Brief Summary
This video addresses common mistakes people make when checking their blood pressure at home, which can lead to inaccurate readings. It highlights 11 specific errors, such as not resting beforehand, incorrect arm positioning, and using the wrong cuff size, and explains how each can significantly impact blood pressure measurements. The video emphasizes the importance of proper technique and regular monitoring to accurately assess blood pressure and manage hypertension risks. It recommends using validated monitors and consulting a doctor if average blood pressure exceeds 130/80.
- Resting for at least 5 minutes in silence before measuring blood pressure is crucial.
- Correct posture, arm position, and cuff size are essential for accurate readings.
- Avoiding caffeine and ensuring an empty bladder before measurement can prevent artificially high results.
The video introduces the importance of accurately measuring blood pressure at home, noting that many healthcare providers may not be doing it correctly and that clinic settings can cause misleading readings. The presenter outlines 11 common mistakes people make when taking their blood pressure and explains how these errors can impact the results. The goal is to educate viewers on how to properly measure their blood pressure to get accurate readings.
The first mistake is not resting for at least 5 minutes in complete silence before taking a blood pressure measurement. Walking into the room and immediately taking a reading doesn't allow the body to settle into a true resting state. This lack of rest can increase the systolic blood pressure (the top number) by up to 11 points. Talking during the measurement can add another seven points due to slight muscle contractions and activation of the sympathetic nervous system, leading to artificially high readings.
The second mistake involves which arm is used for the measurement. There is usually a small discrepancy between the two arms, and the arm with the higher reading should always be used as it's more representative of the true blood pressure. However, if one arm consistently measures 10 points higher or more, it could be a sign of vascular disease, such as narrowing of the subclavian artery, which should not be ignored.
The third mistake concerns the patient's position during the measurement. Not having back support, resting the arm in the lap, and crossing the legs can all falsely elevate blood pressure. Each of these errors contributes to higher readings: lack of back support can increase systolic blood pressure by 10 points, arm position can increase it by up to six points, and crossing the legs can increase it by up to 15 points.
To ensure an accurate blood pressure reading, it's important to sit in a chair with firm back support, ensuring both feet are flat on the floor. The arm should be propped up so that it's at the level of the right atrium of the heart, approximately the midpoint of the sternum.
Consuming caffeine shortly before measuring blood pressure is another common mistake. The effect of caffeine depends on the person's tolerance; in those who don't regularly consume caffeine, it can briefly increase systolic blood pressure by up to 10 points. Even if you drink coffee every day your body actually adapts and eventually caffeine will have a nearly negligible impact on your blood pressure. It's recommended to avoid caffeine for about 30 minutes before checking blood pressure.
Having a full bladder can activate the sympathetic nervous system, which can increase blood pressure by as much as 15 points.
Using the wrong size cuff can significantly affect blood pressure readings. A cuff that's too small can increase blood pressure by 11 points, while one that's too big can give a falsely reassuring lower number. To ensure accuracy, measure the circumference of your arm and match it with the appropriate cuff size, which is usually printed on the cuff.
While automated monitors are generally more accurate and consistent for diagnosing hypertension, not all devices are created equal. Wrist monitors are more prone to error due to slight changes in hand position. It's recommended to use an upper arm cuff monitor. When purchasing a device, ensure it is listed on validatebp.org, which uses a rigorous independent process to assess blood pressure monitors for accuracy.
Even when all other mistakes are corrected, a patient's presence in a clinic can introduce errors such as white coat hypertension, where blood pressure spikes in a medical setting due to stress, affecting up to 20% of the population and inflating systolic blood pressure by up to 30 points. Conversely, masked hypertension, where blood pressure is normal in the doctor's office but high elsewhere, affects up to 30% of people. For these reasons, everyone should check their blood pressure at home.
Blood pressure fluctuates constantly based on various factors. Chronically elevated blood pressure causes damage to blood vessels and organs. To account for daily fluctuations, it's recommended to take blood pressure twice in the morning and twice at night for about a week, then average the values. If the average blood pressure is over 130/80, consult a doctor, as high blood pressure increases the risk of heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.
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Transcript
Full transcript of “11 MISTAKES Measuring Your BLOOD PRESSURE : Doctor Explains”. Click a timestamp to open the video at that moment. Need another video? Use the YouTube transcript generator.
