Advantage Health Physicians Network is working hard to get the word out that high blood pressure is deadly – and it can be stopped. The first step toward becoming healthier is to know your numbers. Find out as soon as possible if your blood pressure is too high and take steps to lower it. May is blood pressure awareness month, a time to make a commitment to getting regular screenings. Experts say that 20% of the populations is living with hypertension or high blood pressure. 50% of those people are under the age of 60. High blood pressure is caused by stress, smoking, poor diet habits, and genetics. Treating high blood pressure may be as simple as making changes to your lifestyle or taking medications like ace inhibitors and beta blockers. Changes in lifestyle needed to lower blood pressure can include smoking cessation, changing to a low fat, high fiber diet and starting medications with diuretics. A screening is your first step and it can take place in a doctor’s office or at a pharmacy in just a few minutes. Undected, high blood pressure can lay in wait for years and kill in an instant. Living Well: Advantage Health Physicians Network 616-685-8500 www.advantagehealth.org
