Is it really necessary to monitor your blood pressure (BP) even if you don’t have heart problems? Our answer as a provider of home care services in St. Louis, Missouri is YES. Heart problems are very tricky. Stroke, for instance, doesn’t even show immediate symptoms. Monitoring one’s blood pressure is a common method to evaluate if your heart health is in excellent condition.
In the present, technology has already made BP monitoring easier. There are now BP reading machines that are digital. This means that you can already know about your blood pressure even if you operate the machine on your own.
However, there are still important guidelines to follow to ensure that your BP reading is correct. Let these guidelines help you:
- Ensure That You’re Clean
This means that for about 30 minutes before reading your BP, you have not smoked, drank caffeinated beverages, or kept full bladder. These situations can trigger quick heartbeats. As a result, you might arrive at a wrong conclusion of your BP reading. Ensure that you are clean in these areas so that you are at your best physical state to get the BP figure.
- Observe Proper Sitting
Make sure that you are seated in a comfortable position. Both your feet should be flat on the floor, your back straight, and your arm on a flat surface (preferably a table). The arm you’re going to use should be above the heart’s level.
- Stick to a Routine
It is also helpful to read your BP at the same time of the day every day. Why is this important? This consistency of reading helps provide an adequate gauge as to whether your BP is triggered by certain activities that you do outside of the routine. If you need help in sticking to a routine, you can tap a Personal care provider to assist you.
- Conduct More Than One Reading
Ensure that the BP readings are accurate. To establish this, it is ideal to make at most three BP readings with an interval of a minute each. Record these readings so you have visual proofs of whether your BP levels improved or are having issues. Some BP monitors also accommodate built-in readings. If your BP machine is this advanced, make use of this feature.
- Apply BP Reader on Bare Skin
Because you will be reading blood pressure on your arms, you might think that it can be performed over your clothes. We discourage this as it prevents the reader from fully detecting the pulse beats. Ensure that you roll the sleeves up for a more accurate reading.
At Provision Home Care Inc, we have a team of providers of In-home care in Missouri. We can help your loved one in attending to their care needs at home. If they require assistance in monitoring their health and wellness every day, don’t hesitate to set an appointment with us.
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