0:00 I hate to say it but most Healthcare Providers are checking your blood pressure wrong and even if they did it properly we know that just being in clinic can cause changes to your blood pressure that can be misleading and that's why everyone needs to know how to take their blood pressure correctly at home so in this video I'm going to highlight 11 common mistakes and I'll tell you exactly how much of an impact they can have on your blood pressure readings all right now I want you to watch this next scene very closely this patient is about to get his blood pressure taken but here's the catch almost everything is being done incorrectly see if you can spot what's wrong how did you feel about that okay so the first mistake happens right off the bat notice how our patient walks into the room sits down and we take his
0:47 blood pressure immediately this is a classic mistake if you don't rest for at least 5 minutes in complete silence then your body doesn't have a chance to settle into a true resting state this alone can increase your systolic blood pressure the top number by up to 11 points and if you're talking at any point during the measurement that can add another seven points even a casual conversation triggers slight muscle contractions and activates the sympathetic nervous system leading to artificially High readings so make a point of sitting quietly for 5 minutes before measuring no scrolling no moving around and definitely no talking this next one is subtle and it has to do with which arm is being used a lot of offices Andes are set up in a way that it's it's really only practical to measure one arm
1:32 but there's usually a small discrepancy between your two arms and you should always use the arm with the higher reading because it's more representative of your true blood pressure however if one arm is consistently measuring 10 points higher or more this is something you shouldn't ignore because this could be a sign of vascular disease like narrowing of the subclavian artery okay now let's look at our patient's position no back support arm resting in his lap and legs crossed terrible almost like we planned it each of these mistakes can falsely elevate blood pressure and when they're combined they can really add up not having enough back support can increase your systolic blood pressure by 10 points arm position can increase it by up to six points and crossing your legs is the worst mistake of the three increasing your blood
2:18 pressure by up to 15 points so to get your true blood pressure always sit in a chair with firm back support I find that a dining room chair is a really good option make sure both of your feet are flat on the floor and prop up your arm so that it's at the level of the right atrium of your heart that's about the midpoint of your sternum for this next point we'll need to be a bit more observant this large coffee cup suggests that our patient very recently had caffeine but how much of an effect this has depends on the person's tolerance in someone who doesn't regularly consume caffeine it can briefly increase their systolic blood pressure by up to 10 points but if you drink coffee every day your body actually adapts and eventually caffeine will have a nearly negligible impact on your blood pressure either way I always recommend that people avoid caffeine for
3:04 about 30 minutes before checking their blood pressure and you don't necessarily need to skip your morning coffee because the headache from that caffeine withdrawal could spike your blood pressure too okay now we can't see this next mistake directly but a large coffee is bound to lead to a full bladder and having a full bladder activates your sympathetic nervous system which can increase your blood pressure by an impressive 15 points next take a closer look at the cuff size doesn't look quite right does it imagine trying to check Timothy shalom's blood pressure with the same cuff that you're going to use on the Rock it's obviously not going to work right using a cuff that's too small can increase your blood pressure by 11 points and using one that's too big can give you a lower number which can be falsely reassuring so the only way to know for sure is by
3:50 measuring the circumference of your arm and see if that matches up with the cuff you're using it's usually just printed right on the cuff and don't make the mistake of buying a blood pressure machine with the wrong size cuff you don't see doctors doing manual blood pressures very much anymore do you and I've had patients tell me that doctors and nurses are becoming too reliant on technology the truth is checking blood pressure with a stethoscope is still taught in medical school today and in certain situations it can be really important for instance last week I used the old school technique to check if a patient may have had fluid building up around the heart for all the Keen Med students out there you know I'm talking about pulses paradoxus but for the diagnosis of hypertension automated monitors have proven time and time again to be more accurate and consistent but not all automated monitors are made
4:36 equal for instance I've noticed more and more patients are using wrist monitors and I get it it's convenient but they're much more prone to error even a tiny change in the position of your hand can throw off the reading and because of that I really wouldn't recommend them unless an upper arm cuff is completely out of the question but be careful when you're buying your device because there's a lot of cheap knockoffs out there that's why I always tell my patients to get a device that's listed on validate b.org they use a rigorous independent process to assess blood pressure monitors for accuracy okay now let's imagine we corrected every mistake that we just covered unfortunately our patients very presence in the clinic may be introducing significant errors one possibility is white coat hypertension this is when a person's blood pressure spikes in a medical setting probably
5:22 because of a stress response we see this in up to 20% of the population and it can inflate your systolic blood pressure up to 30 points points which means that some people are probably started on medications that they don't need but sometimes false reassurance can be even worse than a false diagnosis masked hypertension is even more common affecting up to 30% of people this is when you have a normal blood pressure in the doctor's office and then a high pressure everywhere else which is obviously dangerous so for both of these reasons I think everyone should be checking their blood pressure at home so then how often should you be checking here's the thing your blood pressure fluctuates all the time based on stress activity sleep hydration and many other factors when your blood pressure is a little bit higher for a short period of time that's not usually harmful but
6:08 chronically elevated blood pressure over time is what causes damage to your blood vessels and to your organs so to take into consideration those day-to-day fluctuations I recommend taking your blood pressure twice in the morning right after you wake up and twice at night just before going to bed and do that for about a week and then take the average of those values if your average blood pressure is over 130 over 880 you should talk to your doctor because over time high blood pressure dramatically increases your risk of heart attack stroke and even kidney failure especially because this is something that's very treatable but how do we know that high blood pressure causes all of these problems and why do we pick 130 as the cut off well that's where science gets really cool you need massive amounts of data analyze the right way to
6:54 find clear patterns now I learned how to do this the hard way textbooks endless lectures but you don't have to you can actually have fun learning this stuff thanks to brilliant who sponsored today's video brilliant is where you learn by doing with thousands of interactive lessons in math data analysis programming and AI what I love is that instead of just memorizing facts you play with the concepts literally and Brilliant walks you through ideas step by step so you actually understand them you even get to work with real world data don't worry not patient confidential data but actual data sets from places like Airbnb and Starbucks which makes it so much more interesting to try everything brilliant has to offer for a full 30 days visit brilliant.org violin MD or scan this QR code or click
7:41 the link in the description and you'll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription if you're checking your blood pressure properly and it's consistently High then you need to see your doctor but in the meantime I'd recommend watching this video next where I teach you how to naturally lower your blood pressure without taking medications stay curious stay heal Healy and I'll see you in the next video so bye for now [Music]
