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Blood pressure monitors are becoming more user friendly so it is quite easy to check your blood pressure at home. If you have high blood pressure or other heart disease, tracking your blood pressure can be important to your health. Home blood pressure monitors are not very expensive, especially if you buy the manual rather than the digital kind.
There is one thing that you have to be aware of when choosing a blood pressure monitor, though, and that is the size of your arm. The standard cuff that usually comes with it, if it does not fit properly, may not give an accurate reading. Therefore you will need to size up in order to ensure a proper fit. The same goes for children and those with small arms. You need to purchase a pediatric size in that case.
Proper care needs to be taken of your blood pressure monitor. As sometimes happens, if you should drop the device, then it should be compared with another properly working monitor to check for accuracy. Another thing to keep in mind is it should not be left in a hot car, because this could damage it. You should also check your blood pressure monitor's tubing to be certain that it has no cracks or leaks.
As a general rule you will be recording the resting blood pressure. The only exception would be if your doctor tells you to do something else. The reason for this is that stress and activities elevate your blood pressure and if you need to keep track of the readings, then the same conditions have to be ensured for each reading. You also should not smoke, eat or exercise a half hour before it is time to take the blood pressure reading. The best way to get good readings is to sit comfortably with your feet on the floor.
When using digital blood pressure monitors, it is important to sit still while the unit is in operation. If you move around during testing, the results might not be accurate. Using a cell phone while taking your blood pressure might cause an inaccurate reading with digital blood pressure monitors also.
When taking your blood pressure if for any reason it seems unusual or incorrect, then you should always retake it just to be on the safe side. Before you do, however, you have to wait a few minutes. When you do the test again also start over completely, which means you have to remove the arm cuff before you measure your blood pressure.
Every now and then you have to make sure that your blood pressure monitor is still accurate. This is best done by taking your monitor with you when you have to go to the doctor's office and then comparing results from your device to those of your doctor's equipment.
It cannot be emphasized enough that you should be consistent in your routine when it comes to taking your blood pressure. Any changes such as climbing up the stairs can elevate the reading versus if you took it while resting. Your blood pressure does rise and fall throughout the day, but your activities can also affect the outcome of the reading.
Another way of assisting your doctor with his diagnosis and treatment of you is to keep a log or journal of your blood pressure readings. You should make a note of the conditions, such as if you were relaxed, feeling stressed or whatever the case may be, as well as record the time of day and any other pertinent information to help in your treatment.
There is one thing that you have to be aware of when choosing a blood pressure monitor, though, and that is the size of your arm. The standard cuff that usually comes with it, if it does not fit properly, may not give an accurate reading. Therefore you will need to size up in order to ensure a proper fit. The same goes for children and those with small arms. You need to purchase a pediatric size in that case.
Proper care needs to be taken of your blood pressure monitor. As sometimes happens, if you should drop the device, then it should be compared with another properly working monitor to check for accuracy. Another thing to keep in mind is it should not be left in a hot car, because this could damage it. You should also check your blood pressure monitor's tubing to be certain that it has no cracks or leaks.
As a general rule you will be recording the resting blood pressure. The only exception would be if your doctor tells you to do something else. The reason for this is that stress and activities elevate your blood pressure and if you need to keep track of the readings, then the same conditions have to be ensured for each reading. You also should not smoke, eat or exercise a half hour before it is time to take the blood pressure reading. The best way to get good readings is to sit comfortably with your feet on the floor.
When using digital blood pressure monitors, it is important to sit still while the unit is in operation. If you move around during testing, the results might not be accurate. Using a cell phone while taking your blood pressure might cause an inaccurate reading with digital blood pressure monitors also.
When taking your blood pressure if for any reason it seems unusual or incorrect, then you should always retake it just to be on the safe side. Before you do, however, you have to wait a few minutes. When you do the test again also start over completely, which means you have to remove the arm cuff before you measure your blood pressure.
Every now and then you have to make sure that your blood pressure monitor is still accurate. This is best done by taking your monitor with you when you have to go to the doctor's office and then comparing results from your device to those of your doctor's equipment.
It cannot be emphasized enough that you should be consistent in your routine when it comes to taking your blood pressure. Any changes such as climbing up the stairs can elevate the reading versus if you took it while resting. Your blood pressure does rise and fall throughout the day, but your activities can also affect the outcome of the reading.
Another way of assisting your doctor with his diagnosis and treatment of you is to keep a log or journal of your blood pressure readings. You should make a note of the conditions, such as if you were relaxed, feeling stressed or whatever the case may be, as well as record the time of day and any other pertinent information to help in your treatment.
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For those who are looking for more details about automatic blood pressure monitor, check out this article for more info on intellisense blood pressure monitor.
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