How to measure blood pressure without a tonometer

Any person sooner or later comes a moment when he begins to think about his health. Blood pressure in this case - one of the most important indicators that contribute to the rapid identification of almost all diseases. Therefore, from time to time it is necessary to measure it, especially if there is a tendency to hypertension or hypotension.

Blood pressure is not constant. It changes with every beat of the heart, and therefore indicators often differ from each other. In addition, the psychological state of a person, weather conditions and even the time of year influence the pressure. This must be taken into account when measuring.

Many people notice that even when measuring pressure on both hands, the numbers will be different.The fact is that the heart is a little to the left, and not in the center. And because the performance of the tonometer on the left hand will always be slightly higher than on the right hand. Because of this, it is better to measure it only on one hand.

Values ​​of indicators

Not everyone understands what exactly the blood pressure indicators on the tonometer indicate. Upper systolic pressure is the pressure in the vessels as the heart ventricle contracts and blood is released. The figure of 110–140 mm is considered normal. Hg st. Lower systolic pressure - pressure in the vessels when the ventricle is filled with blood. The norm is 80–90 mm. Hg st. Any deviations from these indicators indicate a serious decrease or increase in pressure.

Objective criteria

There are signs due to which one can easily identify a person with high blood pressure. Among such objective signs are the complexion, body shape, the color of the whites of the eyes and the pulse. If a person has a very red face, and the color changes for no particular reason and for a long time, this may indicate an increase in blood pressure. Also on the skin may appear vascular mesh.

A big belly is not always a consequence of improper lifestyle. Often this symptom indicates a problem with pressure. Eye whites with hypertension usually turn red. As for the pulse, it does not disappear at high pressure, even if you press the artery very hard. But if at the same time he instantly ceases to be palpable, it means that the face has low pressure.

Subjective criteria

If these symptoms constantly appear, it is necessary to urgently seek medical help. You also need to measure blood pressure as often as possible. These include feeling unwell, which often manifests itself as follows:

• nausea and vomiting;
• dizziness;
• black "flies" and circles before the eyes;
• suffocation;
• headache in temples and occiput;
• discomfort and pain in the heart.

How often do you need to measure pressure

If there are no health problems, and nothing bothers, then it is not necessary to measure pressure regularly. Another thing is when blood pressure is unstable, and the state of health worsens. It is especially important to monitor these indicators for pregnant women and people in age.

When there are serious problems with blood pressure, it should be measured twice a day. In the morning it is measured immediately after waking up.When taking medication to normalize pressure, it should be measured a few hours after the medicine was taken. In order to track changes in pressure, you should record the time and performance of the device.

In order for indicators to be correct, it is necessary to exclude those factors that may affect this. Therefore, a few hours before the measurement can not smoke, drink coffee and alcohol. If there has been a recent meal, it is better to wait about an hour and only then proceed to the measurement of pressure.

Nuances you need to know when measuring pressure

• pressure changes easily when a person is under stress;
• it rises if a person wants to sleep, suffers from constipation or after exercise;
• pressure may also increase at cold air temperatures;
• smoking affects pressure, so you shouldn’t measure it right after a smoke break;
• it is important to ensure that the breath when measuring pressure is even and deep;
• do not measure blood pressure without a break for a long time;
• indicators can also be affected by body position, when a person is sitting with his legs crossed, or bending his back at a low table;
• Indicators during the measurement of pressure in a sitting or lying position can vary greatly.

How to measure pressure if there is no blood pressure monitor

Of course, with this device to control your pressure is much easier. But there are cases when there is no blood pressure monitor at hand, and it is very urgent to check blood pressure. For this purpose, ordinary items can be useful - a ruler and a nut. By the way, the nut can be easily replaced with a ring, needle or clip.

You can take any ruler, nothing depends on it. But it must be large, up to 20-30 cm. It must be placed on the arm in such a way that the division starts at the place of the bend of the elbow. Better that it was the left hand. Clothing pressure measurement in this way is absolutely not in the way.

Next, in the right hand you need to take a nut or ring, pre-tied to a string. The length of the rope should be between 15–20 cm. It is put over the ruler at the very beginning of the divisions and slowly move it along the ruler to the wrist. In this case, you can not touch either the ruler or the hand.

Also, in no case should you be distracted, talk, etc. As soon as the object above the ruler begins to swing from side to side, it means that the upper pressure has been determined.For example, if the nut indicates the number 10, then the upper blood pressure is 100 mm. Hg st.

Now you need to measure the lower pressure. To do this, you must do the same thing, just rearranging the ruler to the beginning of the wrist. And to begin to check the pressure should also be from the wrist, slowly heading for the crook of the elbow. When the nut swings, you need to look at the figure. This will be the lower pressure.

You can measure the pressure on their own pulse. This practice is very common and is often used by doctors when there is no time to measure the pressure with a tonometer. If you learn to define it by this method, then you can completely do without devices and other devices. The main thing is to have a watch at hand, as you have to tell time.

So, first you need to sit as comfortable as possible. Then put the clock on the table in front of you and just sit for a few minutes, trying to calm down. Then you can begin to check the pulse on the wrist. It is necessary to try to count the number of beats as accurately as possible in 30 seconds. This number is multiplied by 2. Under normal blood pressure, the indicators will lie within 60–80 beats.If this number is 60 or slightly less, then the pressure is low. Conversely, a pulse greater than 80 beats per minute indicates high pressure.

How to quickly reduce or increase pressure

If, when measuring pressure, it turned out that the indicators are too high or too low, then it is necessary to normalize the pressure. When it is very high, one of the following methods should be applied:

• drink strong black tea with lemon or cranberry juice;
• make compresses from ordinary table vinegar and put them on your feet;
• swab dipped in vinegar, you can also wipe the temples and the back of the head, but this should not be long;
• use mustard plasters, placing them on the shoulders or on the calf muscles;
• perfectly reduce the pressure of tincture of hawthorn and valerian;
• drink a special medicine to reduce pressure, for example, Nifedipine or Furosemide.

In the case when the pressure on the contrary is too low, it is necessary to urgently raise these indicators and improve our well-being. For this you need:

• put a pinch of salt on the tongue and allow it to dissolve;
• eat a slice of bread with honey and cinnamon;
• drink tincture of ginseng or Eleutherococcus;
• take a contrast shower;
• use medicine, for example, Dobutamine or Noradrenaline.

Doctors question most popular methods of measuring pressure. But on the other hand, tonometers also did not always exist. This means that our ancestors were able to figure out the blood pressure indicators on their own. Therefore, in order to dissipate all doubts, you can measure it at once in several ways and compare the results.

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