Avoiding alcohol and tobacco
Using alcohol or tobacco to excess can greatly raise blood pressure (and lead to numerous other medical and personal problems).
While putting a person at greater risk for developing high blood pressure, excessive alcohol consumption can damage the liver, heart, and brain. High in calories, alcohol can easily hurt one’s efforts to lose weight. As a result, it is recommended that people who choose to drink do so in moderation.
What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance that is found in all areas of the body such as the heart, liver, intestines, muscle, skin, and nervous system. It is produced by the body and derived from animal-based foods (like meat, eggs, and butter) in the diet.
There are two types of cholesterol: “good” and “bad.” “Good” cholesterol (HDL) helps blood vessels and the liver to clean up and eliminate excess cholesterol. “Bad” cholesterol (LDL) in the diet increases the risk of developing plaque in the arteries, which can hamper the flow of blood and lead to stroke or heart attacks. It is recommended that people maintain blood levels that are low in “bad” cholesterol and relatively high in “good” cholesterol.
Limit their consumption to one drink a day, and men to two drinks a day. (Blood pressure levels can be raised by drinking “excessive” amounts of alcohol such as 36 to 48 ounces of beer, 3 to 4 ounces of 100 proof whiskey, or 18 ounces of wine.)
A number of recent studies have shown that limited alcohol consumption is not entirely bad for people and can have some health benefits. For example, some clinical trials have indicated that people who have one or two drinks a day have lower blood pressure and live longer than those who drink too much. Others have found that limited wine consumption can prevent the accumulation of fat in the arteries and raise “good” blood cholesterol. However, these few benefits aside, what is unmistakable is that excessive alcohol has been and continues to be the source of countless personal, medical, and social problems throughout the world. Those who have a history of alcoholism in their families or who have a particular sensitivity to alcohol should keep from drinking altogether.
Another potentially habit-forming and health-threatening substance is tobacco. Cigarette smoking increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and a variety of lung diseases, such as emphysema, bronchitis, and lung cancer. While it has not been proven to directly increase blood pressure, smoking has played a significant role in damaging blood vessel walls and speeding up the hardening of the arteries — all of which lead to the development of high blood pressure.
The easy answer to the problem of smoking is not to start in the first place. This is particularly true for American women who, statistics emphasize, are 2 to 6 times more likely to have a heart attack than women who don’t smoke, with the risk increasing based on the number of cigarettes smoked each day. For those who do smoke, the simple solution is to gain the support you need to quit. The payoffs are remarkable, if not immediate, since the risk of heart disease after the first year of quitting is reduced by more than 50 percent.
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