Introduction
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a condition in which your heart has to work harder than it should to pump blood throughout your body. About half of all adults have high blood pressure (also known as HBP), but many don’t know it because symptoms often don’t appear until you have more serious health issues. If left untreated, high blood pressure can lead to heart disease and stroke—two leading causes of death worldwide. Your doctor can check for high blood pressure during an annual physical exam by taking your pulse at rest and after exercise (if possible), then using a sphygmomanometer (blood pressure gauge) to measure both systolic and diastolic pressures. You also might want to purchase some home monitoring tools so that you can track changes over time with no professional assistance required!
How can I avoid high blood pressure?
If you’re at risk for high blood pressure, there are steps you can take to prevent it. Talk with your doctor about eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and getting enough sleep. Don’t smoke or use drugs illegally (including marijuana). Stress management techniques such as meditation or yoga can also help.
If you’ve been diagnosed with high blood pressure, take steps to reduce your risk by talking with your doctor about lifestyle changes that may lower your blood pressure. If medication is prescribed for you, follow the dosage instructions exactly and keep appointments for regular checkups so that any problems can be treated early on.
Are the kidneys involved in hypertension?
- Kidneys play a significant role in blood pressure regulation, as they help to filter waste and excess fluid from the blood.
- Your kidneys also help maintain proper fluid balance by eliminating water and electrolytes as needed to keep your body functioning well.
How do I check my blood pressure?
You can check your blood pressure at home. One of the best ways to monitor your blood pressure is by checking it several times a week. You should also talk with your doctor about how often you should check your blood pressure.
If you find that your blood pressure is higher than normal, tell your doctor immediately and continue to monitor yourself for signs of high blood pressure.
What is considered to be a healthy range for blood pressure?
The American Heart Association suggests that a healthy blood pressure is less than 120/80 mmHg.
If you’re 40 or older, your doctor may recommend that you keep your blood pressure below 130/80.
If you’re 60 or older, your doctor will likely recommend that you keep your blood pressure below 130/85.
What about sodium and potassium in my diet?
Have you been told to cut back on salt? Did you know that sodium and potassium are electrolytes?
Electrolytes are minerals (such as sodium, potassium and calcium) found in blood and other fluids. To be healthy, your body must maintain the right balance of electrolytes. If there is too much or too little of a certain electrolyte in your bloodstream, it can make you feel bad or even cause death.
For example: if there is too little sodium in the blood (hyponatremia), people may feel weak and tired because their muscles don’t function properly; they may also get muscle cramps because their bodies cannot control their nervous system well enough to send signals through their muscles. This condition also makes people urinate more than normal so they lose lots of water from their bodies.[2]
If there is too much sodium in the urine (hypernatremia), people will become confused or tired due to swelling caused by excess fluid around nerves; this condition also causes seizures.[3]
Could lack of exercise contribute to hypertension?
Could lack of exercise contribute to hypertension?
As you know, high blood pressure is a chronic medical condition that increases the risk of heart attack, stroke and other complications. As such, it’s important to learn as much as possible about what might contribute to your diagnosis. The good news is that treatment options are available—and they work! But first things first: did you talk with your doctor about this issue?
Did You Talk To Your Doctor About High Blood Pressure?
Talk to your doctor today.
Whether you have high blood pressure or not, it is important to talk to your doctor about it. Your doctor can help you find ways to avoid developing high blood pressure and what your healthy range is for blood pressure. They will also help determine if you have hypertension and how best to treat it.
Talking with your doctor is the first step in taking control over this condition. The next one? Taking action by making healthy lifestyle changes that fit into your schedule!
Conclusion
You can prevent or manage high blood pressure by starting a conversation with your doctor. High blood pressure is not just an adult health concern, but an issue that affects children as well. It’s important to know the risks associated with hypertension so you can take steps to lower them in order to prevent complications later on down the road.