Blood pressure - High

High blood pressure, otherwise known as Hypertension, can affect all types of people. Hypertension occurs when there is resistance in the blood vessels to the flow of blood. Only in severe cases will there be noticeable symptoms like headaches, sweating, rapid pulse, shortness of breath and visual disturbances.  Main causes of Hypertension include increase in blood thickness, kidney disorders or loss of elasticity in the arteries by hardening or calcification. Other common causes include: obesity, anxiety, stress, habitual alcohol intake and atherosclerosis.

Blood pressure is taken as a pair of numbers, systolic blood pressure; which represents the maximum pressure exerted when the heart contract, and diastolic blood pressure which represents the pressure in the arteries when the heart is at rest.  Normal blood pressure for an adult is considered 120 / 80 but it will fluctuate through the day in response to stress, activity and other factors.  Hypertension is usually diagnosed when the systolic pressure is constantly over 140 and the diastolic pressure is consistently above 90. However this is only a guide as other factors need to be taken into consideration.

Hypertension can be either essential or secondary.  Essential hypertension is describes when no specific medical cause can be found.  Secondary hypertension is from a result of another condition kidney disease, water retention or a tumour.  Even if the condition has no known cause, it can still be treated effectively with both lifestyle changes and medication. Lifestyle changes include weight loss, regular exercising, ceasing smoking, low alcohol intake and low sodium intake.

It is advisable to seek medical attention.

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