HEALTHY BODY
HYPERTENSION
One in four Americans has hypertension. Alarming to think about, I
know, but what if I told you it might be entirely preventable in most
cases? To succeed in keeping your blood pressure in check, you must
first familiarize yourself with the term and what it
means for your body.
B
y definition, in the most basic terms, it
is the state of abnormally high blood
pressure, usually brought on by a
stressor, psychological or physical. Medications
for this condition is at an all-time high. If it
remains uncontrolled, it will wreak havoc on
every system in your body.
Over the last several years, science, and more
importantly, medical practitioners have begun
to take notice and work to find ways to reduce
the number of people diagnosed with it. The
Department of Health and Human Services has
even taken up the cause to reverse or prevent
hypertension altogether. Their Million Hearts
initiative aims to prevent the effects of high
blood pressure, like heart attacks and strokes.
Unlike many disease processes, you may not
experience overt signs or symptoms until
it's too late. Fortunately, however, there are
readily available means of measuring your
blood pressure. Many big box stores and chain
pharmacies have blood pressure machines.
While these devices are convenient, they may
not be entirely reliable, but they can alert you
to possible problems that you should address
with your physician.
Once you've addressed it and had it measured
and monitored by a qualified healthcare
professional, you'll be relieved to know that
there are steps you can take to help lower your
risks or lower your existing high blood pressure.
For instance, maintaining a healthy weight can
reduce your risk of developing hypertension.
Conversely, being overweight can dramatically
Why these numbers continue to rise in due in
increase the probability of developing high
part to many factors. Lifestyle choices are to
blame primarily. Lack of exercise, high-fat diets, blood pressure. Losing weight can reverse
that. Even losing a small amount of weight
alcohol use, tobacco use, high sodium diets,
consuming fat-rich foods and highly processed (most doctors recommend a five to ten percent
weight loss initially) can yield positive results in
foods all play a part in whether or not we'll
the right direction.
develop hypertension. That being said,
there are other factors known as secondary
As with many conditions, getting regular
conditions that play a role in causing high
exercise can make a huge difference. Not
blood pressure.
only does it lower your risk of getting high
blood pressure, but it also lowers your risk of
Kidney disease has been known to be
associated with hypertension. Also, medication being diagnosed with many other ailmen