Women over 50 exposed to negative social interactions, such as conflict, excessive demands, criticism, disappointment, or other unpleasantness, could be at increased risk of high blood pressure according to new research.
The study by Carnegie Mellon University, which followed 1,502 healthy adults of 50+ over a four year period, found that negative social interactions with family members and friends could increase hypertension risk among older women by as much as 38%.
High blood pressure (hypertension), high blood cholesterol levels, overeating and stress are commonly thought to be male problems. However, the statistics now suggest that women are actually at greater risk. Blood circulation problems and cardiovascular disease kills more women than men in the UK per annum. Each year over 82,000 women die from these problems … Read more
We may tend to think that getting away from the daily grind is what relaxes us on holiday, but the sun may play a larger role than previously thought. Researchers at Universities of Southampton and Edinburgh found that exposing skin to sunlight may help to reduce high blood pressure by altering the levels of Nitric … Read more
Experts from the New Economics Foundation (NEF) have recognised the damaging effects of overwork, both on health as well as productivity, and have called for the working week to be cut over time to 30 hours per week. The independent think-tank made their argument for shorter working hours in a new book, Time on Our … Read more
There is a lot of confusion about what is average and what is normal blood pressure, and a recent poll we conducted found that 87% of people thought a blood pressure reading of 120/80 was normal. The confusion, it seems, comes from the difference between normal blood pressure and average blood pressure. Let me explain… … Read more