A large part of the Spanish population has high blood pressure, also known as hypertension . Anyone living with this supposedly silent killer should check their blood pressure regularly. But if you’re not at the pharmacy or doctor’s office, how exactly is that done and why is it important?
We’ll first address the second question: Monitoring is important to control high blood pressure. If you take medications, or if you have made recent lifestyle changes, it can give you and your doctor clues as to whether those things are working. It can also alert you to patterns, such as whether stress or certain foods increase your numbers.
That’s why doctors recommend that anyone with high blood pressure check their numbers at home, up to twice a day if they are recently diagnosed. However, if your blood pressure is well controlled, you may only need to check it once a day or less.
This topic has become especially relevant in the midst of the new coronavirus pandemic. Since non-emergency doctor appointments are canceled or converted to telematic appointments, it is more important than ever to know how to take blood pressure readings from the comfort and safety of your own home.
How to control blood pressure at home?
So how do you do it? To get started, you will need a blood pressure cuff at home. These devices can be purchased online or at a pharmacy, and there are many brands to choose from.
Two things to keep in mind:
- Choose a cuff that fits the upper arm as they provide the most accurate readings.
- Opt for a monitor certified by independent organizations.
Before you buy it, make sure the bracelet is the correct size by measuring the largest part of the upper arm. A bracelet that is too small can cause inaccurate readings.
Try to always take the tension at the same time every day. Experts recommend first thing in the morning, before taking any medication, and also at night before taking it. Don’t smoke or drink alcohol, and don’t exercise or drink caffeinated beverages for 30 minutes before.
Sit with your back straight and feet flat on the floor, and rest your arm on a table at chest level. It is also a good idea to take your blood pressure twice, five minutes apart, and average those two readings.
How can apps help track stress?
That’s where the blood pressure apps come in. There are plenty of apps that can record your blood pressure measurements, and some that can even provide analytics to help you better understand your heart health.
However, the features and quality vary widely, so remember that these apps are only part of a complete heart health strategy, and should not replace the doctor, especially in an emergency situation.
Ask your doctor if there is a specific application that he or she recommends; There may be one that syncs with your practice software. Otherwise, you can send emails or print files to your doctor directly from the app.
5 top rated blood pressure apps
In general, the best blood pressure app for you is the one you will use regularly. We teach you five of the highest rated and most reviewed apps for monitoring blood pressure and other cardiovascular statistics for iOS and Android devices.
Smart BP – Smart Blood Pressure
- The best overall
This application allows you to record, track and analyze trends in blood pressure measurements. Numbers can be entered manually or, when used on iOS devices, imported from a smart blood pressure monitor paired with Apple Health.
Reviewers love the ability to add notes and labels to their blood pressure measurements, noting when (“before dinner”) and where (“left arm”) each measurement was taken. Labels can also filter data, which can help users annotate patterns and determine if any recent changes have affected the numbers.
Blood pressure information can also be easily exported and shared with doctors or family members via email or text messages. You can also set reminders to check your blood pressure regularly and you can create multiple profiles so that more than one person can use the same device.
Download for free from the Apple Store or Google Play .
Welltory: heart rate monitor
- The best for multitasking.
Blood pressure is just one of many metrics that this app can track and analyze over time. It can also measure pulse rate and heart rate variability (just place your finger on your mobile camera) and offers dozens of self-assessments and evaluations for conditions like anxiety, depression, and exhaustion.
Welltory was designed to help users improve their health by keeping energy and stress levels balanced. According to company data, 82 percent of users report more energy and less stress in just 30 days.
Although it’s free to manually record your blood pressure in the app, you’ll need to subscribe to the Pro version (€ 12.99 per month) to automatically import measurements from a smart blood pressure cuff, or to get analyzes that can help correlate style factors. of life and stress with changes in your readings.
Download for free for Android or iOS systems.
Qardio Heart Health
- The best for integration.
Purchase the QardioArm Smart Blood Pressure Monitor , an easy-to-use wearable bracelet, and pair it with this free app for automatic timing and analysis. The app automatically takes the average of three consecutive readings (something doctors often recommend) and allows users to quickly set reminders and share data with their healthcare team.
Blood pressure measurements can be affected by stress levels, so it is important to feel relaxed when taking a reading from home. To help with that, Qardio Heart Health integrates with your device’s photo library to deliver a slide show of pleasant memories that you can watch while taking stress.
Download for free from the Apple Store or Google Play .
Blood pressure journal
- The best for easy-to-read results.
This free Android-only app allows you to track blood pressure and pulse measurements over time, with options to add notes and labels to each entry. Automatically classifies readings into blood pressure zones, including hypertension, prehypertension, normal, and hypotension stages 1 and 2.
The data in this application can be exported to easy-to-read reports for healthcare professionals, and users can configure automatic backups to avoid losing important information. There is also an option to record heart rate, which can be useful for people with certain cardiovascular conditions, such as arrhythmias.
Download for free from Google Play .
Withings Health Mate
- The best for flexible monitoring.
Withing’s BMP Connect Smart Blood Pressure Monitor (€ 99.95) connects to this free app via Wi-Fi, which means that (unlike devices that sync via Bluetooth) your phone doesn’t have to be with you during or after the measurement.
If you want an even more complete picture of your heart health from home, the app also works with Withing’s high-end BPM Core blood pressure monitor (€ 249.45), which includes a digital stethoscope and electrodes that can help to detect valvular heart disease or abnormal heart rhythms.
