Abnormally high blood pressure is called hypertension and a person with a blood pressure greater than 140 over 90 mmHg is considered to be suffering from hypertension.
Around 1.13 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with high blood pressure. It is one of the most common yet dreaded conditions, which has long term effects on your body and mind. If a patient is faced with a permanent pressure of blood on the artery walls of the heart, it can lead to many other problems like heart disease.
May 17 is World Hypertension Day, a day dedicated to spreading awareness about the killer condition. It was started in the year 2005 and various organizations have come up with new ways to spread awareness. The only idea behind this is to make people aware of the dangers of high blood pressure.
What is high blood pressure?
High blood pressure is a condition in which, the force of the blood flow against your artery walls is so high that it can lead to health problems sooner or later. Blood pressure is measured by both the amount of blood being pumped by the heart and the amount of resistance your arteries have to it. When your heart pumps more blood and your arteries narrow, you suffer from high blood pressure. Uncontrolled high blood pressure increases your risk of serious health conditions including heart failure and mitral valve disorders.
What are high blood pressure triggers?
Poor/unhealthy lifestyle like unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle, constant stress or pressure, family history of high BP and obesity/overweight (high BMI) are some of the factors that trigger high BP. Unhealthy lifestyle includes:
• Fatty food
• High salt intake
• Smoking and excessive drinking
• Inactive lifestyle
• Constant stress
• Potassium deficiency
How is blood pressure measured?
When BP is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and shows two readings, the systolic pressure and the diastolic pressure.
• Systolic pressure: the maximum pressure during a heartbeat
• Diastolic pressure: The lowest pressure between heartbeats.
The reading is written as systolic over diastolic, for example, 120/80 mm Hg. Anything above 120/80 mm Hg is considered high blood pressure and below that is normal blood pressure. High blood pressure is also defined according to the age of the person. 150/90 is considered high BP for those above 60 years.
What exactly is high blood pressure?
Blood pressure includes the amount of blood pumped by the heart and the amount of blood circulating in your arteries. A person with high blood pressure has an abnormal type of blood circulation, where the heart pumps excessive blood into the arteries, diagnosing a patient with high blood pressure.
A person can suffer from high blood pressure for many years without any symptoms. Even without symptoms, there is always a risk to the heart vessels, which can result in serious health problems like stroke or heart attack.
Hypertension or high blood pressure can be easily diagnosed by visiting your doctor. Once you are diagnosed with it, you will be provided with treatment for a long period of time.
One of the major factors leading to high blood pressure is lifestyle disorders. People are messing with almost every aspect of life including sleep, diet, exercise, stress and work. Our blood pressure reacts to all these things and this can eventually lead to high blood pressure.
Types of high blood pressure (hypertension)
There are two types of high blood pressure, primary (or essential) high blood pressure and secondary high blood pressure.
Primary hypertension
For many people, most adults, high blood pressure has no identifiable cause. This type, called primary (or essential) high blood pressure, develops slowly over many years.
Secondary hypertension
For some, high blood pressure is caused by an underlying condition. This type is called secondary hypertension. Secondary hypertension appears suddenly and causes higher blood pressure than primary hypertension. Secondary hypertension can be caused by a number of conditions and drugs, such as
• Kidney problems
• Thyroid problems
• Obstructive sleep apnea
• Adrenal gland tumors
• Certain blood vessel defects that you are born with congenital heart disease
• Illegal drugs such as amphetamines and cocaine.
What are the possible symptoms of high blood pressure?
• Severe headache
• Difficulty breathing
• Irregular heartbeat
• Pounding chest
• Confusion
• Vision problems
• Hemorrhage
• Fatigue
• Unusual chest pain
• Sweaty neck and ears
Causes
According to the American Heart Association, about 47% of adults in America have high blood pressure, often known as hypertension, which raises their risk of developing diseases like heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure (AHA).
Hypertension rarely has just one cause; it typically creeps up on people slowly and unknowingly. Instead, the AHA claims that a number of risk factors are to blame for high blood pressure. Some traits are inherited and unchangeable, including:
- Age: Your risk increases as you get older.
- Family history: Having one or more close relatives with a history of the ailment is an example of a family history.
- Ethnicity: For instance, African-Americans have the highest risk of acquiring hypertension.
Various other risk factors, including:
- Lack of physical activity Smoking
- overindulging in booze
- Stress
- consuming a diet high in salt
Rarely, pre-existing medical illnesses like pregnancy, cardiac problems, or kidney disease can induce high blood pressure. This is known as secondary hypertension, and it typically goes away if the underlying medical condition is treated.
When should you consult a doctor?
Once you reach a certain age, your doctor always does a thorough workup, including a blood pressure test, to evaluate your chances of suffering from high blood pressure. However, many patients are not diagnosed in time, so if you are experiencing sudden dizziness, severe headache, congested chest or irregular heartbeat, you need to visit a doctor immediately.
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