misst.e.a.187]

@@markn4526 Big Pharma

[@jahiddle]

@@markn4526 Drug companies. That's the EU standard and refuses to change it to US standards.

[@markn4526]

@@jahiddle That's right. In the US, the standard for "normal" blood pressure changed from 140/90 to 120/80 right about the same time the pharmaceutical companies made sizable donations to the AHA. The AHA is the organization that sets that standard.

[@lorettacaputo6997]

Dr. Story, you always make great points to consider.

[@fern8580]

if you have to take one medication per day (for me it's ramipril 10mg) because of your blood pressure (for me it's 17) I just realized from listening to Adam, that this is time that is offered to me to quickly lose 10% of my weight, to quickly do 3000 steps a day, to quickly change my diet! This means that I need to take control of myself and quickly, my countdown is on...

[@fashtaki1]

12 January 2024 my daily bp was then 147/104 today 108/78 with no medications just daily cardio limited caffeine quited smoking reduced alcohol significantly and supplemented with magnesium glycinate, omega 3, l citrulline, vitamin d with k2 and others

[@fern8580]

@fash How long did it take you to go from 147 to 108? How old are you (roughly)?

[@fashtaki1]

@fern8580 I'm 45 I saw it started to go down after 3 months, and between 3 and 7 months I saw ups and downs but turned to normal only in late July 1 week after quiting alcohol completely I couldn't believe my eyes when I took my bp, before that I was drinking

[@fern8580]

@@fashtaki1 Best regards !

[@shalaswilks902]

@@fashtaki1- that is amazing, keep up the good work 👍.

[@venusxo1]

My mother was healthy and maintained her weight of 125 all the way up until menopause at age 54. Automatically, she began gaining weight, her blood pressure started going up, and she was diagnosed with high cholesterol. And just like that, she was put on levothyroxine, blood pressure meds, and a statin. Her diet never changed and....she was old school and only ate fresh home cooked meals and never touched junk food her entire life. She didn't drink nor smoke and I recall only one time where she ever got sick. Years later, I'm beginning live the same fate. Can't get my BP down, don't have prediabetes or insulin resistance, and am steadily gaining 5 lbs of weight every year, despite having maintained a lean weight even after pregnancy. My bloodwork panels are all normal. I'm on the tail end of perimenopause. So we are considered healthy with the only problem being declining estrogen, which is a normal stage of a woman's life. If low estrogen is causing high BP, then it sounds to me like that too may be just a normal part of the process. I'm sure there are many women like me out there. What's your take on hormones and BP?

[@melissasmess2773]

Taking estrogen will make your blood pressure go up.

[@VanessaHart-ps2yq]

I had mine at 36 & then the weight went on so I think it is different for us Ladies

[@Gulroeg]

Do a 30 day challenge and leave out ALL processed foods. Really look at what you eat. Then measure everything again. It could be the menopause, but the more important thing is to check for metabolic disease. Search for metabolic disease here on YT. Lots to learn. I am not a doctor, so take everything I write with a rock of salt. Good luck to you.

[@kimdavies9460]

@@venusxo1 take hormones

[@lyndaniel3369]

As we age, our metabolism slows down, so if we eat the same amount of the same food and exercise the same way, we will gradually gain about 5 pounds a year (12 pounds a year if you start eating one candy bar a day).

[@joetaylor8687]

I think you're right on here, and it's even more dramatic than you're saying. I was recently reading a very well-researched book ("How Not to Die," by Dr. Michael Greger), wherein he states: "When it comes to cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood-thinning drugs, the chance of even high-risk patience benefiting from them is typically less than 5 percent over a period of five years." I think 98% of "medical professionals" are about (a) doing procedures, and (b) writing prescriptions . . . that's it. They work almost exclusively on effects, not underlying causes.

[@mavicarbon]

Yeah, that is correct. Wear and tear on the vascular system since childhood. It is unrealistic to expect every 60 year old to have normal pressure. Stiffening and clogging over many years puts pressure up to as you say to reach extremities and the brain. 100 plus age is much more like it. Artifically lowering pressure does not make you live much longer and I read it is only something like 2 percent reduction in mortality. Not worth the drug side effects. It can only be fuelled by Pharma to push this nonesense.

[@lyndaniel3369]

High-risk patients (more than one patient) need lots of patience! I agree with the "medical professionals" description. Most do not know how the body works (physiology---see Dr. Sten Ekberg) Most doctors know nothing about nutrition and are way behind in new data.

