A new study from the University of Exeter has revealed a surprising pattern in older adults—blood pressure tends to slowly drop starting about 14 years before death. This finding changes how we think about blood pressure in elderly people and could lead to better ways to care for them in their final years.
Normally, blood pressure increases steadily from childhood through middle age. In older adults, the pattern has been less clear. Some earlier studies suggested blood pressure might fall in later life, but many believed that was mostly due to medications used to treat high blood pressure.
This new study goes further, showing that the drop in blood pressure is part of a natural process and not just caused by medicine.
The research, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, looked at the medical records of 46,634 people in the UK who died at age 60 or older. These people included both healthy individuals and those with conditions like heart disease, dementia, or serious weight loss later in life.
The study found that blood pressure drops were common not only in people with serious illnesses but also in those who were otherwise healthy. People with dementia, heart failure, and a history of high blood pressure showed the steepest declines.
However, even people without these conditions experienced a long-term fall in blood pressure before death. This shows the trend is not limited to those with health problems.
One key point from this research is that the drop in blood pressure wasn’t just a result of people dying earlier because they had high blood pressure. Instead, it appears to be a broader trend that affects many older adults, regardless of their medical history.
This discovery is important for doctors. It doesn’t mean they should stop treating high blood pressure in older people, but it does suggest they need to pay attention when blood pressure starts falling. A slow, steady decline could be a natural part of aging—or it might be a warning sign that something else is happening in the body.
Understanding this pattern can help doctors provide more personalized care. Instead of only focusing on keeping blood pressure numbers within a set range, they might also look at how those numbers are changing over time, especially in patients over 70.
The study doesn’t say that blood pressure medications should be stopped in older adults. Rather, it highlights the need for more research into why this decline happens and how it might affect treatment choices.
At the same time, it’s still important to manage high blood pressure to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Diet and lifestyle changes, such as reducing salt, staying active, and drinking black tea (which some studies suggest may help lower blood pressure), continue to be valuable tools.
But doctors also need to be careful, especially since some blood pressure medications may raise the risk of heart failure in older patients.
In short, this study gives us a clearer picture of what happens to blood pressure in the final years of life. It reminds us that health care for older adults should not follow a one-size-fits-all model. With more research and awareness, we can better support healthy aging and improve care in the later stages of life.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and natural coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more health information, please see recent studies about added sugar in your diet linked to higher blood pressure, and results showing vitamin D could improve blood pressure in people with diabetes.
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