HypertensionExercise For Health.

Q: What is hypertension?

A: Hypertension is most typically

defined as an average systolic blood

pressure of >140mmHg, diastolic blood

pressure of >90mmHg, or use of

antihypertensive medication

Q: How does hypertensionrelate to all-cause

mortality?

A: Lowering blood pressure in the general

population and in at risk groups, such as those with

coronary artery disease and chronic kidney disease,

is definitely associated with lower all-cause

mortality. However, whether lowering blood

pressure in the very old is also associated with lower

all-cause mortality is uncertain

Q: Are physical activity and

cardiovascular fitness risk

factors for hypertension?

A: It seems clear that low levels of

cardiovascular fitness and low levels of

physical activity are significant risk

factors for developing hypertension

Q: Is diet a risk factor forhypertension?

A: Dietary factors seem less important than age,

relative weight and alcohol consumption in relation

to the risk of developing hypertension. It is difficult

to assess whether dietary calcium, magnesium,

potassium, sodium and fiber affect the risk of

developing hypertension in normotensive individuals

Q: What are the other riskfactors for hypertension?

A: Older age, a high body mass index

(indicating overweight or obesity), a

high waist circumference, sleep-related

breathing disorders and short sleep

duration are all associated with a

higher risk of hypertension

Q: What effect doesgeneral exercise have onblood pressure in healthy

people?

A: General exercise, including aerobic or endurance

training, is effective for reducing hypertension in

healthy individuals. In general exercise interventions

are associated with reductions in systolic and

diastolic blood pressures of around 3 – 5mmgHg,

although this includes trials as short as 4 weeks

Q: What effect doesgeneral exercise have on

blood pressure inhypertensive people?

A: Aerobic and general exercise including aerobic or

endurance training is effective for reducing

hypertension in mild-to-severely hypertensive

people of all ages. With longer exercise

interventions, reductions in blood pressure of

approximately 20 – 30/10 – 20mmHg can be

achieved

Q: What effect doesgeneral exercise have onblood pressure in otherdiseased populations?

A: General exercise, including aerobic exercise or

endurance training, is effective for reducing

hypertension in various different non-healthy

populations, including overweight, metabolic

syndrome, type II diabetes and chronic kidney failure

Q: What effect doesresistance-training have

on blood pressure?

A: Resistance training is effective for reducing blood

pressure. Resistance training appears able to reduce

systolic and diastolic blood pressure by around 2%

and 4% or by around 3 – 6 and 3 – 5mmHg,

respectively across a range of different populations

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