Study: Even 30 minutes less sitting may lower blood pressure

High blood pressure – it sounds a bit like a problem of older gentlemen at the barbecue, who have talked themselves into a rage with a bright red head. Is that true? No. It is a cliché, albeit a popular one with a grain of truth. In fact, young people can also suffer from high blood pressure. All the better that there are effective strategies for lowering blood pressure in addition to the well-known medications.

Why should I pay attention to my blood pressure?

High blood pressure is one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. These, in turn, are one of the main causes of illness and premature death in old age. Stroke and heart attack are the best known and most common complications associated with high blood pressure. The dangerous thing about it is that you won't notice high blood pressure for a long time if you don't check it regularly, for example as part of a medical check-up or with a home blood pressure monitor.

The risk of cardiovascular events increases in line with blood pressure. Nevertheless, high blood pressure is often only detected when the disease is already present. The good news is that there are now a number of high-quality studies that have looked at the issue and examined what measures can help to lower blood pressure to a healthy level without medication. In this article, we would like to present two notable studies that provide exciting insights into the relationship between blood pressure and longevity. This is because blood pressure is an important factor in extending the health span, i.e. the period of life that we spend in good health. Those who pay attention to their blood pressure can significantly extend their health span.

A closer look: two studies on the subject of high blood pressure

Sitting less for lower blood pressure

In the study by Rosenberg et al. (2024)¹, older adults in the intervention group reduced their daily sitting time by an average of 30 minutes, which was associated with a significant reduction in blood pressure of 3.5 mmHg.

“The intervention reduced sitting time by more than half an hour per day over six months, increased standing time, and shortened long sitting bouts. It also improved systolic blood pressure (SBP) by almost 3.5 mm Hg – similar to aerobic exercise.”

The randomized clinical trial assigned 283 adults aged 60-89 years to a control group and an intervention group. The participants in the intervention group reduced their sedentary time by about 30 minutes a day. This relatively small behavioral change was enough to lower systolic blood pressure by an average of 3.48 mm Hg. The advantages of this small but effective intervention are obvious: compared to medication, there are no side effects, the measure is free and requires no equipment.

These are encouraging results that once again confirm how relevant our sitting habits are for our health – and that it is definitely worth getting up as often as possible. Nevertheless, as with almost every study, there are some points that should be considered when interpreting the results. For one thing, the pandemic influenced the way the study was conducted, because the participants took the measurements in their own homes. This can lead to inaccuracies. On the other hand, all participants were aware of the purpose of the study, which can trigger unconscious behavioral changes in the participants.

And last but not least, of course, we also have to see the study results in comparison to the common treatment with medication. Medications lower systolic blood pressure by about 7-10 mm Hg. They are therefore often the more effective option for people with severe hypertension, but they can also have side effects and interactions. For many people, a combined approach can therefore be useful: behavioral changes plus a lower dose of medication. If you suffer from high blood pressure, be sure to talk to your doctor before reducing or discontinuing medication.

For us at ASPRIVA, the findings of this study are definitely very relevant. Successful longevity trips take a holistic approach in which lifestyle changes play a major role, as this study shows. Just 30 minutes of sitting less leads to 50% of the blood pressure-lowering effect of prescription medication. Even small changes can make a big difference.

Lowering blood pressure with exercise: which workout is most effective?

The second very revealing study ² for this article is a large-scale meta-analysis (which means that many different studies were analyzed in a review paper). This meta-analysis looked at 270 randomized controlled trials between 1990 and 2023. Studies were included that each included a training intervention of at least two weeks and examined systolic and diastolic blood pressure compared to an intervention-free control group. The total number of participants was 15,827, so this is a very large dataset.

The question of the study was: Which type of sport is best suited to lower blood pressure? The types of training considered were high-intensity interval training (HIIT), strength training, aerobic training, isometric exercises and combined training methods.

“All isometric training modes resulted in significant reductions in systolic blood pressure, with an average decrease of 8.24 mmHg, with the greatest effect observed with isometric wall sits.”

In other words, the most important finding of this extensive study is that each of the sports examined was able to significantly lower blood pressure, but that isometric training was the most effective. It lowered systolic blood pressure by an average of 8.24 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure by 4.00 mm Hg.

For isometric exercises, you tense your muscles but remain in a static position instead of moving dynamically. An example of this is the well-known “wall sit”. We will show you more exercises below. You hold a certain position for a certain amount of time. This strengthens both strength and muscle endurance. This continuous tension helps to improve the flexibility and function of blood vessels. And that in turn leads to better blood flow and less strain on the heart. A major advantage of these exercises is that they are easy to access: no additional equipment is needed and they can be easily integrated into everyday life, which is pretty good news for many of us. So, according to this study, isometric exercises are an ideal choice for people who want to influence their blood pressure through physical activity.

What can I do to lower my blood pressure?

Let's stick with isometric training. We've just seen why it works so well. But what exercises are they exactly?

• Wall sit: Sit with your back against a wall, legs bent at a 90-degree angle, both feet firmly on the floor. Hold this position for as long as possible.
  
• Plank: Support yourself on your forearms and toes, lift the rest of your body off the floor and keep it as straight as possible, a bit like a plank. Engage all your muscles and don't slouch at the shoulders. Hold the position for as long as you can do it properly.
  
• Isometric leg extension: Lie on the floor, press your feet against the wall and tighten your thighs. Hold the position again without losing the tension. This is how you strengthen your quadriceps.
• Isometric handgrip: Squeeze a small ball or a special hand training device as hard as possible and hold the tension.
  

In addition, it is a good idea to reduce the amount of time you sit each day, as the first study showed. It is now common knowledge that sitting for long periods of time can be problematic for your health. Blood flow in the large vessels in the legs is disrupted, tension and back pain can occur – and high blood pressure can be promoted.

The countermeasure: active breaks.

• Work standing up from time to time. There are now standing desks and height-adjustable desks.
• Set reminders: Set your phone or smartwatch to remind you to get up every 60 minutes and spend a few minutes being active on your feet.
  
• New routines: a lot of the things we usually do sitting down can be done standing up – reading the newspaper, for example. Or drinking a cup of tea while looking out of the window while standing. It's also great to walk around while making a phone call.

References:

¹ = Rosenberg DE, Zhu W, Greenwood-Hickman MA, et al. Sitting Time Reduction and Blood Pressure in Older Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(3):e243234. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.3234

² = Edwards JJ, Deenmamode AHP, Griffiths M, Arnold O, Cooper NJ, Wiles JD, O'Driscoll JM. Exercise training and resting blood pressure: a large-scale pairwise and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Br J Sports Med. 2023 Oct;57(20):1317-1326. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2022-106503. Epub 2023 Jul 25. PMID: 37491419.