How to make your blood pressure read high?

Measure your blood pressure regularly to help your health care team diagnose any health problems early. You and your health care team can take steps to control your blood pressure if it is too high.

Measuring your blood pressure is the only way to know whether you have high blood pressure. High blood pressure usually has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people do not know they have it.

You can get your blood pressure measured

Take this form  with you on your first blood pressure visit to record important blood pressure-related information.

Many things can affect a blood pressure reading, including:

It’s important to get an accurate blood pressure reading so that you have a clearer picture of your risk for heart disease and stroke.

A reading that says your blood pressure is lower than it actually is may give you a false sense of security about your health. A reading that says your blood pressure is higher than it actually is may lead to treatment you don’t need.

Learn the correct way to have your blood pressure taken, whether you’re getting it checked at the doctor’s office or checking it yourself at home. Use this checklist:

If you are keeping track of your blood pressure at home, use these additional tips.

First, a health care professional wraps an inflatable cuff around your arm. The health care professional then inflates the cuff, which gently tightens on your arm. The cuff has a gauge on it that will measure your blood pressure.

The health care professional will slowly let air out of the cuff while listening to your pulse with a stethoscope and watching the gauge. This process is quick and painless. If using a digital or automatic blood pressure cuff, the health care professional will not need to use a stethoscope.

The gauge uses a unit of measurement called millimeters of mercury (mmHg) to measure the pressure in your blood vessels.

If you have high blood pressure, talk to your health care team about steps to take to control your blood pressure to lower your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Use this list of questions to ask your health care team  to help you manage your blood pressure.

Talk with your health care team about regularly measuring your blood pressure at home, also called self-measured blood pressure (SMBP) monitoring.

SMBP means you regularly use a personal blood pressure measurement device away from a doctor’s office or hospital—usually at home. These blood pressure monitors are easy and safe to use. A health care team member can show you how to use one if you need help.

Evidence shows that people with high blood pressure are more likely to lower their blood pressure if they use SMBP combined with support from their health care team than if they don’t use SMBP.3

Use these additional tips for SMBP:4

Talk with your health care team about how often you should have your blood pressure measured or when to measure it yourself. People who have high blood pressure may need to measure their blood pressure more often than people who do not have high blood pressure.

If you are concerned about your blood pressure numbers, talk to your health care team. They can help you make a plan to manage high blood pressure.

No matter your age, you also can take steps each day to help keep your blood pressure in a healthy range.

Here you can find resources for home monitoring, see our simple steps to get an accurate reading and make the most out of home monitoring.

Plus, read more about why home monitoring can be helpful and how to choose a monitor.

The first step to managing your blood pressure is to Know Your Numbers! Watch our video to see how to measure your blood pressure at home and use our tips and resources below to check your own blood pressure at home.

Download our Checking your blood pressure at home  poster and our Guidelines for home blood pressure testing to print and keep at home as a guide.

You can also download our 'Measuring your blood pressure at home' leaflet at the end of the page. This A5 booklet provides clear instructions on how to measure blood pressure at home. It covers how to choose an accurate monitor, how to use the machine correctly at home and when to measure.

When and how often you take your readings will depend on your blood pressure. Speak to your doctor or nurse about what’s suitable for you.

It can be useful to monitor your blood pressure closely to begin with, then less often but at regular intervals.

When you first start using a home monitor, measure your blood pressure in the morning and evening, every day for a week.

Take three readings in the morning, one to two minutes apart, and the same again in the evening, and record all the readings. Take an average of the readings, but discard the first one if it’s much higher than the others. To take an average simply add the two readings together and divide by two. Divide by three if you use all three readings.

Ignore the first day’s readings altogether, because they might not be accurate as you’re not familiar with your monitor yet.

At the end of the week you will have a useful picture of what your blood pressure is normally like.

Your doctor might ask you to keep a record like this when they first think you might have high blood pressure and would like to know more before making a diagnosis.

Once you have a record of your blood pressure over a week, you can take readings less often – once every one to two weeks perhaps. Your doctor or nurse can talk to you about this, there’s no need to measure it too often.

Sitting with crossed legs – It could increase a blood pressure reading two to eight points. It's best to uncross your legs as well as ensure your feet are supported. Talking – Answering questions, talking on the phone, etc. can add 10 points.

To determine whether you have hypertension, a medical professional will take a blood pressure reading. How you prepare for the test, the position of your arm, and other factors can change a blood pressure reading by 10% or more. That could be enough to hide high blood pressure, start you on a drug you don't really need, or lead your doctor to incorrectly adjust your medications.

National and international guidelines offer specific instructions for measuring blood pressure. If a doctor, nurse, or medical assistant isn't doing it right, don't hesitate to ask him or her to get with the guidelines.

Here's what you can do to ensure a correct reading:

Don't drink a caffeinated beverage or smoke during the 30 minutes before the test.

Sit quietly for five minutes before the test begins.

During the measurement, sit in a chair with your feet on the floor and your arm supported so your elbow is at about heart level.

The inflatable part of the cuff should completely cover at least 80% of your upper arm, and the cuff should be placed on bare skin, not over a shirt.

Don't talk during the measurement.

Have your blood pressure measured twice, with a brief break in between. If the readings are different by 5 points or more, have it done a third time.

There are times to break these rules. If you sometimes feel lightheaded when getting out of bed in the morning or when you stand after sitting, you should have your blood pressure checked while seated and then while standing to see if it falls from one position to the next.

Because blood pressure varies throughout the day, your doctor will rarely diagnose hypertension on the basis of a single reading. Instead, he or she will want to confirm the measurements on at least two occasions, usually within a few weeks of one another. The exception to this rule is if you have a blood pressure reading of 180/110 mm Hg or higher. A result this high usually calls for prompt treatment.

It's also a good idea to have your blood pressure measured in both arms at least once, since the reading in one arm (usually the right) may be higher than that in the left. A 2014 study in The American Journal of Medicine of nearly 3,400 people found average arm- to-arm differences in systolic blood pressure of about 5 points. The higher number should be used to make treatment decisions.

In general, blood pressures between 160/100 mm Hg and 179/109 mm Hg should be rechecked within two weeks, while measurements between 140/90 and 159/99 should be repeated within four weeks. People in the prehypertension category (between 120/80 and 139/89 mm Hg) should be rechecked within four to six months, and those with a normal reading (less than 120/80 mm Hg) should be rechecked annually. However, your doctor may schedule a follow-up visit sooner if your previous blood pressure measurements were considerably lower; if signs of damage to the heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes are present; or if you have other cardiovascular risk factors. Also, most doctors routinely check your blood pressure whenever you go in for an office visit.