Be calm. Quit stressing. Leading research is confirming the connection between chronic exposure to psychological stress and the development of hypertension. While there are many risk factors for hypertension, psychological stress is one that should not be ignored. In fact, it’s in your best interest to manage it. Life is stressful, and though we cannot blink away our stressors (job, family, in-laws, bills, etc.) a recent 2009 Rio de Janeiro study concluded that controlling stress can prove to be a meaningful way of managing and/or preventing high blood pressure.
Gasperin D, Netuveli G, Dias-da-Costa JS, Pattussi MP. Effect of psychological stress on blood pressure increase: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Cad Saude Publica. 2009 Apr;25(4):715-26. Review. PubMed PMID: 19347197. – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19347197