The Impact of Blood Pressure on Wellness: Insights from WHOOP Research

April 03, 2025

Research suggests higher blood pressure may affect various aspects of health and well-being.

It can have a long-term effect on your cognitive performance: Sustained high blood pressure, especially during mid-life, consistently predicted decline in cognitive performance later in life, notably affecting memory, executive functioning, and attention, read more here. Lowering blood pressure, particularly when initiated during mid-life, improves cognitive outcomes, read more here.
Well-being and Quality of Life: It can affect how you feel day-to-day (energy, comfort, mood): Effective blood pressure management generally improved QoL across physical, mental, and emotional health domains (sources: Masyuko et al., 2021; Schmieder RE et al., 2017; Trevisol DJ et al., 2011). Demographic factors (age, frailty, baseline health) and treatment intensity significantly influences outcomes (sources: Berlowitz et al., 2017; Taft et al., 2018; Sugimoto & Yamamoto, 2022), underscoring the importance of individualized strategies.
Resilience: Research shows that individuals with sustained higher blood pressure have impaired baroreflex sensitivity, autonomic regulation, lower HRV and RHR adaptability while increasing stress on the heart, read more here and here. Elevated resting heart rate (≥80 bpm) correlates with increased sympathetic tone and poorer outcomes, see Grassi et al., 2023. Overall, evidence highlights a complex interaction between autonomic nervous system function and higher blood pressures, characterized by positive correlations with resting heart rate, negative associations with heart rate variability and baroreflex sensitivity, and variable sympathetic nervous system activity correlations across different populations.
Exercise performance: People who have higher blood pressure for a long time often have reduced exercise capacity, linked to stiffer carotid arteries and lower oxygen reserves, which are connected to decreased artery flexibility, read more here and here . Resistance training regularly leads to lowered blood pressure after exercise in both individuals with normal and higher blood pressure; however, people with higher blood pressure often have a greater drop in blood pressure after exercising, indicating an imbalanced heart and blood vessel responses following physical activity, read more here. Consistent exercise can normalize these responses by improving the autonomic nervous system response, read more here.
Sleep and blood pressure have a two-way relationship.This means that not getting enough good sleep can affect your blood pressure, and having higher blood pressure can in turn make it harder to sleep well. In some cases, a higher blood pressure may be an indicator for poor sleep, read more here.
- Sleep Quality: Across five studies, people with higher blood pressure had significantly worse self-reported sleep quality than those with blood pressure less than 120/80 mmHg. Read more here.
- Sleep Fragmentation: In a recent review investigating the relationship between sleep features and higher blood pressure, researchers reported that people with sustained higher blood pressure experienced alterations to their sleep duration, sleep stages, and fragmentation compared to people with blood pressure less than 120/80 mmHg, with individuals with higher BP experiencing higher sleep fragmentation, read more here.
- Sleep Architecture: Same review by Kanclerska and colleagues (2023) has concluded that higher blood pressure is associated with lower duration of REM sleep, another longitudinal study has found that the rate of decline in REM sleep over time is higher for individuals with higher blood pressure.
- Sexual Function: Individuals with sustained high blood pressure show higher rates of sexual dysfunction compared to individuals with normal blood pressure (sources: Manolis & Doumas, 2008; Lou et al., 2023).

It is worth noting that many of these studies have limitations based on the populations they recruited to participate in the study and other design limitations. So there remains much to learn and WHOOP intends to be part of the effort to better understand the impacts and uses of blood pressure information. Also, many observed associations (higher blood pressure with sleep etc.) are bidirectional or confounded by common causes, making it challenging to parse cause and effect. Untangling these requires longitudinal studies and ideally interventional studies (e.g. see if treating one improves the other). In any case, it is important to note that the information provided here represents general insights into the potential relationships between blood pressure and various aspects of health and well-being. However, individual responses can vary significantly based on factors such as genetics, sex, ethnicity, overall lifestyle, pre-existing conditions, and medication use. Readers are encouraged to interpret these findings as broad information rather than definitive rules and to consult qualified healthcare professionals for personalized advice or treatment.