Q: Can you please tell me when the best time of day it is to check blood pressure? Thanks
A: The best time to check your blood pressure is a time that will be routinely convenient. Blood pressure varies throughout the day. Because of this, you want to compare readings that are taken about the same time. Early morning high blood pressure is associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. If you are in poor control, you may want to check your blood pressure first thing in the morning.
Further Reading:
I Am Monitoring My Own Blood Pressure. What Time Of Day Should I Measure My Blood Pressure? – ABCNews.go.com
Checking Your Blood Pressure at Home – ClevelandClinic.org
How to Check Blood Pressure With a Monitor – Livestrong.com
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Well, at least we got the canned answer lined up with the right question this time!
Instead, try taking your blood pressure a few times each day, morning, afternoon, evening, and vary the exact times. If you do this over time, and average them, you will get a much better idea of you “average blood pressure” throughout the day.
All the best to you!!
I take medicines, and find that highest BP is when wake up, usually 10 points above average. Curiously, it happens whatever or not I take my Olmetec 20 before go to bed, so I cut the evening tablet.
Almost everyone has higher blood pressure upon waking, and that is why taking your blood pressure at that times is generally NOT recommended.
my suggestion is to do it as much as you like. Especially if your consuming multiple amounts of hypertensive meds.
I take mine different times throughout the day and when i feel stressed or uneasy It helps me to see what factors affect my BP and sometimes makes me stop and deep breath or put my feet up for a few minutes I listen to quiet ,meditative music and take care of me Know what your body is trying to tell you It does work for me
when I take my blood pressure in the morning time it is normal 120\80 but when I Take my blood pressure in the night time it is 140\85 why? which one is correct bp can you plz answer me.thanks
When one sleeps the Blood pressure naturally goes down, as one gets up and gets moving it starts to rise again, but the majority of people will take their blood pressure meds in the morning, as the day goes on this medication leaves the system, and in the evening it goes up again.
I don’t wish to appear rude, altho I’m sure some will think I am. Having said that I do have to wonder who is writing the replies to the queries posted here. Is there really a Dr. Rowena??
To point, the change in response to the above question of when to check your BP.
There is no certain time.
If there were then none of the readings done when in your Dr.’s office would be valid.
Think of all the things you do in any given day that will trigger a rise in BP. Exercise, running up and down stairs, cleaning house, being bugged by someone at work etc.
If you take it and it’s elevated sit quietly for 15 min and try again. If the reading is the same that’s probably an accurate reading. Try the same thing several days in a row. If it continues to be higher than optimal then you need to discuss what changes need to be made. Either a new drug, stronger dosage and/or some life style change.
This isn’t rocket science but rather just common sense. Everyone has that. But the pharmaceutical companies and the medical profession have managed to scare the bejesus out of people, in particular, those getting a bit old. Worrying about whether you are taking your BP at the right time of day just might be making your BP higher than it otherwise would be.
Traci,
I don’t think your comment was rude at all and rather insightful. Thank you for sharing. I recently viewed a DVD on Fall in New England that I purchased a year ago but hadn’t realized that it could only be played on a Blu Ray DVD player. A year later, I purchased the appropriate player and was able to finally view this awesome DVD containing relaxing music and gorgeous scenery of the fall in 5 New England states. It produced such serenity,tranquility, and calmness that I realized that if doctors would play these types of DVDs (more in the series) in the waiting room while folks have to wait so long, then maybe patients’ blood pressure readings would not be higher thus requiring scripts for pharmaceutical remedies. Perhaps, going to the doctor’s office should be a calming experience rather than one in which the wait alone raises the blood pressure readings.
Boy you aren’t kidding about the Md’s and the pharmecutical compaines scaring the crap out of you on purpose,I have been in the medical field for 25yrs and they do it on purpose to sell more drugs and poisions , that only mask the problem, instead of trying to get to the main reason for high blood pressure!!!It is only to make more money from their drug pushing!
We have to really think things through when it comes to medication because it could literally jack you up! I rather do natural healthy ways to help before taking medicine. It is much harder and takes discipline to do it naturally with the right foods and excerise but it is worth it when you have to deal with side effect. It is amazing because my Doctor never helped me find ways to lower my blood pressure naturally only just gave me a perscription for medication. I had to go online and get books by Doctors that are trusted within my faith to help me see that you can help BP naturally. ANd if you suffer with BP from other helath conditions if they can get those conditions under control then your BP will go down..But Healthcare is a business and they don’t get paid when you do it naturally. It is all to make money at the expense of our lives. we have to take control and not depend on the healthcare system especially for things that we can control on our own. A little research on the web can really save your life and save you a bunch of money. I know I have went through it recently.
I will have to agree with you…sometimes I think all these things are done just to keep you going to the doc because if you are not sick they don’t make any money. if the morning is the best time to thake your BP and your doc apt is in the afternoon then if they diagnose you with hypertension then are you really being diagnosed right? I agree with you and I cna say for myself that I just depend on My God above to help me wlong with me helping myself with diet and excerise because Doc are after all just practicing medicine comparing this and that to give you an answer…I am just turned off with how stressed I get about my BP because they make it where you have anxiety about it. I get white coat high BP when I go to the Doc but when I do mine at home it is always a lot lower than at the doc. Today before going to the doc my BP was 108/77 around 7:15am I get to the doc about 9:00am and my BP was 137/88, took my BP with my machine to see if my machine is working properly and it was 134/88 so it is obvious that my BP goes up when I get there because of all these different things we have to do or that might help.
Traci’s comment makes sense to me.
I typed it above. I agree with Traci but had to stop taking bp at home as I would get really scared when it was high. I take 5 pills daily for high b/p and at times, it still spikes. (home was up to 185/95 now, in dr’s it is approx 135/85) It still spikes – I can feel it – probably my age (80).
I wonder about the wisdom of Rx’s for hypertension. My Dr. prescribed a generic beta blocker (a low dose) and after 10 days I called him to let him know it made me so dizzy that I almost passed out. Not good when you are on a ladder at work! My BP was normal during these episodes. So I have to manage my BP the old fashion way w/o meds as I’m too afraid to take anything again.
Beta blockers are really good at lowering BP. But the side effects are horrible. I used to take Metoprolol a beta blocker and it made me so sick and just took my quality of life away for about 3 months. I got off it and right now I am eating right taking supplements and excerising to keep my BP at a safe level My BP is usually ststolic 15 and below and diastolic between 77-85. I know when I am not eating enough of certain neutrients because it shows in my BP…You really have to stick to eating right. I believe and this is just personally from my expericence that eating really well and excerising is the best way to maange BP if it is not caused by other medical conditions. I also take supplements like COQ10, and a garlic pill but only once a day because it tends to thin the blood and too much will thin the blood too much so I do Garlic everyother day unless I am cheating with my food then I will take it daily but I cheated last week for a week and it showed in my BP…SO that is why I say eating habbits is a must. I don’t want to take medication for BP so that is why I am so focused on eating and excerise.
AM ON BLOOD PRESSURE TABLETS AND HAVE LOST WEIGHT. COULD THIS BE THE MEDICATION.
Simone you are not alone..I’ve also lost so much weight since i started taking HB medication.