What is blood pressure? Blood pressure is simply the force of blood against the walls of our arteries. When blood pressure stays elevated over time, it’s called high blood pressure also known as hypertension.
SEE ALSO: Why Drinking More Water Can Keep You Fit, Cancer-Free & Youthful
Hypertension is a serious condition, and it’s dangerous because it makes the heart work too hard in pumping blood to the rest of the body. This can result in a host of conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, and even blindness.
Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, i.e. when it is pumping blood. This is known as systolic pressure. When the heart is at rest (between beats) your blood pressure is lower. This is known as diastolic pressure.
Blood pressure is always given in these two numbers using millimeters of mercury as the method of measurement. The systolic measurement is on top, and the diastolic is on the bottom (e.g. 120/80 mmHg).
See the table below for blood pressure ranges for adults 18 years and older:
Category | Systolic | Diastolic |
Optimal | Less than 120 | Less than 80 |
Pre-hypertension | 120 – 139 | 80 – 89 |
Hypertension | 140 and above | 90 and above |
What causes high blood pressure?
The causes of high blood pressure actually vary and may include narrowing of the arteries, e.g. from cholesterol (fat) deposition and other medical problems. Most of the time, however, the cause is unknown. While high blood pressure usually cannot be cured, it can mostly be prevented and controlled.
Let’s take a look at some conditions or behaviors that increase the chances of developing hypertension:
• High blood pressure
• Abnormal cholesterol
• Family history of early heart disease
• Age (55 or older for men; 65 or older for women)
• Tobacco use
• Diabetes
• Being overweight
• Physical inactivity
When you have more than one of these risk factors, your risk of developing heart disease greatly multiplies.
How can you control your blood pressure?
Unfortunately, you cannot tell if you have high blood pressure because there are no symptoms. What’s worse is that most won’t know that they have it until the situation gets really dangerous, and once it develops, hypertension lasts a lifetime.
Here a few tips to help prevent and control high blood pressure:
Following the steps above will help you prevent and control high blood pressure. They aren’t so bad, are they? So, what are you waiting for? Get that heart rocking to a good beat today.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton has said that his little brother was subjected to racial abuse,…
Reggie Bush has regained his place as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner after over a…
Since 2012, actor Nick Cannon has openly shared his struggle with lupus to support others…
Former USC superstar Caleb Williams has been drafted by the Chicago Bears as the No.…
Stephen A. Smith is an ESPN analyst. People widely regard him as the face of…
Lil Durk is an American rapper and one of the most influential voices in the…
In 2022, Kevin Hart added a new title to his impressive resume: a tequila entrepreneur.…
AEW's latest pay-per-view, Dynasty 2024 on Sunday night saw Swerve Strickland defeat Samoa Joe to…
Renowned civil rights activist Opal Lee, known as the "Grandmother of Juneteenth," will be awarded…
Violet Horne lost her two sons to gun violence within the space of a month.…
An Ohio man said a K-9 bit him seven times after he was pulled over…
Three male foreign tourists who were spotted posing naked in a popular dune in Namibia…
Will.i.am is partnering with other prominent figures to revolutionize the digital media scene by forming…
Sabelle Beraki's childhood was inundated with the lack of representation when it came to a…
Benjamin Harvey is the founder of AI Squared, a third-party software company that helps organizations…