High Blood Pressure / Hypertension
What is blood pressure?
Blood pressure, measured with a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope
by a nurse or other healthcare provider, is the force of the blood
pushing against the artery walls. Each time the heart beats, it
pumps blood into the arteries, resulting in the highest blood
pressure as the heart contracts. One cannot take his own blood
pressure unless an electronic blood pressure monitoring device
is used. Electronic blood pressure monitors may also measure the
heart rate, or pulse.
Two numbers are recorded when measuring blood pressure. The higher
number, or systolic pressure, refers to the pressure inside
the artery when the heart contracts and pumps blood through the
body. The lower number, or diastolic pressure, refers to
the pressure inside the artery when the heart is at rest and is
filling with blood. Both the systolic and diastolic pressures
are recorded as "mm Hg" (millimeters of mercury). This
recording represents how high the mercury column is raised by
the pressure of the blood.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, directly increases the
risk of coronary heart disease (heart attack) and stroke (brain
attack). With high blood pressure, the arteries may have an increased
resistance against the flow of blood, causing the heart to pump
harder to circulate the blood. According to the American Heart
Association, high blood pressure for adults is defined as:
- 140 mm Hg or greater systolic pressure
and/or
- 90 mm Hg or greater diastolic pressure
These numbers should be used as a guide only. A single elevated
blood pressure measurement is not necessarily an indication of
a problem. Your physician will want to see multiple blood pressure
measurements over several days or weeks before making a diagnosis
of hypertension (high blood pressure) and initiating treatment.
A person who normally runs a lower-than-usual blood pressure may
be considered hypertensive with lower blood pressure measurements
than 140/90.
What are the risk factors for high blood pressure?
High blood pressure can occur in anyone, but is particularly
prevalent in:
- persons with diabetes mellitus, gout, or kidney disease.
- African-Americans (particularly those who live in the southeastern
United States).
- persons in their early to middle adult years; men in this
age group have higher blood pressure more often than women in
this age group.
- persons in their middle to later adult years; women in this
age group have higher blood pressure more often than men in
this age group (more women have high blood pressure after menopause
than men of the same age).
- middle-aged and elderly people - more than half of all Americans
age 65 and older have high blood pressure.
- persons whose parents or grandparents have/had high blood
pressure.
- heavy drinkers of alcohol.
- women who are taking oral contraceptives.
How does blood pressure increase?
The following may contribute to an increase in blood pressure:
- being overweight
- excessive sodium intake
- a lack of exercise and physical activity
How is high blood pressure controlled?
Many people can control high blood pressure by:
- choosing foods that are low in sodium (salt).
- choosing foods low in calories and fat.
- choosing foods high in starch and fiber.
- maintaining a healthy weight, or losing weight if overweight.
- limiting serving sizes.
- increasing physical activity.
- practicing moderation if consuming alcoholic beverages.
However, other people must take daily medication to control hypertension.
People with hypertension should routinely have their blood pressure
checked and be under the care of a physician.
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