Blood pressure - High
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.
FUSHI SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS: