❤ABOUT BLOOD PRESSURE
What Is Blood Pressure?
Blood pressure is the force exerted by blood against the walls of the arteries. Systolic pressure occurs when the heart contracts; diastolic pressure occurs when the heart expands. Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg).
What Affects Blood Pressure?
Blood pressure is affected by many factors: age, weight, time of day, activity level, climate, altitude and season. Certain activities can significantly alter blood pressure. Walking can raise systolic pres- sure by 12 mmHg and diastolic pressure by 5.5 mmHg. Sleeping can decrease systolic blood pressure by as much as 10 mmHg. Taking your blood pressure repeatedly without waiting an interval of 5 to 10 minutes between readings, or without raising your arm to allow blood to flow back to the heart, can also affect it.
In addition to these factors, beverages containing caffeine or alco- hol, certain medications, emotional stress and even
What Causes Variations In Blood Pressure?
An individual’s blood pressure varies greatly from day to day and season to season. In hypersensitive individuals, these variations are even more pronounced. Normally, blood pressure rises during work or play and falls to its lowest levels during sleep.
ABOUT BLOOD PRESSURE ❤
Assessing High Blood Pressure
The following standards for assessing high blood pressure (with- out regard to age) have been established as a guideline.
BP Classification | Systolic (mmHg) | Diastolic (mmHg) | |
Normal | <120 | and | <80 |
Prehypertension | or | ||
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Stage 1 Hypertension | or | ||
Stage 2 Hypertension | ≥ 160 | or | ≥ 100 |
SOURCE: The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute - May 2003.
What Is Hypertension?
Hypertension (high blood pressure) is the diagnosis given when readings consistently rise above normal. It is well known that hypertension can lead to stroke, heart attack or other illness if left untreated. Referred to as a “silent killer” because it does not always produce symptoms that alert you to the problem, hyperten- sion is treatable when diagnosed early. Those who fall within the Prehypertensive range are more likely to develop hypertension in the future.
Can Hypertension Be Controlled?
In many individuals, hypertension can be controlled by altering lifestyle and minimizing stress, and by appropriate medication pre- scribed and monitored by your doctor. The American Heart Association recommends the following lifestyle suggestions to pre- vent or control hypertension:
Don’t smoke. |
| Have regular physical |
Reduce salt and fat intake. |
| checkups. |
Maintain proper weight. |
| Monitor your blood |
| ||
Exercise routinely. |
| pressure at periodic intervals. |
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