[@Mrs.R.]

Have you heard or noticed that dentists now check blood pressure? This happened to me a few years ago and I’ve heard from someone recently at another dentist, that they also check BP. This makes me even more nervous to go to the dentist for fear they won’t want to do any procedures that need to be done. I don’t like this one bit and it keeps me from wanting to go…😢😢 thanks for all you do!

[@holistichealthhacksinfo]

Same. I started taking mine at home the day of and showing a screenshot. The last time I went, the hygienist was nice enough to let me use that instead of taking it. Glad she understood. I told her I have white coat hypertension and get nervous before appointments.

[@Mrs.R.]

@ thank you for that idea and I’m glad it worked for you.

[@johnjacobsen4003]

Morons.. Total stupid, and they probably charge for it too..

[@lanceevans1689]

I've had this argument with my PCP. Chasing just the numbers is smoke & mirrors.

[@Hasnanembong]

i agree. I have a cousin who had her readings twice a day without failed. Then one day she noticed she was dragging her feet, so fatigue and her face was a little unsymmetrical. Later that night she suffered stroke, luckily it was a mild one and she was able to walk again. Only that she was not as strong as she used to, her gait was changed. You can't rely on the meter readings per se.

[@Diane53M]

I was not over weight when my blood pressure was high, but I smoked and was stressed at work. I was put on medication after a few years I gave up my job and gave up smoking, Still on medication 10 years later and now retired but blood pressure still high.

[@Inisfad]

Maybe ask your doctor to check for insulin resistance???

[@Robowx]

My doctor finally agreed with me that my numbers are 140/90. But, high numbers is best for me. When my numbers are 120/80 or lower. I can’t even stand up

[@fern8580]

I have the case of a grandmother who had 16 blood pressure for many many years: a first stent was placed at 80 years old following the fact that she was short of breath, a second (Subclavian artery) at 82 years old, she died at 84 years old from an internal arterial hemorrhage, I was never able to know if the rupture had occurred next to the stent...'A stent is a tiny expandable tube which keeps the artery open. )

[@chalkdust2877]

What is 16 blood pressure? I don't get it?

[@fern8580]

@@chalkdust287716 bloofd pressure is not good , the scale goes from 12 to 19. When we talk about blood pressure we use two numbers, high pressure and low pressure, so normal is about 13/9, to simplify I only mention high pressure (systolic blood pressure). High pressure varies from 11 to 19 , (in this case we talk about is 16).some say 110 to 119 mm Hg it's the same thing (below 11 you are on the verge of death and above 19 it's the same thing)

[@gerisibley3422]

You make so much sense, thank you for all the advice.

[@pp-pl2zg]

To the point, no complications. Thank you Dr

[@randallsample1005]

Great way to look at managing blood pressure and the real health implications. This begs the question, though, what if one has lost significant weight, is eating very healthfully, exercises consistently and effectively, has been doing these things consistently over time, has a virtually perfect set of lab results that have come about because of these improvements in lifestyle, yet still has what is considered high blood pressure? That was me at the most fit point of my life (at age 50 at the time). This has led me to think that perhaps there is more individual variation in what should be considered healthy blood pressure than the medical standards currently allow. None of my doctors seem inclined to want to find a cause, but rather simply whip out their prescription pads. I'm inclined to think that finding the cause of the elevate blood pressure will lead to its solution, but maybe I'm too well overall for the system to bother with? The term "essential hypertension" bugs the heck out of me because it seems just a bit lazy.

[@marwansherif6201]

I believe humans are different. What is suitable for me isn't necessarily appropriate for someone else. 140 or even 145 for me may be symptomsless and perfectly OK for me, but it can cause headaches for others. We are not equals. We need to remember that all the time.

[@MAGNUM2F]

Mine is around 135/140 over 85/90. I'm not worried.

[@Itsme-e5j]

Under 140/90 is normal in Europe.

[@Hasnanembong]

I think so too!

[@southerncomfort971]

Well stated Doc, another excellent video. Thank you

[@AdamJStoryDC]

Much appreciated

[@Martin19599]

Wise words. I think there's to many number managing doctors and too few health managing doctors. Why is that so?

