[SoFlaVeg] Housework Helps Sweep Hypertension Away

October 8, 2005

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Misty L. Trepke

Housework Helps Sweep Hypertension Away

by Dennis Thompson

27824.html

SUNDAY, Sept. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Americans aiming to lower their

blood pressure don't always need to hit the gym: According to a new

study, cleaning the house, doing some yard work or washing the car

may help do the trick.

These types of everyday, around-the-house activities have been shown

to significantly lower blood pressure in people with hypertension and

pre-hypertension, according to a study in the August issue of

Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

In the study, 28 people ages 42 to 63 were asked to burn 150 calories

during a 12-hour period working around their house. They wore devices

to measure blood pressure, activity and intensity.

Researchers found that four hours of accumulated daily " lifestyle

physical activity " cut blood pressure for an average of six to eight

hours. In hypertensive individuals -- people with systolic blood

pressure readings of 140 mm Hg or above -- this type of routine

housework was linked to a decline in that number of nearly 13 mm Hg

over eight hours, according to the study.

" The findings indicate that physical activity should be considered as

an essential component in the management of blood pressure, " said one

of the researchers, Jaume Padilla, a doctoral student at Indiana

University Bloomington.

More information

The National Institutes of Health has more about high blood pressure.

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