Stretching Versus Walking From Reducing Blood Pressure

Hypertension Clinical Trial

Official title:

Comparison of Stretching and Walking as Exercise Modalities for Reducing Blood Pressure

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03947996
• Other study ID #: 1133
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: May 15, 2019
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2019

Study information

• Verified date: February 2021
• Source: University of Saskatchewan
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

High blood pressure is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Traditionally, one of the ways to treat or prevent high blood pressure is to prescribe aerobic exercise training (i.e.brisk walking). Previous studies have shown that stretching is also very effective for reducing blood pressure. This is an exciting possibility because if stretching is more effective, it would change the way exercise is prescribed to people with elevated blood pressure. This study will now assess 20 individuals in a supervised stretching or walking program five days per week for 8 weeks to determine for certain whether stretching is superior for reducing blood pressure. This research will contribute to recommendations about the most effective exercise programs for reducing blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular disease.

Description:

The study hypothesis is that stretching (flexibility training) will be superior to brisk walking for reducing blood pressure. This is a parallel-group randomised trial. Twenty participants (aged 18 and older) with borderline or stage-1 hypertension (systolic blood pressure between 130 and 159 mmHg OR diastolic blood pressure between 85 and 99 mmHg) will be randomised to walking or stretching groups. Each group will do 30 minutes of exercise, five days per week. Exercise sessions will be supervised three days per week with participants doing exercise sessions on their own two days per week. Exercise sessions involve either brisk walking or stretching. The stretching exercises will involve stretching all major muscle groups. The main outcome is 24-hour blood pressure which will be assessed at baseline, after four weeks, and after eight weeks. Other outcomes will be assessed at baseline and eight weeks and include: Body weight, height, waist circumference, resting heart rate, physical activity levels (questionnaire), diet (questionnaire), maximal distance walked in six minutes. All participants will be counselled on how to follow the DASH eating plan, which involves reducing dietary salt intake. Statistical analyses: All outcomes will be assessed with a group x time ANOVA with alpha level of 0.05. LSD post-hoc tests will be done when necessary to identify differences between pairs of means.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 40
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2019
• Est. primary completion date: September 15, 2019
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Systolic blood pressure between 130 and 159 mmHg OR diastolic blood pressure between 85 and 99 mmHg

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals will be excluded if they have taken blood pressure medications within the past six months unless they are on a stable dose of medication and have not reach target blood pressure levels (i.e. systolic blood pressure below 130 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure below 85 mmHg)

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Hypertension

Intervention

Other:
• Stretching exercise
Stretching (30 minutes, 5 days per week, 8 weeks)
• Walking exercise
Walking (30 minutes, 5 days per week, 8 weeks)

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Canada	College of Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan	Saskatoon	Saskatchewan

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University of Saskatchewan	Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Canada, 

References & Publications (1)

Ko J, Deprez D, Shaw K, Alcorn J, Hadjistavropoulos T, Tomczak C, Foulds H, Chilibeck PD. Stretching is Superior to Brisk Walking for Reducing Blood Pressure in People With High-Normal Blood Pressure or Stage I Hypertension. J Phys Act Health. 2020 Dec 18:1-8. doi: 10.1123/jpah.2020-0365. [Epub ahead of print] — View Citation

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Night time blood pressure	Blood pressure assessed during the night with an automated device	Change from Baseline Night Time Blood Pressure at 8 weeks
Secondary	Day time blood pressure	Blood pressure assessed during the day with an automated device	Change from Baseline Day Time Blood Pressure at 8 weeks
Secondary	Sitting blood pressure	Blood pressure assessed while sitting	Change from Baseline Sitting Blood Pressure at 8 weeks
Secondary	Lying blood pressure	Blood pressure assessed while lying down	Change from Baseline Lying Blood Pressure at 8 weeks
Secondary	Walking test	Maximal distance walked in six minutes	Change from Baseline Walking Distance at 8 weeks
Secondary	Waist circumference	Waist circumference measured with a measuring tape	Change from Baseline Waist Circumference at 8 weeks
Secondary	Body mass	Body mass measured with a scale	Change from Baseline Body Mass at 8 weeks
Secondary	Resting heart rate	Heart rate at rest measured with a heart rate monitor	Change from Baseline Resting Heart Rate at 8 weeks