[@lyndaniel3369]

Because it takes MORE intelligence to manage health. Using drugs (they ALL have side effects) to CONTROL the numbers is a losing game; the patient is the one who loses (their health, their energy, and maybe their life).

[@bubot17]

I learned a lot from you sir, I'm guilty of what you just said, time to change

[@staceg2003]

Most of my life, I had blood pressure below 120/80/ (100/70, sometimes lower). Since menopause my bp has been 130-140/80-90, despite maintaining a healthy weight, active lifestyle, working out with weights/walking, and teaching martial arts/tai chi. I'm trying to avoid going on BP meds; my dad was on them from the time he was in his late 30s until he died & I really think they are in part what destroyed his kidneys. I don't know what else to do to lower my blood pressure back to where it was pre-menopause, or if it's even possible. So far, no doctor has tried to put me on blood pressure medication, but I feel like the day is coming.

[@davidnelson4757]

Hi try going low carb/keto for a couple of weeks, you'll be shocked how quickly your blood pressure drops. After being 164/98 and being given losartan 50mg I gave it a try and my bloods have dropped to 125/75 after 10 days. Keto flu wasn't the most pleasant tho, but through KZbin videos and comments about upping your electrolytes you feel a lot better. Seriously wish I'd tried it a long time ago. Hopefully gives you food for thought and you do your own research on keto, certainly worked for me and lots of others. Best wishes

[@joylee8925]

My doctor has advised me to go for brisk walking daily…at least 30mins each time. I was given bp medn last yr March. I started walking since then. 6 mths later, dr said i dont need to take anymore medn as the bp has been in control.

[@ernischulz7257]

Hallo aus Deutschland, lass bitte deinen Homocystein Spiegel kontrollieren. Wenn er zu hoch ist, dann mach eine Homocysteinkur, nimm Magnesium regelmäßig ein. Auch gut: 5 Biozitronen kleinschneiden,dazu 30 Knoblauchzehen kleinschneiden,nit 1 Liter Wasser kurz aufkochen, abseihen, in den Kühlschrank und jeden Tag 2 cl davon trinken. Hilft bei mir. Liebe Grüße

[@staceg2003]

@@joylee8925 thanks. I do walk briskly daily, along with other movement (weight lifting, martial arts, etc)

[@staceg2003]

@@ernischulz7257 Vielen Dank! I will try the drink you mentioned. I do take magnesium glycinate.

[@bmwlane8834]

Interesting topic...And I agree 100%!

[@DouglasMaurer]

My physician says he views risk from high blood pressure on an individual basis, if someone come in that 375 lbs, very lethargic, doesn’t exercise and eats horribly, he claims that this a very high risk if BP is even slightly elevated compared to a thin active patient who may have the same elevated blood pressure, but the overall risk to the thin active patient is much less? Thought?

[@misst.e.a.187]

BP fluctuates throughout the day, usually higher first thing in the morning.

[@marcus_ohreallyus]

My cardiologist really thinks it matters. He ignores my heart palpitations and PVCs, but he's obsessed with making sure my BP is below 120

[@debrablake1]

Question, if you are that heavy, wouldn't you need higher blood pressure to get to all body parts?

[@PIPERBOYWILLIAMS]

Systolic BP over 180 is dangerous

[@karenlee2614]

We are all created differently. Therefore, the formula used for measuring high blood pressure is not accurate. It is not one size fits all. Thanks, doctor, for your sharing. It common-sense.

[@paddlepower888]

I’m one of those people who have to be told to breathe because I don’t like to breathe and I faint after a few minutes. Happens mostly when I’m driving my car-never had an accident-guess I’m lucky

[@billyhealy2909]

The American Association of Family Physicians says 140 over 90 is normall for me at 71 ❤

[@janlasalle8845]

120/80 ideal bp is just a number to sell medication..My bp is higher than that...one drug made my ankle swell the other made me cough...sorry...no can do...I take a water pill that Im trying to get off of...i exercise(im a dancer, no alcohol, mostly plant based diet supplement one vit a day and epa-dha pill...b12...and stop freaking worrying about bp everyday!

[@008boot6]

Nice message

[@marcus_ohreallyus]

So you say that lower blood pressure numbers don't make you healthy, but high blood pressure can make you unhealthy. But I get what you're saying. I'm visibly a fit person and I asked a doctor once "Am I better off as a fit guy with high blood pressure or a fat guy with lower blood pressure?" He said its better to have the low blood pressure and I never saw that doc again. I've asked doctors "why is my blood pressure so high?" and they just want to give me a pill, so I look for ways to lower it through exercise and other things like getting more potassium. Not to diss on doctors, but they really don't want to spend time getting to the root of problems.

