BLOOD
PRESSURE
AND
HEALTH
BY Jorge L. Olaves-Hernandez, Ed. S
According to the Wikipedia Encyclopedia, this is the definition of blood pressure.
Blood pressure (strictly speaking: vascular pressure) refers to the force exerted by circulating blood
on the walls of blood vessels, and constitutes one of the principal vital signs. The pressure of the
circulating blood decreases as blood moves through arteries, arterioles, capillaries, and veins; the
term blood pressure generally refers to arterial pressure, i.e., the pressure in the larger arteries,
arteries being the blood vessels, which take blood away from the heart. Arterial pressure is most
commonly measured via a sphygmomanometer, which uses the height of a column of mercury to
reflect the circulating pressure (see Non-invasive measurement). Although many modern vascular
pressure devices no longer use mercury, vascular pressure values are still universally reported in
millimeters of mercury (mmHg).
The systolic arterial pressure is defined as the peak pressure in the arteries, which occurs near the
beginning of the cardiac cycle; the diastolic arterial pressure is the lowest pressure (at the resting
phase of the cardiac cycle). The average pressure throughout the cardiac cycle is reported as mean
arterial pressure; the pulse pressure reflects the differences between the maximum and minimum
pressures measured.
The typical values for a resting, healthy adult are approximately 120 mmHg systolic and 80
mmHg diastolic (written as 120/80 mmHg, and spoken as "one twenty over eighty") with large
individual variations. These measures of arterial pressure are not static, but undergo natural variations from one heartbeat to another and throughout the day (in a circadian rhythm); they also
change in response to stress, nutritional factors, drugs, or disease. Hypertension refers to arterial
pressure being abnormally high, as opposed to hypotension, when it is abnormally low. Along
with body temperature, blood pressure measurements are the most commonly measured physiological parameters. Hypertension is noted with people who have diabetes mellitus or kidney disease; studies have shown that blood pressure over 130/80 mmHg should be considered high and
warrants further treatment. Hypotension refers to an abnormally low blood pressure. This is better
understood as a physiological state, rather than a disease. It is often associated with shock, though
not necessarily indicative of it. Hypotension is a fairly rare problem, hypertension on the other
hand is a much more common problem. Hypotension is usually not a serious problem, although in
some cases it can be life threatening.
Normal Blood Pressure
120/80
Hypertension
>130/80
Hypotension
<90/80
There are many factors that contribute to the health of an individual. Blood pressure
alone is not a good indicator. Other measurements for the level of health of an individual are
fitness tests, BMI "Body Mass Index", percent of body fat, the waist to hip ratio, and many others.
The fitness test includes running, walking, push-ups, crunches, bench jumps, etc. The BMI measurement takes into account the height of the individual with his/her actual weight. Also the life
style (sedentary to active) of the person is another measurement of the condition of the body. All
these measurements need to be done by a professional in order to determine the health level of an
individual.
Mr. Jo