Jay Honeck wrote:
Here are the facts: BP is 155/85. Weight: 197. Height: 6'.
Exercise: 30
minutes every day. Family has a history of strokes and high blood
pressure.

Jay,
Are the systolic levels always in this range? You may want to
monitor your BP at home througout the day to see it you can determine
the contributing factors. Rick had borderline high BP levels which go
up with high sodium-content food, coffee and cold medications. The
B.P. typically stays in the normal range after exercise. One of his
doctors advised him to use medication for preventive measurement based
on family history (both of his parents suffered strokes late in their
life) but the other said it was not needed. So far, he has been trying
to control it mainly through exercise and diet. Potassium supplement
(and eating bananas) seems to help also.
It's interesting that different doctors have different views about
medications. We both had our annual checkups last month and were
surprised to see our cholesterol levels crept up to the mid 200s. His
doctor advised him to be more vigilant in monitoring his diets and
inreased exercise activities. My doctor immediately wanted to put me on
lipitor. Granted that we have been doing all the right things (having
low BMI, exercise daily, eating lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grain
foods, avoid red meats etc.) but we can certainly be more strict with
our diets and to increase physical activity level. Lipitor is on the
FAA approved medication list but I will have to get a statement from my
doctor for my upcoming medical exam. I am considering replacing
lipitor with some natural supplements such as policosanol. Will see if
my doctor agrees to this approach.
Hai