Brian Kwon Acupuncture High blood pressure (hypertension) is a condition that may cause health problems, such as heart disease. The more blood pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher the blood pressure. A blood pressure reading has two numbers that are given in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) :
- Systolic pressure (top number) which measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats
- Diastolic (bottom number) which measures the pressure in your arteries between beats.
In stage 1 hypertension (prehypertension), the systolic reading is 120 – 139 mmHg, or diastolic reading is 80 -89 mmHg. In stage 1, it is possible for you to bring your blood pressure to the normal range by weight loss, regular exercise, and/or dietary method. Also, acupuncture treatment can be combined to make it more effective. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to complications, such as heart attack, aneurysm, heart failure, or abnormal kidney function.
Here is a 2020 study which shows that acupuncture can be effective for the management of hypertension: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0964528420920290?journalCode=aima
