Blood pressure monitor

Buy a reliable blood pressure monitor? Make your choice here

High blood pressure increases the risk of a heart attack or can lead to a stroke. Whether someone's blood pressure is too high, which increases the risk of one of these acute diseases, cannot always be determined from the outside. That is why the Dutch Heart Foundation recommends checking blood pressure regularly. You do this with the help of a blood pressure monitor.

Why measure blood pressure

As mentioned, the risk of a stroke or heart attack increases over a lifetime. Especially if you are over forty. Checking your blood pressure regularly will give you more insight into your health. And if it turns out that your blood pressure is indeed too high, you can seek timely medical advice to get your blood pressure back to the desired level. The way to measure your blood pressure is to use a blood pressure monitor.

Measure yourself or have it measured

You can measure blood pressure yourself or go to your doctor. In both cases the result will be the same, especially if you use a professional and reliable blood pressure monitor. For example, look at a blood pressure monitor that has a cuff that you slide over your upper arm. This upper arm blood pressure monitor is generally somewhat more accurate than the meters that measure blood pressure on the wrist. But if you do not like a cuff on your upper arm, the Omron wrist blood pressure monitors are very pleasant to use. The special Intellisense technology™ allows you to measure quickly and accurately.

Which arm to measure blood pressure?

To measure your blood pressure, it is recommended to measure the arm that you use the least. So for left-handed people it will be the right arm, for right-handed people it will be the left arm. It is important that there are no elements between the skin and the blood pressure monitor, such as clothing. So roll up your sleeve for the cleanest possible result. The location of the cuff is also important. Place this approximately two centimeters above the elbow. The guideline for this is that you measure at the height of your heart. During the measurement you sit on a chair with your legs next to each other. You ensure that the arm you are measuring is relaxed. You do this by placing your arm on the table or resting it on the armrest of the chair. You measure blood pressure by turning on the blood pressure monitor. After it has turned off, repeat the operation again after a minute. Sometimes this is an extra action. With some devices the measurement is repeated automatically. Note down the values that are then indicated. You can then discuss this information with your doctor. Or you can compare the results yourself to see if there are any changes compared to previous measurements.

Different types of blood pressure monitors

The Dutch Heart Foundation recommends a number of blood pressure monitors, also for home use. A Hartstichting blood pressure monitor, for example, is an Omron blood pressure monitor. This meter is very accurate and can store the values of two people in its memory. Moreover, you can choose a type that can also detect an irregular heartbeat. The Microlife blood pressure monitor is also very suitable for use at home. The cuff is extra large, so you can easily place it around your upper arm. You measure your blood pressure and also your heart rate. For a professional blood pressure monitor doctor, it is of course important that you can assume a maximum error message. The Riester blood pressure monitor meets this condition. The various Riester meters have clear displays for reading the values. You can choose between a digital or analog blood pressure monitor. With the digital blood pressure monitor you can count on two hundred measurements on a set of batteries.