Hypertension: Exercise is just as effective as prescribed medication
Exercise can be almost as effective as anti-hypertensive drugs in lowering high blood pressure, according to a new international scientific study, the first of its kind that made this comparison.
Hypertension constitutes a serious health condition. You will often read that it is also called the "silent killer" as it is a condition that gives no symptoms. Hypertension is usually treated with medication especially in cases where patients do not comply with doctors' instructions for a change in their lifestyle. A balanced diet, restriction of salt intake, weight loss, and exercise are factors that help in the reduction of hypertension.
A new study suggests that exercise, in particular, can even replace drugs. Dr. Huseyin Naci and his research team, at the Health Policy Department of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), who published their findings in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, evaluated data (meta-analysis) from 194 clinical trials on the efficacy of systolic blood pressure medications, as well as from another 197 studies on the corresponding effects of exercise.
The conclusion of the study was that in general, blood pressure is lower in people who take drugs, compared to those who exercise (walking, running, cycling, swimming, fitness, etc.). But especially for those with high blood pressure, exercise seems to be just as effective as medication. In addition, the higher the "threshold" for what is considered hypertension (systolic pressure above 140 mm Hg), the greater the effectiveness of exercise in reducing blood pressure.
To date, the particular significance of this study is that there have not been conducted similar studies that directly compare drugs and exercise in terms of hypertension.
Researchers - among them Ioannis Ioannidis, the distinguished Greek professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, in California - have pointed out that the number of prescriptions for hypertension has risen vertically in recent years, a tendency that is expected to continue, as many doctors lower the hypertension limit for systolic blood pressure to 130 mm Hg.
The results of the study are therefore interesting because they offer a serious alternative solution in the context of combating polypharmacy.
But beware! Dr. Naci emphasized that "patients should not stop taking their antihypertensive drugs", as it is premature to advise such a thing. Only a doctor who supervises a patient and has an idea of his condition can give him/her the right advice. In any case, a person with high blood pressure will benefit anyway if he/she exercises more.
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