Researchers were thrilled to discover that a basic lifestyle adjustment can yield results comparable to structured exercise and certain medications.
Approximately 80% of older Americans suffer from high blood pressure. Fortunately, maintaining healthy blood pressure can shield against severe conditions such as heart failure, heart attacks, and strokes— and a recent study sheds light on how to achieve this.
Engaging in a relatively modest amount of physical activity, approximately 3,000 steps per day, can significantly lower high blood pressure in older adults.
Linda Pescatello, a distinguished professor of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut, collaborated with Elizabeth Lefferts, the lead author of the paper, and Duck-chun Lee in Lee’s laboratory at Iowa State University.
“We’ll all get high blood pressure if we live long enough, at least in this country,” Pescatello says. “That’s how prevalent it is.”
Pescatello is a renowned authority in the field of exercise and hypertension, the medical condition characterized by elevated blood pressure. Her earlier investigations have established that physical activity can exert a substantial and enduring influence on reducing high blood pressure.
The research, which was recently featured in the Journal of Cardiovascular Development and Disease, aimed to ascertain whether older individuals with hypertension could experience similar advantages by modestly augmenting their daily walking routine, a widely accessible and favored form of physical activity for this demographic.
“It’s easy to do, they don’t need any equipment, they can do it anywhere at almost any time,” Lee said.
The research centered on a group of inactive seniors aged 68 to 78, who typically walked around 4,000 steps daily prior to the study. After reviewing existing research, Lee established a reasonable target of 3,000 steps, aiming to push most participants to achieve 7,000 daily steps, aligning with the American College of Sports Medicine’s recommendation.
The study was conducted amid the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring remote procedures. Participants received kits containing pedometers, blood pressure monitors, and step diaries to record their daily walking activity.
On average, participants experienced a reduction of seven points in systolic and four points in diastolic blood pressure following the intervention. Comparable reductions in previous studies have been linked to an 11% decrease in overall mortality risk, a 16% decrease in cardiovascular mortality, an 18% drop in heart disease risk, and a 36% decrease in stroke risk.
“It’s exciting that a simple lifestyle intervention can be just as effective as structured exercise and some medications,” Lefferts said.
The results indicate that the participants, who followed a 7,000-step routine, experienced reductions in systolic blood pressure comparable to those observed with anti-hypertensive medications. Out of the 21 participants, eight were already taking anti-hypertensive drugs. Even these individuals demonstrated improvements in systolic blood pressure by increasing their daily physical activity.
“In a previous study, we found that when exercise is combined with medication, exercise bolsters the effects of blood pressure medication alone,” Pescatello stated. “It just speaks to the value of exercise as anti-hypertensive therapy. It’s not to negate the effects of medication at all, but it’s part of the treatment arsenal.”
The researchers aim to conduct a larger clinical trial using the data available. They discovered that the total number of steps taken was more significant than walking speed or continuous walking bouts.
“We saw that the volume of physical activity is what’s really important here, not the intensity,” Pescatello added. “Using the volume as a target, whatever fits in and whatever works conveys health benefits.”
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