Should Seniors With High Blood Pressure Avoid Coffee
Joys 82-year-old mother, Emily, began every day with a strong cup of coffee. When she was diagnosed with high blood pressure, Joy thought she should stop drinking caffeinated beverages, including her beloved morning cup of joe. Emily, however, thought the notion of giving up coffee was ridiculous. Which of them was correct?
What Research Says About Coffee and High Blood Pressure
Home Care Kentwood, MI: High Blood Pressure and Coffee
The caffeine found in coffee is a vasoconstrictor, which means that it causes blood vessels to constrict, or become narrower. When arteries are narrowed, the heart has to work harder to pump blood through them and the pressure on artery walls is greater. However, the research concerning the effect of coffee on blood pressure doesnt prove one way or the other whether your aging relative should quit drinking it. Some studies indicate that other substances in coffee may be beneficial to blood vessels. In addition, research seems to indicate that how much coffee people drink and how often plays a role, as shown in these studies:
Still, some doctors recommend that their patients with high blood pressure reduce or eliminate caffeine from their diet. Though the evidence is conflicting, it is best for seniors to follow the advice of their doctors.
Alternative Beverages
If the doctor does suggest your older family member give up or reduce caffeine, there are many other beverages they can enjoy instead, such as:
Whats The Better Alternative Than Retiring Your Coffee Mug
As a certified fitness trainer, Ive learned that one of the most effective ways to counteract high blood pressure and the onset of CVD is to be physically active, NOT as the studies above prove eliminate caffeine consumption. In fact, as my caffeine and fitness article explains, caffeine can even help you become more fit.
An American Heart Association study, as referenced by several peer-reviewed scientific and medical publications, has recently claimed that people who are physically active have a lower risk of getting high blood pressure 20%-50% lower than people who are not active.
Besides losing weight, there are other reasons to exercise: Being physically active can reduce your risk for heart disease, help lower your total cholesterol level and raise HDL-cholesterol , and help lower high blood pressure. And, again, people who are physically active have a lower risk of getting high blood pressure 20 to 50 percent lower than people who are not active.
To Sum It Up Does Coffee Raise Blood Pressure
Studies show that coffee increases blood pressure for up to 3 hours , after which it returns back down.
As the effects are so short-lived, for the general population regular coffee consumption does not raise your blood pressure long-term, nor does it appear to increase your risk of cardiovascular health problems.
However, there is a large caveat.
Our individual tolerance of caffeine is largely determined by our genes. Slow caffeine metabolisers have much greater spikes in blood pressure after a coffee, and are far more at risk for negative cardiovascular consequences as a result.
If you suspect you are a slow caffeine metaboliser, and you have existing high blood pressure, I recommend limiting yourself to one coffee per day. Better yet, switch to decaf.
For the majority though, a few coffees per day will not raise blood pressure in the long-run just dont have one before a blood pressure check-up.
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What Does Caffeine Do To Your Blood Pressure
This is perhaps one of the common questions among java lovers and coffee noobs alike.
Many people know the effects of caffeine on the body. Some of them are positive, like added concentration and stronger mental performance, alertness and awake-ness, healthy glowing skin, boost in metabolism, and a happy disposition.
But going overboard with your caffeine fix could sometimes lead to adverse effects, including jitters, anxiety, and palpitations.
And this leads some people to ask whether caffeine also raises blood pressure.
This is an important question because 80 percent of Americans drink coffee every day and about 90 percent of people worldwide consume caffeine in one product or another. More importantly, high blood pressure can cause strokes or heart attacks.
So whats the verdict?
The jurys pretty much out on this one.
Should People With Hypertension Avoid Coffee
A 2017 review concluded that people with high blood pressure should exercise some caution when drinking coffee but do not need to avoid it.
The review found that although there were older reports of a link between coffee drinking and hypertension, more recent studies suggested that 34 cups a day had either a neutral or beneficial effect.
A of 40 healthy regular coffee drinkers found that all types of coffee increased blood pressure but that the levels stayed within healthy ranges.
The increase in blood pressure was temporary but still measurable after consumption.
Some research suggests that the amount of coffee that someone drinks determines its effects on blood pressure.
As coffee contains many different compounds aside from caffeine, other compounds could be responsible for its effects on blood pressure.
However, a person could try switching to decaffeinated coffee to see whether their blood pressure decreases.
Some people find drinking coffee causes insomnia, anxiety, or tremors. Others may notice reflux and heartburn. Anyone who experiences these symptoms due to coffee should avoid drinking it.
According to researchers , regular coffee drinkers may experience withdrawal symptoms, such as headaches and low mood, if they suddenly stop consuming it. Therefore, if they wish to reduce their consumption, they should cut down the number of cups gradually.
Some alternatives to coffee contain caffeine, while others are naturally caffeine-free. People can try:
- chicory coffee
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Will Coffee Give You High Blood Pressure
Photo credit: rosmary
As well as thinking that coffee will kill you, the other thing were led to believe is that coffee or caffeine will give you high blood pressure .
