Nonpharmacologic approaches to the treatment of systemic hypertension

There are 3 areas of nonpharmacologic approaches that are recommended at present for control of arterial pressure elevation: (1) weight reduction to ideal body weight, since it reduces risk from hypertension and overall cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, (2) moderation in alcohol consumption to less than 2 ounces a day and (3) dietary sodium restriction to less than 2 g a day, without the promise that it will normalize arterial pressure. These interventions may also facilitate the effectiveness of already prescribed antihypertensive drugs. Other nonpharmacologic approaches have yet to be shown to be effective in controlling arterial pressure and their recommendation at present is, at best, preliminary.