High Blood Pressure Prevention and Control
by admin on 20/01/10 at 10:54 pm
MARIAN was afraid! Without warning, her nose had begun to bleed profusely. ?I thought I was going to die,? she recalls. A doctor informed Marian that her nosebleed had been caused by high blood pressure (arterial hypertension). ?But I feel fine,? answered Marian. ?Many people do not know that they have high blood pressure because they have no symptoms,? she replied.
What about your blood pressure? Could your current life-style cause high blood pressure in the future? What can you do to keep your blood pressure under control?
Blood pressure is the force blood exerts against blood vessel walls. It can be measured using an inflatable rubber cuff, which is wrapped around the upper arm and connected to an apparatus that records pressure. Two readings are obtained. For example: 120/80. The first number is called systolic blood pressure because it indicates blood pressure during the heartbeat (systole), and the second number is called diastolic blood pressure because it indicates blood pressure while the heart is relaxed (diastole). Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury, and physicians classify patients as hypertensive when their blood pressure is above 140/90.
What makes blood pressure increase? Imagine that you are watering your garden. By opening the faucet or by reducing the caliber, or diameter, of the jet of water, you increase the pressure of the water. The same occurs with blood pressure: Increasing the rate of flow of blood or decreasing the caliber of the blood vessel elevates the blood pressure. How does high blood pressure occur? Many factors are involved.
Factors You Cannot Control
Researchers have discovered that if a person has relatives with high blood pressure, his chances of suffering from the disease are greater. Statistics indicate a higher incidence of hypertension in identical twins than in fraternal twins. One study refers to the ?mapping of the genes responsible for arterial hypertension,? all of which would confirm the existence of a hereditary component responsible for high blood pressure. The risk of abnormally high blood pressure is also known to increase with age and to be greater among black males.
Factors You Can Control
Watch your diet! Salt (sodium) can boost blood pressure in some people, especially people with diabetes, those with severe hypertension, older people, and some blacks. Excess fat in the bloodstream can create deposits of cholesterol on the internal walls of blood vessels (atherosclerosis), thus reducing their caliber and increasing blood pressure. People who are more than 30
Originally posted 2010-01-26 08:19:53. Republished by Old Post Promoter
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