Seventy-year-old Gloria Cherry (top, right, with Paula Wilson, clinical coordinator) of Harlem has struggled with hypertension and all of its attendant issues for decades. She was overweight, achy, and had unchecked diabetes.

That was until she enrolled in the Visiting Nurse Service of New York treatment program two years ago that helped saved her life. The program is funded by the National Institutes of Health's National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

"I learned the importance of changing my eating habits and being consistent with taking my medication,'' said Cherry, who at one time carried 180 pounds on her 5-foot-two frame. She now weights about 20 pounds less. "I stopped eating fatty foods, tried to stop eating after 6:30 p.m. and began exercising. I did it with the help of conversations with my clinical coordinator in the program and keeping a food journal. When you see it on paper, it makes a big difference.''

It's a good thing. Thirty-five percent of African Americans have hypertension, or unchecked high blood pressure, which accounts for 20 percent of the community's deaths in the United State-twice the percentage of deaths of whites with the disease. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps out blood. If the pressure rises and stays high over time, it can do great harm to the body, including causing stroke or a heart attack, medical experts say.

Cherry was part of a three-year study from 2006 to May 2009 of 846 African American home care patients in New York that measured the effectiveness of educational techniques to help patients manage high blood pressure through diet, exercise and medication.

Results from the trial, expected to be released early next year, will provide information about effective strategies to improve hypertension in low-income patients who suffer from multiple chronic illnesses, said Penny Hollander Feldman, Ph.D., director of the Center for Home Care Policy and Research for Visiting Nurse Service of New York.

Cherry has reaped other benefits from the program, too. She also is learning to control her diabetes, her weight and learning to live a different lifestyle all together, she said. Even when her weight crept back up after she broke an ankle in March, she was able to get back on track with the help of a rehab nurse and by stick the structure of the hypertension self-management plan. "I gained a lot of weight and they were able to get me back on track.''

Paula Wilson, a clinical coordinator in the program, agreed with Cherry about her success of getting back on track. "She had the tools she needed to keep track of her medications, her blood pressure and to try to maintain her weight and diet.

"Prior to her accident, she was able to see that making small changes made a big difference in her life,'' Wilson said. "We gave her a blood pressure machine for her home. When a person monitors small things, it helps them to look at the bigger picture.''

Blood pressure by the numbers
Ideal: <115/75
Normal: <120 and <80 Encourage life style modifications
Prehypertension: 120-139/80-89
High: 140/90 or higher (130/80 for people with diabetes or chronic kidney diseases) both medications and lifestyle modifications recommended.
Source: National Institute of Health

Action Items to Help Lower Your Blood Pressure
1. Maintain a healthy weight
2. Be physically active. Engage in physical activity for a total of 30 minutes on most days of the week. Combine everyday chores with moderate-level sporting activities, such as walking, to achieve your physically active goals.
3. Follow a healthy eating plan. Set up a healthy eating plan with foods low tin saturated fat, and total fat. Write down everything that you eat and drink in a food diary. Note areas that are successful or need improvement.
4. Reduce sodium in your diet. Choose foods that are low in salt and other forms of sodium. Use spices, garlic and onions to add flavor to your meals without adding more sodium.
5. Drink alcohol only in moderation. In addition to raising blood pressure, too much alcohol can add unneeded calories to your diet. If you drink alcoholic beverages, have only a moderate amount-one drink a day for women, two drinks a day for men.
6. Take prescribed drugs as directed. If you need drugs to help lower your blood pressure, you still must follow the lifestyle changes mentioned above
Source: VNSNY