Swimming is Effective Lowering Blood Pressure

People who like to swim in the pool to be good for his blood pressure. Within 3 months, swimming can lower blood pressure by an average of nine points.

Normal blood pressure is defined by the average readings of 120/80 mm does not exceed the figure. Numbers 140/90 mm or higher are categorized in high blood pressure, and readings in between these two numbers is considered a “pre-hypertension.”

“Swimming is often promoted as a sport is good for people who have aged. The reason is that the joints are not unduly burdensome and not likely to cause the body becomes too hot, swimming is also the second most popular sport among the elderly after a walk,” said the researcher, Hirofumi Tanaka from the University of Texas at Austin.

In a research report published in the American Journal of Cardiology, swimming proven to improve blood vessel function of older adults and put a halt to blood pressure.

“Swimming is a sport that is very interesting because it is easy to do and inexpensive. And because it does not make the rivet body weight because they were held by the buoyancy of water, this sport is friendly to the knee and ankle joints,” added Tanaka as reported by Reuters.

The study involved 43 adults with an average age of 60 years who have high blood pressure or pre-hypertension but still in good shape. The researchers asked the participants to swim or do relaxation exercises at random.

During 12 weeks, the group swam to swim as many as three or four times a week, gradually, to be able to achieve a 45 minute swim in a time. At the end of the study, the swimmers managed to reduce blood pressure sistoliknya with an average of nine points. Systolic blood pressure is a number at the top of the blood pressure readings. In contrast, the rate of blood pressure in the relaxation group did not change.

Similar results were found when the researchers asked participants wore portable monitors to track their blood pressure for 24 hours. On average, the pool has a systolic blood pressure 119 mm Hg. This figure is down from 128 mm Hg at baseline.

Tanaka’s team also used ultrasound tests to measure the extent to which participants in the dilation of blood vessels respond to changes in blood flow. Again, the researchers again found improvements in the swimming group, but the result was nil in the relaxation group.

Tanaka said that for the elderly can work properly, swimming can certainly be a safe activity. Indeed there was a time when swimming can be risky because it is in cold water can cause changes in heart and vascular system. But most studies have shown that swimming is safe as well as a walk.