Mild exercise lowers BP

People with blood pressure readings from 140/90 to 179/109 can reduce their blood pressure with as little as 30 minutes of easy exercise per week.

A study in the American Journal of Hypertension shows that patients who walked, swam, did situps, and stretching for 30 to 60 minutes a week significantly reduced their blood pressure. Exercising 60 to 90 minutes a week lowered blood pressure even more.

Doctors say additional exercise is good for many other reasons, but more than 90 minutes a week of low-key exercise had no further effect on blood pressure.

Unfit young people

People who are out of shape in their 20s run a high risk of developing high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes later in life.

Studies in preventive medicine at Northwestern University gave 4,400 people treadmill tests at age 18 to 30 and again 15 years later. Those who did poorly on the first test faced double the risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes, or metabolic syndrome when compared to highly fit participants.

Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of symptoms that includes high blood sugar, poor cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, and belly fat.

Some study participants took a second test seven years after the first. Those who became more fit in the intervening years greatly reduced their disease risk.

Vitamin C for your heart

A large study reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology shows that people who consume 500 mg of vitamin C per day are less likely to die from heart disease or have a heart attack than those who get much less.

The study also shows that the benefit came predominantly from supplements and multivitamins, possibly because the amounts taken are easy to calculate.