[@paddlingrubberduckie8766]

Interesting, first I don't subscribe to drugs at all. I learned to amuse my cardiologist with nutrition elements (all 161 of them). I have congestive heart failure. I was stuck in bed literally for 6 months before ending up in the hospital. I didn't know at that time the need and power of a potassium and was suffering a deficiency (aka edema and acities). Since then I've figured out the nutritional changes I needed to heal. It's been 5 years since I walked out of the hospital. My nurse keeps track of my stats and my cardiologist just shakes his head as I make my blood pressure and weight dance while I fix my cellular metabolic function.

[@JavierArellan0-e3t]

My sleep very, what can I do for better sleep?

[@ArtOfHealth]

Lovely. In 2000, I was 45. Metabolically shot. 145/90 was the norm. Strong as an ox. Trick. I ate 2 large kielbasa subs at Sam’s Club. BP shot up to 185/110!!! I felt my head throb. Wake up call! Sodium blast. So I joined the Raw Food Movement. Vegetables and some fruit. Months later I hit 100/50. I went to Hawaii for my honeymoon. There was a health fair. I let a big Hawaiian Doctor check my BP. 100/50. He poked me hard in the chest and said I should be dead! I poled him in his fat belly and said You should be dead. His advice was to eat salt. For the last 25 years, I have proven that I can deliberated jack the numbers by using various salt routines. Meats, treats, prepared foods all have salt. Plus the salt people add to their diets. If my wife uses too much salt, she turns in to a raving lunatic. She is also affected by fruit and dried fruit the same way. We eat whole foods. Yes, I quit the vegan raw lifestyle. I was falling apart. Sleep is very important. We walk at least 70,000 steps a week. We swim 3 days a week in 72° water, 10-40 minutes. Very very little processed food. Distilled water daily. No alcohol. No smoking. No CBD. No drugs. Some supplements. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on correctly addressing health markers!

[@dinahsoar6982]

Good points all.

[@pinkplum3379]

Thank you. Good info.

[@AdamJStoryDC]

Glad it was helpful!

[@WarthunderVideos4U]

47 y.o. Male , in decent shape, my blood pressure is 130-140 over 80-90. Dr. Put me on different blood pressure meds, all make me feel very sick. I’m exercising and eating cleaner now. I need help , I feel so lost.

[@richdo66]

Same story for me .Reduce your carb intake to 20g a day . Easiest to do on a carnivore diet and i guarantee your BP will be back below 120/80. Mine is and NO MEDS

[@AlexanderNecheff]

This is not unique to healthcare. Sometimes the things we want to measure are difficult to quantify, in this case "health", so we come up with proxies (blood pressure) to try and indirectly measure the thing we are actually interested in (health). When you forget _why_ you are taking the measurement in the first place, you get off track and start optimizing the wrong things, focusing on the wrong goals. Businesses often fall into the trap of measuring "productivity" through proxies and end up making poor decisions because they optimize for making the proxy look good without acknowledging the indirection bias between the metric and true productivity. Super important to remember the real goals and think critically whenever you are looking at data to track your progress, sometimes the numbers do lie.

[@dirkkrau-stangenberg5632]

Isn´t it true that high BP over a longer period can adversly affect heart health and may lead to CVD? This is why BP numbers should be in a certain range (even if the root cause is not addressed).

[@TheElizabethashby]

THANK YOU

[@IdahoFatTireBikeFun]

It's exceptionally difficult to get reliable blood pressure numbers even at home while fasting. 😢

[@fern8580]

Under 140/90 is normal in Europe. But we can agree that above 160 there is a problem to be resolved in the next 3 years. But we can agree that above 150 there is a problem to be resolved in the next 5 years.

[@ynyslochtyn]

So are you saying that someone who exercises regularly and eats a sensible balance diet but happens to have a reading of say 150/90 should not take any medication?

