An age-old measure of circulatory health has been turned on its head. On
Thursday, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute issued an advisory
for health care providers who take patients’ blood pressure: Watch the top
number more than the bottom one. That’s a reversal of conventional wisdom,
which dictated that the bottom figure, for diastolic pressure, was the more
important indicator of blood pressure because it showed how hard the heart
was working to refill itself with blood between pumps. With this new
recommendation, the NHLBI focuses attention on systolic pressure – the top
figure.
Why the sudden turnaround? Research has been piling up for years supporting
the NHLBI’s position, according to TIME medical contributor Dr. Ian Smith.
“Systolic pressure can show what’s happening throughout the circulatory
system, rather than only within the heart itself.” For example, Smith
explains, a systolic reading not only shows the force the heart is required
to exert in order to push blood past resistance points, it also measures the
pressure generated within vessels to keep blood moving to different organs –
which can pinpoint a patient’s risk for stroke or general damage to blood
vessels.
Of course, just because your doctor or nurse may start keeping a closer eye
on a new element of your blood pressure reading doesn’t mean you’re off the
hook to keep your pressure down. According to generally accepted standards,
no one should maintain a reading above 140/90, and some people may be
advised to keep their pressure even lower. And that’s where the work comes
in: Cutting salt from your diet, losing weight and, yes, getting out there
and exercising. (J. Reaves)
