Sunday, May 29, 2011

High blood Pressure: Best Ways to Control it I

High blood pressure, or hypertension as it is usually called, is not just a serious problem, it is a serious disease. One of the major difficulties is that it usually has no symptoms; people with it say they feel fine and don't think they are in any danger. But they are. This is why high blood pressure is frequently referred to as the "silent killer." Indeed, if it is left untreated, it can cause many problems including stroke, aneurysm, heart attack, and kidney problems; it can even cause death. Even mild hypertension can cut your life span by two to four years. This is why it is important to deal with it as quickly as possible.

Blood pressure is a result of the force that the bloodstream exerts  against the walls of the arteries as blood circulates through the body. When the heart contracts it creates a pressure surge that sends blood throughout your arterial system. This surge is called the systolic. When it is complete the heart rests briefly, then it expands and gets ready for another surge. This is called the diastolic. Your blood pressure consists of two numbers associated with these two periods (e.g. 120/80). The first of these numbers is referred to as the systolic pressure, and the second as the diastolic pressure.

What do these two numbers mean? Let's say they come out as 120/80; this is a good reading and indicates that your arterial system is probably in good shape. It is generally recommended that  these two readings are in the range:
      Systolic:    100 - 120
      Diastolic:   70 - 80
In general you want to keep the systolic under 140 and the diastolic under 90. In the range 129 - 140 and 80 - 90 you are considered to be pre-hypertension, and if it gets any higher you are said to have hypertension.

What should you do if your numbers are high? The first thing is that you shouldn't worry if a single test gives high numbers. A lot of things affect your blood pressure, so you should take several readings. Your blood pressure changes over the day, and it also changes depending on how you feel -- particularly if you are stressed. So, prior to the test, you should sit and relax for at least five minutes. In addition, you should take the test at different times of the day, as your blood pressure is usually lower in the afternoon than it is in the morning. It is, in fact, lowest overnight, when you are sleeping, but increases rapidly when you wake in the morning. Also, if you are having it taken by a doctor there's a problem that  affects some people called the "white coat" effect.. The stress caused by worry about the test can increase your pressure. So, try to relax.

The body actually has mechanisms for controlling blood pressure. First of all, it can change the amount of blood that your heart is pumping; if your pressure is too high, for example, decreasing the amount of blood will decrease the pressure. Secondly, it can also change the diameter of the arteries to allow more blood through. (Actually, the arteries are continually changing to some degree as blood surges through them, so it's important that they remain elastic and flexible. If a large amount of plague accumulates on the artery walls they lose much of their elasticity.) Finally, your body can control the volume of blood in the bloodstream. Each of the above mechanisms is controlled by the autonomous nervous system and the kidneys.

Of course, sometimes these safeguards don't work as well as they should and despite them you develop high blood pressure. What causes this? There are several reason. They are:
 1.  Genetic
 2.  Lack of exercise
 3.  Stress
 4.  Overweight
 5.  Smoking
 6.  High cholesterol
 7.  Too much salt in the diet
 8.  Too much saturated and trans fat in the diet.

We can't do much about genetics but we can do something about the other things on the list, and I'll talk about them in the second in this series.

Barry Parker, Ph. D., author of  "Learn form Yesterday, Live for Today, Hope for Tomorrow. His website is Barryparkerbooks.com

1 comment:

Mark @ Hypertension Arterielle said...

There are many sign of high blood pressure, stress, headaches, Those who's diets are high in salt, caffeine and alcoholic beverages. Most people with high blood pressure experience no symptoms at all. This is an important reason to have your blood pressure checked regularly.