Do you have high blood pressure otherwise known as hypertension? If you do know you have this condition you are not alone and are luckier than the one-third of people who do not and are therefore putting their health at risk.
Expressed as two figures given in millimeters of mercury (mmHg). The natural pressure of a healthy young person who’s been sitting down for five minutes shouldn’t be more than 120/80mmHg. In general, a person is considered to have a problem when their reading is persistently higher than 140/90mmHg after three readings on separate occasions, even at rest.
You should call your health care if you have any of the following symptoms:
Unexplained severe headache Sudden or gradual changes in vision Light-headedness/dizziness Nausea associated with severe headache Chest pain or shortness of breath upon exertion
Often these symptoms are often put down to other things and often medical care is not sought until more serious problems develop in the organs such as a heart attack, heart failure, stroke, kidney failure, loss of vision, peripheral arterial disease or an aneurysm. Around 1% of people do not seek medical intervention until the problem is very severe; a condition known as malignant hypertension.
Lowering it even just a little can cut your risk of having a heart attack by as much as 20 percent.
The cause of high blood pressure cannot be narrowed down to a single cause and all of the following factors can contribute: being overweight, drinking large amounts of alcohol, a stressful lifestyle, excessive salt intake, physical inactivity, the use of birth control pills, some drugs and kidney disease. In pregnant women, the development of the condition can lead to the potentially life-threatening conditions pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, in which the elevated reading usually returns to normal after the birth. Overall, men have a greater likelihood of developing hypertension.
Uncontrolled, the condition is a leading cause of heart disease, heart attacks, heart failure, kidney failure, vision problems, and stroke but you have options for treatment. Many people can lower their blood pressure significantly with lifestyle changes, such as weight loss and exercise, but most still need medication to keep within the healthy range, whatever your choice, it is still important to get regular checks to make sure it is under control. Common medicines used to control symptoms are as follows:
Diuretics: They increase the amount of both water and salts removed by the kidneys from your blood. They also widen your arteries. Beta-blockers: They reduce your pulse rate, and this slowing down makes your heart work less hard. ACE Inhibitors: There are certain enzymes which constrict and tighten your arteries, and ACE inhibitors block them. Calcium channel blockers or alpha blockers: This category of drugs helps widen your arteries
Most people will feel well but some will suffer side effects. Fortunately these are few but one of the most distressing is impotence. If you experience impotence ask your doctor if your tablets could be responsible and whether you can change treatments.
You can help yourself a great deal by changing your lifestyle. The link between being overweight and having high blood pressure is strong. Being in the healthy range for your height can reduce the bottom figure of your reading by 20 points. Eating all the right foods, watching your alcohol intake and taking the right exercise are all positive, self empowering methods of reducing hypertension – and the only side effects are good ones!
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