Did you know that your blood pressure changes every hour? Standing up, watching a stressful movie, or even eating certain foods can influence your blood pressure. For these reasons, many doctors strongly advise you to measure your BP at home and throughout the day. There is another reason why doctors want you to measure at home: you are more likely to get a more accurate BP reading at home than at the physician’s office. Sounds controversial? Then read on.
If you have high blood pressure, then measuring your BP at home can be crucial. When your doctor or nurse measures your blood pressure, it is just a snapshot of your health. So if you really want to understand how healthy your heart is and get deeper insights into your health, you need to start measuring your blood pressure at home. See how to do it right.
To learn more about blood pressure, check our articles ”Blood pressure: What is normal blood pressure?” and ‘‘What is high blood pressure and what does it really mean?”
Measuring blood pressure at home
When measuring your blood pressure at home, you should do so often and throughout the day. Many only measure in the morning but your heart might be at its best at that time and you do want to know if it’s the case later on too. The same goes for different days of the week. Chances are, your heart is well rested after a relaxing weekend but how about Friday afternoon? You should also compare how your blood pressure behaves in different locations. You might be relaxed at home but your heart might be working too hard at work. How about when you travel? Knowing all the details is something that can help you manage your stress better and get your blood pressure under control faster.
Thankfully, QardioArm makes it super easy to record BP at home. This smart blood pressure monitor connects to your smartphone or tablet and the free Qardio App keeps your blood pressure history in easy-to-understand lists and charts. It also has a unique PLACES feature that can add location to each reading so you know where your heart likes it best. It also allows you to send your measurements to your healthcare provider for further analysis.
Can home monitoring give more accurate results?
How about the accuracy of your readings taken at home? Many blood pressure monitors are as accurate as the ones at your doctor’s office but the more surprising fact is that for many, home taken measurement is more accurate read of their actual blood pressure than the numbers in their doctor’s office. Why? It’s due to a common reason called “white coat syndrome” – anxiety temporarily increasing patient’s blood pressure in a doctor’s office.
Still not convinced measuring blood pressure at home is beneficial? Then you should know that people who actively participate in their blood pressure readings are more likely to be successful at keeping their BP under control. When you measure your BP at home, you are more likely to know what causes your blood pressure to spike. If you know what causes your blood pressure to rise, then you are more likely to keep it under control.
Send readings to your doctor
Many doctors want their patients to measure their BP at home in order to send them the results. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, people who check their blood pressure at home and send the results to a doctor who offers advice are more likely to keep their blood pressure in check than those who only measure their BP at the doctor’s office. QardioArm makes sending your BP to your doctor easy. Use Qardio App to automatically email your results straight to your doctor’s office!
If you have high blood pressure, or you just want to keep tabs on your BP, then talk to your doctor about measuring your blood pressure at home. QardioArm is the perfect BP monitor for at home monitoring. The elegant and compact design allows you to always have it by your side, using it anytime, anywhere.
Sources:
The JAMA Network
Post contributed by Natalie Cassidy: An avid health and fitness enthusiast. Natalie enjoys creating new healthy recipes and hitting the gym as often as possible. She believes that a healthy lifestyle leads to a happy lifestyle.
