Eating spaghetti raise blood pressure immediately?

Farawyn · Dec 30, 2015

I have an interesting condition where my blood pressure is affected by my girlfriend's side of the family. I know there shouldn't be any relationship and no (before anyone chimes in), there is no incest here, but her side of the family drives me nuts! Your blood pressure would spike if you spent time with her family.

And why would our minds immediately jump to incest? Hahhahahahaaa!

Spaghetti raises my BP, too! Unless, of course, I find someone to share that one giant strand with me that ends up in a shy kiss. Also, someone really cuuuuuuute nosing a meatball across the plate for me puts me at ease.

This, of course, never happens, so I AVOID SPAGHETTI AT ALL COSTS, because I don't want to go on BP meds.

I can handle ziti.

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · Dec 30, 2015

Why does the theme from The Twilight Zone keep running through my head?

TriciaJ, RN · Dec 30, 2015

All I can think of is the white pasta triggering a big insulin output (especially in a person with metabolic syndrome) which will elevate blood pressure. But this is more a lifestyle thing rather than causing immediate spikes, and any simple carb will suffice. So if this person tends to consume a lot of simple carbs, not unusual to have a blood pressure problem among other things.

But spaghetti equals instant elevated blood pressure? Would need way more info.

allnurses Guide · Dec 30, 2015

Sodium needs to:
- get absorbed in colon (4 -12 h passage time)
GI 4.2 Study Guide: Nutrient Absorption
- get into circulation (about an hour for equilibration)
- cause changes in aldosterone level to affect reabsorbtion/secretion (several hours - it is "slow" mechanism
So no, that was not salt. It might be paradoxical effect of prandial redistribution of blood flow (30+% of circulating blood going into GI tract>>heart, kidneys and other guys get correspondingly less >> standard stress responce causing short-time systemic elevation of systemic bp due to peripheral spasm and reserves redistribution) if short-lived. Or something absolutely unrelated.
Otherwise, it is on the same page with "allergy to ethanol, salt and sugar", chronic fatigue brought by eating, wearing and otherwise using anything derived from any animal, "critical, life-threatening intolerance of everything non-organic and non-natural" and cancer of pubic hairs, alternatively known as razor burn. From my personal collection of crazy diagnoses:yeah:

I love your posts.

I'm in the midst of discussing "crazy" anti-vax stuff from my daughter-in-law . . .

:sarcastic:

BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN · Dec 30, 2015

OP, you didn't answer the question--are you a nurse or a student?

nrsang97, BSN, RN · Dec 30, 2015

I have an interesting condition where my blood pressure is affected by my girlfriend's side of the family. I know there shouldn't be any relationship and no (before anyone chimes in), there is no incest here, but her side of the family drives me nuts! Your blood pressure would spike if you spent time with her family.

HA HA the same with my in laws. Especially when my mother-in-law tries to talk medical stuff with me. Like that O+ is the universal receiver and O- is the universal donor, well at least sh's half-right for once. I tried to explain how she was wrong on the universal receiver part and she tried to tell me how my nursing instructor was wrong.

ScrappytheCoco · Dec 30, 2015

Sodium needs to:
- get absorbed in colon (4 -12 h passage time)
GI 4.2 Study Guide: Nutrient Absorption
- get into circulation (about an hour for equilibration)
- cause changes in aldosterone level to affect reabsorbtion/secretion (several hours - it is "slow" mechanism
So no, that was not salt. It might be paradoxical effect of prandial redistribution of blood flow (30+% of circulating blood going into GI tract>>heart, kidneys and other guys get correspondingly less >> standard stress responce causing short-time systemic elevation of systemic bp due to peripheral spasm and reserves redistribution) if short-lived. Or something absolutely unrelated.
Otherwise, it is on the same page with "allergy to ethanol, salt and sugar", chronic fatigue brought by eating, wearing and otherwise using anything derived from any animal, "critical, life-threatening intolerance of everything non-organic and non-natural" and cancer of pubic hairs, alternatively known as razor burn. From my personal collection of crazy diagnoses:yeah:[/quote
Mic drop.

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Dec 30, 2015

I think people just over think stuff lol.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Dec 31, 2015

I informed them that this was not the case and they insisted! The family members did

The family members are idiots. Enough said.

Guest650603 · Dec 31, 2015

Short answer: I doubt it. Catecholamines from stress might raise BP quickly, but not salt.

Maybe the family members are trying to make excuses for a loved one with HTN. Maybe they don't have a good understanding. Maybe both.

Think of it this way: sodium is linked to water retention more than any sort of vasoconstriction. For sodium to cause a higher BP, you need the time for it to get absorbed into your system, as well as ADDITIONAL dietary water to be ingested AND THEN enter your vasculature without diuresis.

If you have sodium and have no more water, your BP won't really change because your vessels need to constrict to raise your BP. Same amount of fluid in the tank means you need vasoconstriction or osmosis to raise BP. I don't think osmotic pressure from sodium will raise your BP quickly because it needs time to be absorbed.

I.C.UNurse · Dec 31, 2015

This is just plain ridiculous. End of story.

CamillusRN, BSN · Dec 31, 2015

Huh. That really went nowhere ... although the crazy family reference makes me want to watch Christmas with the Kranks again.