Blood pressure

[ChildByGrace]

I had my blood pressure taken the other day and it was 100 over 60.

what is this?

Is it normal, high or low?

I know that if it's good or bad is based on the diferential between the two numbers but i wondered what the range was etc

 

[RoseofLima]

That's good! Now-- throughout your pregnancy- you don't want that top number to rise over 30 points- or that bottom one to rise over 15...id it doesn - you will want to ask you doc to really keep an eye on it

It will raise a bit toward the end- because there is just so much more blood to pump around!

 

[ChildByGrace]

so i don't want it to be over 130/75 ?

thank you

i'll definitly keep an eye on it. my sil had pre-eclampsia and had my nephew 6 weeks early so i want to avoid that happening to me if i can

 

[RoseofLima]

To avoid pre-eclampsia the very best thing you can do is eat well--particularly eating at least 80g of protein a day. In studies conducted (which for some reason are ignored by most doctors) the incidence was 0 out of many, many women (poor women, at that)- when they followed the guidlines for eating.

Getting enough protein is key in avoiding pre-eclampsia. When your body isn't getting adequate protein to meet the deamnds of pregnancy- albumein starts to fail to be broken down and remains in your blood stream. This is one of the things the check for in your urine each time at the doctor- to measure the level of ketones (protein) in your urine. If you are excreting protein through your urine- your liver is being taxed and not able to break down the albumen. Anything above a trace amount of protein in your urine is cause for concern.

With your blood pressure- if it rises to 130/75-80...your doctor will want to keep an eye on it. If your blood pressure is rising- salt your food to taste (it is vital to have salt as part of your diet) and increase your protein intake as well as staying adequately hydrated.

 

[ChildByGrace]

thank you so much for that Rose.

I'm trying to make sure that i'm getting enough protein and eating healthy. It's been hard up until now but now that i'm actually able to eat properly i have been keeping on eye on what i'm having.

 

[Athene]

With your blood pressure- if it rises to 130/75-80...your doctor will want to keep an eye on it. If your blood pressure is rising- salt your food to taste (it is vital to have salt as part of your diet) and increase your protein intake as well as staying adequately hydrated.

But too much salt in the diet can also raise BP, the UK recommended daily allowance is 6 g, the average consumption is 9 g. Many of our foods have added salts, various preservatives contain salt, salt is everywhere. . so in light of that I think it would be best to check daily consumption first before upping the salt intake. Intersting factoid, the salt we put on our food ourselves accounts for only 10-15 & of our daily intake.

 

[RoseofLima]

But too much salt in the diet can also raise BP, the UK recommended daily allowance is 6 g, the average consumption is 9 g. Many of our foods have added salts, various preservatives contain salt, salt is everywhere. . so in light of that I think it would be best to check daily consumption first before upping the salt intake. Intersting factoid, the salt we put on our food ourselves accounts for only 10-15 & of our daily intake.

The problem arises when a woman swells a bit (from water retention- which is normal in pregnancy when it is mild- but can indicate metabolism issues when more severe) and her caregiver puts her on a salt restricted diet. This makes more rapid and increases the pre-eclamptic feedback loop- causing more stress to the liver.

There is a difference between salts- table salt (particularly in pregnancy you want iodized salt) is the kind you want. Many of the sodium sources in pre-packaged foods are detrimental-- MSG, for example.