[@lyndaniel3369]

Some recommend meditation or improving sleeping habits to help lower the numbers naturally, but most doctors are taught by Big Pharma to prescribe medication. I'm against medication because of all of the SIDE EFFECTS. I also think everyone can improve their weight (and lower their blood pressure naturally) by improving their diet. Sugar is not only NOT needed, but it feeds cancer and sugar causes dementia. Good reasons to lower one's sugar intake to zero. I'm not a doctor, but if the person in question is close to 60, I would think 150/90 is normal, but should not go any higher. 90 (is the amount of pressure the arteries are under all the time, rain or shine, while 150 is the pressure they are under whenever the heart beats.

[@ynyslochtyn]

@@lyndaniel3369 I think you make a well argued point.

[@bryandowdey1779]

Such good advice. If only more healthcare practitioners would take the same approach. Thank you.

[@MikeyCanuck123]

Absolutely. ❤

[@mischelleanderson8720]

thank you!!🙂

[@thomasarillotta6518]

1/12/23 Viewing; loved it!

[@Piperloumeditation]

There’s also familiar hypertension genetic so ya it’s is managed by meds and health some people can’t even control with food .. so sick of food shaming

[@KarlaAllen-jn3yw]

That is how I know it is high, stress is bad here be cause partner problems.?what do I do?

[@melissasmess2773]

You're gonna need to split up or get drugs

[@paddlepower888]

I binge watched all your videos. I feel dizzy

[@Luvlinedance]

Is that lovely guitar playing at the end of your video(s) you? ❤

[@jaca786]

You're right 🎉

[@carriefroman2302]

Absolutely!

[@renaecarter9661]

Do you have methods to get a better nights sleep

[@johndaw7764]

What about a person who is healthy, exercises regularly, eats a good diet...but has BP of 165/105?

[@AdamJStoryDC]

@@johndaw7764 They go to the doctor and find out why before they stroke out.

[@johndaw7764]

@@AdamJStoryDC How do you know that pressure is unhealthy? Is the body self regulating and self healing? So if that's the pressure, maybe that's normal for that person

[@johnjacobsen4003]

@@johndaw7764 They dunno shite, lol!

[@zdenkaeskit5076]

THAÑKYOU DOCTOR HALP

[@KarlaAllen-jn3yw]

I tried to get off of medicine my body want let me. And my headaches are intense. What do I do 146 1o4 at times and higher sometimes all the time now

[@darkdesertgoose2112]

Intermittent fasting dropped my weight and my BP and diminished heart burn. Been doing this for 6 years. Still doing great.

[@darkdesertgoose2112]

I quit doing BP medicine after one month and felt tired and lazy. That’s when I started intermittent fasting. It’s the only diet I have stuck to and it’s pretty easy.

[@KarlaAllen-jn3yw]

Did fasting and have no gallbladder and appendix cancer have been trying to balance here nerves are to the roof 3 months now still kicking not good

[@salorion3011]

It's true, the numbers are not relevant to health. I was told after 14 years of being on a calcium channel blocker (and had to change it due to a gum related side effect they have) by a new cardiologist that I actually don't have high blood pressure and then they measured it for the day. I stopped the meds and felt terrible even though my BP wasn't going too high (about 130/85). Started taking a beta blocker (low dose) and the headaches and extreme fatigue went away. My GP was right when he said it's better to take them than not especially after such a long time of taking them. Not sure what these cardiologists are thinking.

[@mavicarbon]

This is what i can't understand about the medical establishment and not following the science. 14 years on a channel blocker, you must come off them gradually as with most long term drugs. I would have halved them for 2 months and half again for same. Cold turkey on heart pills which is essentially what they are is pretty risky.

[@CyclingDave]

Kudos

[@Gr8Stowe]

140/90 to pass D.O.T definitely matters 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@ANDREASRIAL]

Just stop eating process foods, simple.

[@embemw]

@@ANDREASRIAL actually it’s not that simple

[@ANDREASRIAL]

@embemw agree, but it will stop accumulating all the conservatives and chemicals that are added to most of what we consume.

[@rossdaboss1959]

Acts 2:38 is still God's plan of salvation. One way for all people. We can't pick and choose which scriptures we want to obey or not. Eternity is way too long to leave the earth and be lost. Nothing down here is worth ending up in hell over.

[@glennso47]

My wife was 270 pounds when she died and the mortuary had to put her body in a large coffin. She had all kinds of illnesses including diabetes and kidney disease and you name it.

[@DCGreenZone]

❤👍

[@katalinromvari162]

💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯👏👏👏👏👏👏👏❤️

[@kt1696]

Thank you so much, this is really informative.