How Volunteering Can Improve Your Blood Pressure

If you suffer with high blood pressure you probably have an arsenal of ACE inhibitor and diuretic drugs that you take on a regular basis… and that’s apart from the special diets and regular gym workouts. However, even after taking all these measures you may have experienced little or no luck at getting your blood pressure under control.

The feel-good factor

It turns out there is something you can do to help improve your blood pressure levels and it doesn’t involve taking drugs, following a restrictive diet or doing any exercise.

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University, in the US, say that your local soup kitchen may hold the key to help keep your high blood pressure at bay… and it’s not the soup.

After analysing data on nearly 7,000 volunteers over the age of 50, researchers found that simply volunteering 200 hours a year can slash your risk of developing hypertension by an unbelievable 40 per cent.

The study, published in Psychology and Ageing, found that people were able to stop high blood pressure in its tracks regardless of age, race, gender, or any other factor. Volunteering a few hours at a local soup kitchen or animal shelter benefited everyone’s blood pressure ? and it improved their psychological well-being, too.

Volunteering is an excellent way to work off stress, it releases beneficial hormones, and it makes you feel great about yourself.

So here’s the question ? would you be willing to spend just four hours a week volunteering in order to improve your physical and mental health, and perhaps add years to your life?

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Disclaimer: Bear in mind the material contained in this article is provided for information purposes only. We are not addressing anyone’s personal situation. Please consult with your own physician before acting on any recommendations contained herein.

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Sources:

Hypertension Risk Drops with Volunteer Work (medpagetoday.com)