100s of Thousands of Americans Could Be Saved by 7 New Blood Pressure Guidelines

High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is the number-one preventable risk factor for heart disease and stroke, two of the leading causes of death in the U.S. However, roughly half of Americans have high blood pressure, and hypertension is responsible for close to 700,000 deaths each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). But a new set of blood pressure guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology hopes to drastically lower these numbers.

RELATED: Taking 1 Common Medicine Could Prevent 100,000 Heart Attacks A Year, Research Finds.

Blood pressure guidelines have been updated for the first time since 2017.

At the beginning of the year, the AHA released its annual update, warning that someone in the U.S. dies of cardiovascular disease every 34 seconds—2,500 people every single day.

“If recent trends continue, hypertension and obesity will each affect more than 180 million U.S. adults by 2050, whereas the prevalence of diabetes will climb to more than 80 million,” said Dhruv S. Kazi, MD, a cardiologist, health economist, and AHA volunteer. “And over the same time period, we expect to see a 300 percent increase in health care costs related to cardiovascular disease.”

Prior to the report, the AHA released a new heart disease risk calculator called PREVENT (Predicting Risk of cardiovascular disease EVENTs), which can predict one’s risk at age 30, 10 years younger than previous tools. It also includes, for the first time, one’s risk of heart failure, in addition to heart attack and stroke, as well as kidney health, which contributes to heart disease risk.

Now, the AHA has used PREVENT to inform its updated high blood pressure guidelines.

“By addressing individual risks earlier and offering more tailored strategies across the lifespan, the 2025 guideline aims to aid clinicians in helping more people manage their blood pressure and reduce the toll of heart disease, kidney disease, Type 2 diabetes, and dementia,” said Chair of the guideline writing committee Daniel W. Jones, MD, FAHA, dean and professor emeritus of the University of Mississippi School of Medicine in Jackson, Mississippi, in a press release.

RELATED: Doctors Discover the Optimal Time to Take Your Blood Pressure Medicine.

7 recommendations from the new blood pressure guidelines:

To be clear, blood pressure criteria have not changed.

“Blood pressure is measured in units of millimeters of mercury (mmHg),” explains the National Library of Medicine. “The readings are always given in pairs, with the upper (systolic) value first, followed by the lower (diastolic) value.”

Systolic blood pressure is the force exerted when the heart beats, pumping blood into the arteries. Diastolic blood pressure is the pressure on the blood vessels when the heart muscle relaxes between beats. Ranges are:

• Normal blood pressure: Less than 120/80 mm Hg
• Elevated blood pressure: 120-129/80 mm Hg
• Stage 1 hypertension: 130-139 mm Hg or 80-89 mm Hg
• Stage 2 hypertension: ≥140 mm Hg or ≥90 mm Hg

Since 46.7 percent of U.S. adults have stage 1 or 2 hypertension (classified as “high blood pressure”), the AHA has seven recommendations in its guidelines.

RELATED: Lowering Your Blood Pressure Can Reduce Dementia Risk by 15%, Scientists Say.

1. Limit sodium intake

The average American consumes 3,500 mg per day of sodium, most of which comes from packaged and processed foods. However, the AHA recommends “limiting sodium intake to less than 2,300 mg per day, moving toward an ideal limit of 1,500 mg per day.”

Jennie Stanford, MD, FAAFP, an obesity medicine physician at Drugwatch, previously told Best Life that “Sodium is important in regulating fluid balance through the kidneys. It is commonly said that ‘water follows salt,’ meaning that when sodium is consumed in excess, it leads to water retention.”

“As more water is retained, this can lead to increased blood volume and arterial stress, which can increase blood pressure,” she explained.

2. Limit alcohol intake

Ideally, the AHA says you’ll consume no alcohol. However, at a minimum, they suggest “consuming no more than two drinks per day for men and no more than one drink per day for women.”

This recommendation follows similar guidance from former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, who issued a warning to Congress naming alcohol as a leading preventable cause of cancer.

Not only is alcohol full of empty calories, which can cause weight gain that leads to high blood pressure, but it also has a direct effect on the cardiovascular system.

“Drinking elevates our blood levels of a hormone called renin, which can cause blood vessels to narrow. This effect, combined with renin’s ability to decrease our urine output, raises blood pressure,” Toni Golen, MD, wrote in an article for Harvard Health Publishing. “The more often someone drinks, the more likely the habit will produce blood pressure readings beyond normal levels.”

3. Reduce stress

“The body releases a surge of hormones when under stress. These hormones cause the heart to beat faster and the blood vessels to narrow. These actions increase blood pressure for a time,” explains Mayo Clinic.

To manage stress levels, the AHA suggests exercise, meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga.

4. Maintain a healthy weight

A paper published in the AHA journal Circulation Research states that 65 to 75 percent of the risk for human primary hypertension can be attributed to excess weight, especially when centered around dangerous visceral fat.

“Broadly speaking, when the body carries extra weight, the heart has to work harder,” notes the Obesity Medicine Association. “Increased oxygen and nutrient demands increase cardiac output.”

Visceral fat, the belly fat that surrounds the kidneys, stomach, liver, and intestines, can exacerbate the risk of high blood pressure because it puts extra strain on the organs.

Therefore, the AHA recommends “maintaining or achieving a healthy weight, with a goal of at least a 5 percent reduction in body weight in adults who have overweight or obesity.”

RELATED: Doctors Warn Up to 30% of People With High Blood Pressure Have This Undiagnosed Condition.

5. Follow the DASH diet

The AHA says the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is the most heart-friendly. They explain that it “emphasizes reduced sodium intake and a diet high in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and low-fat or nonfat dairy, and includes lean meats and poultry, fish and non-tropical oils.”

Research shows that the DASH diet can also help prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia.

6. Increase physical activity

“Regular exercise makes the heart stronger. A stronger heart can pump more blood with less effort,” explains Mayo Clinic. “So, the force on the blood vessels goes down. This lowers blood pressure.”

For this reason, the AHA recommends “increasing physical activity to at least 75-150 minutes each week including aerobic exercise (such as cardio) and/or resistance training (such as weight training).”

7. Monitor blood pressure at home

“Home blood pressure monitoring is recommended for patients to help confirm office diagnosis of high blood pressure and to monitor, track progress and tailor care as part of an integrated care plan,” states the AHA.

This is important because just this week, research came out that up to 30 percent of hypertension cases may be missed by traditional blood pressure cuffs at the doctor’s office.

“It is important for people to be aware of the recommended blood pressure goals and understand how healthy lifestyle behaviors and appropriate medication use can help them achieve and maintain optimal blood pressure. Prevention, early detection and management of high blood pressure are critical to long-term heart and brain health, which means longer, healthier lives,” Jones concluded.