High
Blood Pressure / Hypertension
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 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH),
high blood pressure for adults is defined as:
- 140 mm Hg or greater
systolic pressure
and
- 90 mm Hg or greater
diastolic pressure
In an
update of NHLBI guidelines for hypertension in
2003, a new blood pressure category was added
called prehypertension:
- 120 mm Hg –
139 mm Hg systolic pressure
and
- 80 mm Hg – 89
mm Hg diastolic pressure
The
new NHLBI guidelines now define normal blood pressure
as follows:
- Less than 120 mm Hg
systolic pressure
and
- Less than 80 mm Hg
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
is a risk factor?
A
risk factor is anything that may increase a
person's chance of developing a disease.
It may be an activity such as smoking, diet,
family history, or many other things. Different
diseases, including cancers, have different
risk factors.
Although
these factors can increase a person's risk,
they do not necessarily cause the disease. Some
people with one or more risk factors never develop
the disease, while others who do develop the
disease may have no known risk factors.
But,
knowing your risk factors to any disease can
help to guide you into the appropriate actions,
including changing behaviors and being clinically
monitored for the disease.
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.
- obese people.
- heavy drinkers of alcohol.
- women who are taking
oral contraceptives.
The
following may contribute to an increase in blood
pressure:
- being overweight
- excessive sodium intake
- a lack of exercise
and physical activity
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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Resources of Cardiovascular Disease
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