Tips and Resources

Monitoring your blood pressure is important for maintaining good health, especially for those who suffer from hypertension or other heart health co...

After our 20’s it’s common for most of us to put on weight. In fact, 60% of Canadians over the age of 45 are by definition: “medically overweight or obese”.

High blood pressure is the leading cause of premature death world-wide. There is no pain and there are rarely any symptoms, but prolonged, “uncontrolled” hypertension (HTN) will damage your body.

High Blood Pressure- HBP (hypertension - HTN) is the leading cause of premature death worldwide¹. In Canada, despite the highest treatment rates in the world, the prevalence of hypertension and the number of people who have uncontrolled HTN continues to rise².

As the second COVID-19 wave spreads across the country, many Canadians are either locked-down or in self imposed quarantines. The consequence is significantly fewer medical appointments and trips to emergency. 

Over 7.5 million Canadian’s have hypertension (high blood pressure). Frequently called “the silent killer”, most of us learn we have hypertension from our family doctors because there are no symptoms or pain to warn us we have the condition.

September is “Self Improvement Month”, who knew?

If you are a Baby Boomer, there’s a good chance you’ve been diagnosed with hypertension, and 90% of us will develop hypertension over the next number of years.

After six months into to COVID-19, several studies have revealed people with hypertension are at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. In fact, there is mounting evidence that COVID-19 affects the heart, regardless of age and fitness levels of patients. The Center for Disease Control in the US has identified several underlying health conditions that put individuals at higher risk should they contract COVID-19. These include: serious heart diseases, COPD, obesity, cancer, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and people with compromised immune systems¹.

Whether you have been diagnosed with hypertension (>135mmHg / >85mmHg) or your BP is in the “pre-hypertensive / elevated” range (>120mmHg / 80mmHg) self-monitoring blood pressure at home is highly valuable and clinically preferred to measurements at your doctor’s office…. here’s why.

Over 7.5 million Canadians have high blood pressure (hypertension). Analysis of other COVID-19 countries, including China have shown that individuals with hypertension or other heart related conditions are at higher risk of complications from Covid-19, including higher death rates. 

Medical researchers are perplexed by data from Covid 19 patients. The data shows that cardiac arrest is the cause of death in 20% of cases.(1) This is not particularly significant because severe respiratory distress frequently can result in heart failure as the condition deteriorates.

Does your blood pressure rise when you go to your doctor?  White Coat Hypertension, sometimes referred to as “isolated hypertension” or “white coat syndrome” is defined as a phenomenon in people that have higher than their normal blood pressure in a clinical setting.