159 – Best Ways to Treat High Blood Pressure

In This Episode:

Dr. K explains the best ways to lower blood pressure in older adults, using both lifestyle changes and medications that are safe and effective for aging bodies. She goes into detail on the DASH diet, sodium and potassium intake, types of blood pressure medications (like calcium channel blockers and ACE inhibitors), and how to decide on the right blood pressure goals for your age and health status.

She covers:

• Defining hypertension
• Causes of high blood pressure
• How high is too high?
• How to lower BP
• Lifestyle changes to lower BP
• DASH diet for hypertension
• Reducing dietary sodium
• Potassium and blood pressure
• Medications for hypertension treatment
• Special hypertension considerations for older adults

Related episode:

• 157 – High Blood Pressure in Aging: When to Treat & Why It Matters

Related Resources:

• 6 Steps to Better High Blood Pressure Treatment for Older Adults
• What the Blood Pressure Guidelines — & Research — Mean For Older Adults
• ACC/AHA Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults (2017)
• 2023 European Society of Hypertension Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension
• 2023 ESH Hypertension Guideline Update: Bringing Us Closer Together Across the Pond
• Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT): A Randomized Trial of Intensive versus Standard Blood-Pressure Control
• Important Blood Pressure Studies: What to Know About SPRINT-Senior & Other Research
• Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Diet and Blood Pressure Reduction in Adults with and without Hypertension: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
• Sodium reduction and weight loss in the treatment of hypertension in older persons: a randomized controlled trial of nonpharmacologic interventions in the elderly (TONE)
• Effect of increased potassium intake on cardiovascular risk factors and disease: systematic review and meta-analyses