降低血壓的方法

What is high blood pressure?

什麼是高血壓？

Nearly half of Americans have high blood pressure, according to new guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology. The guidelines, published in Hypertension, lower the threshold for what's considered high blood pressure from 140/80 mmHg to 130/80 mmHg. (Anything under 120/80 mmHg is considered normal blood pressure.) That change means about 14% more U.S. adults have high blood pressure-and are now likely wondering how to lower their blood pressure.

美國心臟協會（AHA）和美國心臟病學會的最新指南表示，近一半的美國人都患有高血壓。指南發表在《高血壓》雜誌上，將人們以爲的高血壓從140/80 mmHg降低到130/80 mmHg。（120/80 mmHg以下的血壓都被視作正常。）這一變化意味着又有14%的美國成人患有高血壓--他們可能很想知道降低血壓的方法。

High blood pressure, also called hypertension, can be caused by lifestyle factors or by genetics-or, usually, a combination of both. It can be dangerous if left untreated, raising your risk for heart attack and stroke.

高血壓可能是由生活方式因素或遺傳因素導致的--或者通常情況下，是由上述兩種因素共同造成的。如果不加以治療，可能會非常危險，增加人們心臟病發作和中風的風險。

Maintain a healthy weight

保持健康的體重

"Weight is one of the most important determiners of blood pressure," says John Bisognano, MD, director of the Hypertension Clinic at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, New York. "Once someone's BMI is over 25, taking off a few pounds will make a big difference in treating high blood pressure." (A body mass index of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight, while 30 and higher is obese.)

"體重是決定血壓的最重要因素之一，"紐約羅切斯特大學醫學中心高血壓診所主任、John Bisognano醫學博士說道。"一旦某人的身體質量指數超過25，減重幾磅將對高血壓的治療產生重要影響。"（身體質量指數爲25至29.9則被視作超重，30及以上則被視作肥胖。）

The correlation works both ways, too: A small 2014 study found that people who gained even just 5% of their body weight saw slight boosts in their blood pressure. People who packed on extra fat around their bellies saw the greatest increases.

這種相關性也是雙向的。2014年的一項小型研究發現：增重5%的人發現他們的血壓也輕度升高。腹部有多餘脂肪的人，血壓也增加最多。

Cut back on salt

減少鹽的攝入

Most Americans-including 86% of those with high blood pressure-eat more salt than is advised by the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans. If you're one of them, reducing your intake to less than the recommended limit of 2,300 milligrams (about a teaspoon) a day may make a big difference in your blood pressure (and even better if you can stay below the American Heart Association's 1,500-mg daily limit).

大多數美國人--包括86%的高血壓患者--攝入的鹽含量超過美國政府提出的"美國人飲食建議"。如果你也是其中一員，那就減少自己的鹽攝入量，每天不要超過推薦量2300毫克（差不多一茶匙），這會對你的血壓產生重大影響（如果你的鹽攝入量低於美國心臟協會建議的每日少於1500毫克，那就更完美了。）

Even just reducing your sodium intake by 10 or 20% can help, says Dr. Bisognano. "We ask people to decrease their consumption from sky-high to reasonable levels," he adds. "Learn not to salt your eggs; finish your lunch without a pickle."

即使只是減少10%至20%的鈉攝入量也能起到作用，Bisognano醫生說道。"我們要求人們降低鈉的攝入量，從超級多降至合理水平，"他補充說。"開始學着不給雞蛋加鹽、午餐的時候不吃醃菜。"