Does digesting a steak increase your blood pressure?

Question

The other day I had prime rib at Black Angus. Then shortly after I was shopping at Target and decided to try out the free blood pressure machine. It read pretty high, about 150/90. Could this be related to having eaten the steak or should I be concerned about being hypertensive? I normally don't eat steaks or beef in general, usually have chicken. And my dad does have high blood pressure so it runs in the family but I am only 25.

Answer 1

You are already predisposed to hypertension on heritage basis, there could have been an acute rise in BP as your reading tells me.
Age nowadays is no factor for a disease to come out of the blue, due to change in modern life style, lack of mobility, stress, alcoholism etc.
Kindly have yourself checked out for any underlying cause.

Answer 2

Digesting anything requires additionl blood flow through the digestive organs and must therefore produce additional mean pressure in the digestive loop. Under normal (say evening) conditions clearly this will add to the cardiac load and increase pulse-pressure and systolic pressure. But if it's late, and you're tired and going to sleep, - perhaps pissed too, the sum of all the pressures might well be actually lower than earlier in the evening. Odd, -isn't it? But, -that's how it works, the cardiovscular system.
Incidentally, it doesn't matter two hoots whether your meal is steak, chicken, or a toasted sarnie. The mechanism is the same.
Don't give the 150/90 a second thought. You're fit and fine. If your B/P didn't rise after a meal, then that's when you should begin to wonder.....becus it's exactly what should happen!!
P/S. A good rule of thumb is "your age plus 100" when RESTING. But you weren't resting. You were out, active, and had just had a big Angus steak..... so 150 systolic is rather better than you could possibly expect!. The 90 diastolic is an indicator of your mean arterial pressure (110, that's
(90 + 20)) which was causing additional blood flow to help you digest your meal.

Answer 3

Eating a steak does not raise your blood pressure but it is fact that dining at Black Angus and shopping at Target does...

Okay, more seriously. I have never seen data on a single beef meal causing anything in particular to happen at all.

Some people, though are very salt sensitive and I would wager Black Angus is not shy with the shaker.

Additionally some people are hypersensitive to alcohol. Sometimes only a drink or two of any alcoholic beverage can do it.

Finally the automatic cuffs in stores are not always calibrated correctly - or you may have a larger arm than is considered average, which would alter results too.

Recheck your pressure on a different machine on another day where you can sit down and relax for a good five minutes before you take the reading. If that one is high too. Make an appointment with your doctor to discuss the possibility of you being hypertensive.

Good luck.

Answer 4

Steak wouldn't raise blood pressure, however the salt on it might have and running around Target searching for items could qualify as exercise which will also raise blood pressure.

Answer 5

No that did not raise your blood pressure. You need to check it for a week at the same time every day and if it stays high see your doc.

Answer 6

it was not the steak now maybe if you have seasoned it well with salt that may affect the reading

Answer 7

YES