The Potential Anti-inflammatory Benefits of Improving Physical Fitness in Hypertension

Hypertension is associated with an increased risk of stroke and atherosclerosis. In addition to elevated blood pressure, hypertension is characterized by neuroendocrine and immune activation, including elevated levels of C-reactive protein, inflammatory cytokines, and soluble adhesion molecules, which are predictive of morbidity and mortality outcomes. Pharmacological treatment for hypertension reduces blood pressure, but has limited effectiveness in reducing the accompanying inflammation and its associated morbidity and mortality. Exercise and diet interventions regularly show reductions in blood pressure in hypertensive individuals. Similar interventions in other populations show reductions in many inflammatory markers, but these effects have not been routinely examined in hypertensive individuals. The mechanisms through which exercise might exert an anti-inflammatory action include the sympathetic nervous system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, as well as direct effects of blood pressure. Here, exercise is promoted as a potentially effective treatment for both the elevated blood pressure and chronic inflammation found in hypertension.