Weve already found out that coffee will not kill you, and that it has many properties which actually makes it beneficial for your health. Now well take a closer look at whether coffee will give you a high blood pressure.
Theres already been a lot of research done in to the subject. The first thing worth noting is that your blood pressure does increase immediately after ingesting caffeine.
This increase is small, and it doesnt last long. Also if youre a regular coffee drinker, this already small effect gets smaller and smaller over time.
However if you already have high blood pressure, this increase is bigger. Its also short lived, as another study shows.
If youre already hypertensive, this short blood pressure spike is something to consider.
Staying On Top Of Your Health
Monitoring your blood pressure is important to ensure that your heart is healthy, whether you regularly drink coffee or not. With QardioArm, you can monitor your blood pressure wherever and whenever. It is completely wireless and connects to a state-of-the-art app. QardioArm is ideal for anyone looking for an efficient, practical way to monitor their blood pressure.
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Safely Drinking Green Tea
If you enjoy drinking green tea, then you can likely drink up to 3 to 4 cups a day safely, Angelone says. If you have high blood pressure, you should check your blood pressure regularly when first getting in the habit of drinking green tea. Choosing decaf green tea can help avoid any possible effects from caffeine, she adds. NCCIH also notes that green tea manufacturers only have to report the added caffeine on green tea product labels, not what is naturally occurring.
You might also wonder if green tea could interact with blood pressure medication. If you use a type of blood pressure medication with the generic name nadolol, green tea could block the drug’s effectiveness, NCCIH notes. “It’s best to consult your physician to see if your particular medication is affected by green tea and choose decaf when possible,” Angelone advises.
What To Avoid To Lower Your Blood Pressure
Salt
Salt or sodium chloride has been used to preserve foods and as a flavour enhancer for centuries.
Adults need between 1.2 to 2.4g of salt each day , which is equivalent to 460 to 920mg of sodium.
But in Australia seven out of ten men and three in ten women eat way more than that and much more than the upper recommended limit of 5.9 grams of salt or 2,300 mg of sodium per day.
If you add salt to food yourself this pushes your sodium intake even higher.
A review of studies involving 3,230 people showed that reducing salt intakes by 4.4 grams a day could reduce systolic blood pressure by about 4.2 mmHg and diastolic by 2.1 mmHg.
In those who had high blood pressure there were even bigger reductions of 5.4 mmHg and 2.8 mmHg .
Avoid foods high in sodium. Dont add salt and try to choose lower-salt versions of processed foods.
Alcohol
Consuming one or more alcoholic drink a day is associated with systolic blood pressure that is about 2.7 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure 1.4 mmHg higher than non-drinkers.
Interestingly, when you first drink an alcoholic beverage, blood pressure goes down, only to rise later.
A rise in blood pressure after drinking alcohol is more likely to happen when youre awake, rather during sleep.
The bad news is that larger amounts of alcohol increase your risk of high blood pressure, especially in men, but also to a lesser extent in women.
Liquorice
High blood pressure due to eating black liquorice is rare, but case reports have occurred.
Caffeine
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Coffee Bean Matters: Arabica Versus Robusta
If youre a coffee snob , youll be familiar with these names. While both are species of coffee , arabica was probably the first coffee humans cultivated, and it accounts for most coffee worldwide. Endemic to Ethiopia, its generally considered the finest coffee and tends to have a fruitier, sweeter taste than robusta, which is comparatively bitter. Given this profile, robusta is often used in espresso blends, both for its flavour and for its foamy finish .
Regarding composition, arabica typically contains more carbohydrate, less caffeine, and lower antioxidant levels than robusta, and arabica also tends to need more herbicides and pesticides than robusta. So, while few would argue that the best tasting coffees are arabica ones, its plausible that many cheaper robusta coffees are at least as good for health.
Coffee Raises Blood Pressure In The Short Term
The FDA recommends that adults dont drink more than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day, the average cup of coffee contains 80 to 100 milligrams of caffeine whereas a can of caffeinated soft drink contains 30-40 milligrams. According to a review of 34 studies, caffeine may raise your blood pressure, especially if you are not a regular coffee drinker. The review found that in general, drinking anywhere between 200-300 milligrams of caffeine can raise your systolic blood pressure by 8 mm Hg while boosting your diastolic blood pressure by 6 mm Hg. The caffeine, however, will usually only raise blood pressure levels for around 3 hours.
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Seven Things To Eat Or Avoid To Lower Your Blood Pressure
Authors: Professor Clare Collins, Associate Professor Tracy Burrows and Dr Tracy Schumacher
High blood pressure is called the silent killer. Thats because it has no symptoms. Having high blood pressure increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, heart failure and kidney disease.
Six million Australian adults have high blood pressure 140/90 millimetres of mercury or more or take medications for it. Of those, four million have high blood pressure that isnt treated or under control.
No wonder heart disease and stroke directly cost the Australian economy A$7.7 billion a year.
There is some good news. High blood pressure can be treated or prevented. Eating oats, fruit and vegetables and beetroot, in particular helps. So does avoiding salt, liquorice, caffeine and alcohol.
