Healthier Hearts
For those struggling with high blood pressure, the thought of monitoring and addressing the disease on their own can seem daunting.
A new program in Butler County aims to equip those affected by the issue to address it on their own. The YMCA has partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to offer a blood pressure program to help participants monitor and address the disease from the comfort of their own home.
“(This is) something all YMCAs across the country are running,” said Aaron Hochmann, healthy living director at the Butler YMCA. “Hypertension and heart disease are the number one killers nationwide. In Butler County, that's one of the highest causes of death.”
The program works to not only lower participants' blood pressure, but also to help them learn to monitor and address it themselves.
“Being able to understand your blood pressure and knowing that you can lower it (is important), whether that's tweaking your diet (or) making sure you're getting enough exercise,” Hochmann said.
Program participants will receive a blood pressure monitoring device that they can use at home. They will also meet with Healthy Heart Ambassadors twice a month for four months.
Heather Healy is a healthy heart ambassador at the Rose E. Schneider Family YMCA in Cranberry. She meets with patients throughout the week to talk and take their blood pressure.
“It's kind of a program to help people keep accountable,” she said.
While participants are not assigned a specific ambassador, Healy said she gets to know them and their situation.
“A lot of the time I do see the same people,” Healy said. “It's been good to see people coming in and maybe taking more control of their own health and starting to go to classes, starting to work out and realizing it does have a direct effect on their health and blood pressure.”
In addition to meetings with the ambassadors, participants also will be encouraged to attend monthly nutrition education seminars.
“Those are one hour, and anyone, even if you're not part of the program, can attend,” Hochmann said.
Each seminar focuses on a topic such as healthy living, sodium intake or exercise. Attendees will learn different techniques for improving their blood pressure and hopefully may come to better understand the disease and how it works.
“The main thing is always making sure you're getting exercise — 150 minutes a week,” Hochmann said.
Proper eating habits are also important, he added.
Those with high blood pressure should focus on including whole grains and vegetables in their diets and trying to minimize the amount of sodium they consume. While medical opinions have shifted slightly, Hochmann gave some rules of thumb for blood pressure monitoring.
“It was always 120 over 80,” he said. “They have raised that up just a little bit but I tell people 120 over 80 is a good way to make sure you stay in this range.”
To qualify for the program, participants must be at least 18 years old and be diagnosed with high blood pressure. The program is not for those who have experienced a recent cardiac event or for those with atrial fibrillation or other arrhythmias.
The cost is $40 for those without a blood pressure monitoring device. For those who already have a device, the cost is $30. Financial assistance is available to those who need it.
For more information, visit www.bcfymca.org.
