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what is it?
The term blood pressure refers to the force of blood in the body's main arteries. Blood pressure fluctuates over the course of a day but in people with hypertension, or high blood pressure, the pressure is permanently raised even at rest. Diagnosis is made if your resting blood pressure is 140/90 on several occasions or 130/80 in people with diabetes. Untreated hypertension is a risk factor for strokes, transient ischaemic attack (TIA, sometimes known as mini-stroke), kidney disease, heart failure, some kinds of dementia and retinopathy.
The condition can run in families and certain ethnic groups such as African-Caribbeans are more prone to it. Some women are prone to the high blood pressure disease, pre-eclampsia, in pregnancy. They may be at greater risk of hypertension in later life.
what causes it?
Hypertension is caused by increased resistance to blood flow in the arteries. There are a number of different risk factors. These include atherosclerosis (narrowed, furred arteries), obesity, smoking, excess alcohol intake (especially binge drinking), too much salt in the diet and lack of exercise.
how complementary therapies may help
Although there is no good evidence that complementary therapies lower blood pressure significantly and continuously, when combined with other lifestyle changes they may help improve your general well-being, fitness and ability to relax. Where blood pressure is only mildly raised, such measures may lower blood pressure to a level where medical treatment with blood pressure lowering drugs (anti-hypertensives) is unnecessary.
Each therapy has been coded from 1 to 5 depending on the amount of scientific evidence there is for its effectiveness. The higher the number the stronger the evidence, so 5 = definitely, 4 = probably, 3 = possibly, 2 = opinion, and 1 = rumour. (There is more detail about these in the 'does it work?' section of 'before you start'.)
Having said this, the codes aren't meant to be cast in stone or to put you off trying a particular therapy or therapies if you feel they might be helpful to you.
Go to therapies for a full description of each individual treatment, plus information on how to find practitioners.
autogenic therapy
(code 3)
Autogenic therapy has been shown to help switch on the relaxation response which can in turn help lower blood pressure. This is likely to be helpful in mild or borderline cases of high blood pressure, to avoid the need for blood pressure lowering medication.
hypnotherapy
(code 3)
High blood pressure is associated with stress and any therapy that helps control stress might help lower blood pressure slightly. The hypnotherapist will induce relaxation using a number of different techniques and can teach you how to use self-hypnosis to recreate this feeling at home.
massage
(code 3)
Regular deep tissue massage can help improve circulation and relaxation by easing tight muscles, which increase resistance to the flow of blood. This may temporarily reduce blood pressure, although research suggests that any improvement is short-lived.
nutritional therapy
(code 3)
The practitioner may recommend a diet designed to help you lose weight if necessary. S/he may also advise you to reduce or cut out salt, which is known to raise blood pressure. Several studies have shown that vegetarians tend to have lower blood pressure so you may be advised to cut out meat. S/he may also advise you to take certain supplements to improve arterial health or lower cholesterol levels, such as omega-3 fatty acids (fish oils), magnesium, vitamin C, vitamin E and garlic. However no supplements are known to lower blood pressure as such.
t'ai chi and yoga
(code 3)
T'ai chi (a kind of moving meditation) has been shown possibly to reduce hypertension in older people. Numerous studies suggest that regular yoga can also help relieve stress and lower blood pressure slightly. The corpse pose (shavasana) is a particularly beneficial posture for switching on the relaxation response. However if you have high blood pressure it's best to avoid inverted poses which can put a strain on the blood vessels in the head.
acupuncture
(code 2)
In Chinese medicine, blood is a form of chi. Hypertension is considered to indicate an imbalance in the flow of chi causing an excess of yang, which is associated with heat, dryness and activity. Traditional acupuncturists believe that treating acupuncture points such as C7, on the Heart meridian and E36 on the Stomach meridian can calm the nervous system and bring pressure down, although unfortunately there is no substantial research to support this.
aromatherapy
(code 2)
Massage with calming, soothing and relaxing oils such as lavender, marjoram and ylang ylang may help bring down blood pressure temporarily.
» help and info
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(July 2002)
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