I<$c$>t’s not a pharmaceutical or a herb, but there is a new product that may help in lowering blood pressure. Resp[AT]rate , which is being marketed in the US, is not available in Bermuda as yet. It is a little machine that fits in the palm of your hand and has headphones and a small sensor. Resp[AT]rate works by guiding you through breathing exercises. Lowering your breathing rate lowers your blood pressure. Having controlled long inhalations and exhalations helps to lower your breathing rate. Patients suffering from hypertension can especially benefit from controlling their breath. Patients strap the small sensor attached to the Resp[AT]rate device to their chest. The sensor detects the rate of breathing and appropriately guides the user to controlled breathing. A special tone denotes when you should exhale and another indicates when you should inhale. The guided message lasts for 15 minutes and afterwards your pressure should be lower.

The device is meant to be used several times a week. The regular use causes more controlled breathing and allows constricted blood vessels to dilate. This is an important feature in lowering blood pressure. As its name suggests, high blood pressure is the build-up of pressure in the blood stream. This can be caused by a variety of factors including cholesterol build-up on the arteries or constriction of the blood vessels. In the case of cholesterol build up patients are often prescribed a blood thinner so that the blood is able to flow through the narrower arteries.

In cases where blood pressure is due mainly to hypertension, a constriction of the blood vessels is taking place and drugs to counter that are used.

Cardiac Care nurse specialist at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital Myrian Balitian-Dill said locals typically take three to four different medications to combat their high blood pressure. And she said many take five. She said lifestyle changes including regular exercise and good diet can help a lot. While she is not familiar with the new device and cannot endorse it, she said the principle should work.

“I certainly don’t see where this would hurt,” she said. “Most cases we see are hypertension where we do not know the cause.”

She said people who practise breathing and meditation can see decreases of two or three millimetres of mercury to their pressure.

“People do not know how to breathe,” she said. “ This device sounds like it might help them to centre and focus on their breathing. It sounds like a biofeedback device that will sense how deep and fast you are breathing. That can help people.”

Resp[AT]rate was created in the US by Dr. Benjamin Gavish, a medical researcher who has concentrated on biophysics and biomedical engineering with part of that focus on small blood vessels and non-invasive monitoring.

The American Food & Drug Administration has approved the device and clinical trials conducted by the inventors show that it does lower blood pressure. The research indicates that using the device for 15 minutes a day lowers systolic blood pressure (the upper number of a blood pressure reading) an average of 14 points and diastolic pressure by 9. By comparison, people listening to relaxing music lowered their systolic blood pressure by seven points and their diastolic pressure by four. Older people and those with higher pressures can do even better.

Articles from Harvard Medical School and the latest Mayo Clinic book on high blood pressure also refer to the device. None of the local pharmacies nor KEMH stock the device. Pharmacists at Hamilton Pharmacy were the only ones contacted who had even heard of it. They were alerted by a cruise ship passenger who enquired if it was for sale there. Head pharmacist Leah Perrault said it was the only request she knew of at her pharmacy. If there was local demand, she said she would certainly try to order it.

Wholesaler BGA, who supply the bulk of the Island’s pharmacy requirements, said they were not familiar with the device, but like Ms Perrault would seek to stock it if there is demand. In the US the device retails for $299 and the inventors offer a complete money back guarantee if you do not see an improvement.

For more information on Resp[AT]rate go to www.resperate.com