high blood pressure

AP reports that Luiz Inacia da Silva, known as Lula, has quit smoking after 50 years. He was scared into it by a widely-publicized bout of hypertension that forced him to cancel an appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The story also notes that Barak Obama is still smoking.

Two new studies, both published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, point out the importance of weight loss for reducing high blood pressure - and the type of diet is important, too. In one study, researchers compared an Atkins low carb-type diet versus a low fat diet plus orlistat, a weight-loss drug, in 146 overweight or obese people. Both groups lost weight and had improved cholesterol as well. But the low carb diet group also saw reduced blood pressure.

The other study, called ENCORE, found that the DASH diet, recommended by the American Heart Association, combined with regular exercise, promoted lower blood pressure for people who are overweight or obese. Heartwire has more here.

As evidence grows that high blood pressure is linked to the development of dementia, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health, has launched a $15 million clinical study to explore this connection. The goal of the SPRINT (Systolic blood PRessure INTervention) Trial is to see if agressive treatment of systolic blood pressure down to 120 mm hg will reduce not only cardivascular and renal complications but also cognitive decline. Canadian Press has more on this important study here.

The new Heart and Stroke Foundation Report Card on Canadian's Health highlights the looming crisis in heart health caused by the convergence of risk factors in new groups of people. Cardiovascular risk is usually associated with aging, but new research shows that younger and younger people are increasingly susceptible to risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and smoking that lead to heart attacks and stroke.

Between 1994 and 2005, rates of blood pressure among Canadians skyrocketed by 77%, diabetes by 45% and obesity by 18% - affecting both younger and older Canadians.

The people at highest risk are boomers in the their 50s and the cohort coming up right after them. Unless something drastic happens, lots of these folks will be heading into old age already with high blood pressure, overweight, and physically inactive.

The report advocates avoiding the consequences of this dire situation by implementing the reccomendations of the Canadian Heart Health Strategy.

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