Optimal blood pressure is 120 mmHg or less over 80 mmHg or less. Lowering it by 1-2 mmHg can have a big impact on reducing your risk of heart disease and stroke, and the nations health care costs.
How Much Does Caffeine Increase Blood Pressure
A normal blood pressure reading is considered to be less than 120 mm Hg systolic and less than 80 mm Hg diastolic. The results from one study suggest that around five cups per day of coffee caused a 1-2 mm Hg increase in blood pressure. Reviews have also reported changes of between 3-15 mm Hg systolic and 4-13 mm Hg diastolic after caffeine consumption.
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So Is Good Coffee Good For You
Going by what weve covered so far, you might have guessed that its hard to assess the effects of coffee on health in part because theres so much variability in the contents of different types of coffee. Deciphering coffee’s effects is further confounded by how differently individuals respond to coffee. This variation depends on factors such as a persons genetics, health, and whether he or she habitually consumes coffee. Caveats aside, lets look at some of the relevant research.
One way of assessing the potential effects of coffee intake on health is to ask people how much coffee they usually drink or have them track their diets for several days and then monitor their health over several years. While this type of study design has many limitations – not the least of which is how accurately people report their diets – it can help identify potential diet-disease relationships. And where this type of research has unveiled possible associations between coffee consumption and health, well briefly consider mechanisms that might underlie these effects.
Limit Your Alcohol Intake
Regularly drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure over time.
Staying within the recommended levels is the best way to reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure:
- men and women are advised not to regularly drink more than 14 units a week
- spread your drinking over 3 days or more if you drink as much as 14 units a week
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The Relationship Between Coffee And High Blood Pressure
One to two cups of plain black coffee doesnt seem to be harmful, according to the American Heart Association. And coffee even has some surprising potential health benefits, including better focus, reduced inflammation, and lower risk of depression. As far as coffee intake and cardiovascular disease risk factors go, such as high blood pressure, information is mixed.
Coffee And High Blood Pressure
Coffee has travelled a long way through the ages since a goat herder in Ethiopia noticed his goats were especially energetic after eating certain red berries.
After becoming popular with monks and traders, coffee spread from Africa and the Middle East to Europe, and is now probably the most widely consumed drink in the world today. Its even been blessed by the Pope.
But whats the relationship between coffee and high blood pressure? If you have high blood pressure do you need to give up coffee? Probably not. However, caffeine does raise blood pressure. While its unlikely youre going to need to give it up completely, you may need to limit your caffeine intake if youre trying to lower your blood pressure.
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What Are The Complications Of High Blood Pressure
The longer high blood pressure is poorly controlled, the greater the damage to various tissues and organs in the body. Excessive pressure against the vessel wallscaused by high blood pressurecan lead to several long-term and potentially fatal consequences.
Heart attack or stroke: Hardening and thickening of the arteries cause poor blood perfusion to the heart or brain.
Aneurysm: Occurs due to the weakening of blood vessels that eventually bulge and rupture. This can be fatal.
Heart failure: High blood pressure requires the heart to pump harder to overcome the increased pressure. This causes the cardiac muscles to thicken and become inefficient, leading to heart failure.
Kidney failure: Similar to the heart, the kidneys are also sensitive to blood pressure and play a major role in blood pressure maintenance.
Hibiscus Tea And Blood Pressure
My favorite herbal tea that lowers your blood pressure is hibiscus tea . Just as the name suggests, its made from hibiscus flowers. And when you make hibiscus tea, your tea isnt just healthy, its also a gorgeous red color.
Studies show, in people with stage 1 hypertension . drinking 2 cups of hibiscus tea each day is an effective medicine to reduce blood pressure.
Hibiscus is another source of polyphenol antioxidants. It works by protecting your blood vessels from damaging cholesterol plaques. Hibiscus also has compounds that cause nitric oxide to be released, so it works like a vasodilator and helps your blood vessels to widen.
Hibiscus works much like my other favorite blood pressure lowering drink beet juice.
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What Does Coffee Do To Blood Pressure In The Long Term
The long-term side effects of drinking coffee on blood pressure really depend on whether youre a habitual or occasional coffee drinker, according to Dr. George. A 2017 review in the journal Nutrients, found that increased coffee consumption is associated with a small decrease in hypertension, or high blood pressure.
More recent studies suggest that it is safe to drink three to four cups of coffee a day for people who have hypertension, according to Dr. George. And habitual coffee drinking has been linked to a lower risk of coronary heart disease in women, per a meta-analysis in the European Journal of Epidemiology.
But that doesnt mean more is better.
Studies, like one published in 2019 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that people who drank more than six cups of coffee a day had a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, than moderate coffee drinkers. Moderate intake was linked to the lowest risk of cardiovascular disease, says Satjit Bhusri, MD and founder of Upper East Side Cardiology in New York.
People also need to be mindful of consuming other drinks and even foods with added caffeine, including caffeinated waters, juices, energy drinks, chocolates, candies, and even potato chips, Dr. Bhusri says.