What Causes High Blood Pressure?
The "Silent Killer"
I discovered I had high blood pressure one day when I was thirty seven years old and went to donate blood to the local blood-drive van parked in front of my office.
nurse asked me a few questions, then asked me to roll up my sleeve and she took me blood pressure. She shook her head and tried it again. Then a third time. Finally, she said,"We can't take your blood because your blood pressure is too high. I suggest you see your physician soon." Well, that shook me up a little. I had always been in perfect health. But I had to admit my weight was creeping up on me, but otherwise, I was in great shape. Wrong!
I went to see a doctor the next week and he took my blood pressure, and sure enough, it was high. Not borderline, but high. It was 150 over 90. I learned that the 150, or systolic pressure, is the pressure when your heart pumps. The lower, or diastolic pressure, is the pressure when your heart is between beats. The diastolic is more important because if your pressure is high when your heart is between beats, it's even higher when it does pump. The thing was--I felt great. No symptoms whatsoever.
Hypertension Is Bad News
One of the most dangerous things about high blood pressure, or hypertension, is that there are often few or no perceptible symptoms of it. It is difficult to know that you have it, if not impossible, unless you make regular routine visits to the doctor. These are important, because hypertension can lead to all types of terrible complications. It can worsen diabetes sometimes, but even more commonly, can put you at risk of heart disease or stroke. My grandfather was in denial about his high blood pressure for years before it finally caught up to him, causing him to have a heart attack. This is why you need to get your medical checkup. Because, even though it is dangerous, high blood pressure causes are easily treated.
Too Much Salt
One of the most common of high blood pressure causes is excessive salt consumption. According to many experts, taking in too much salt is common among Americans. It is estimated that we consume 10 to 15 times more salt than we need. Although this is only one of the high blood pressure causes for certain salt sensitive people, it can't hurt to decrease your salt consumption, and may help prevent your risk of heart attack.
Lose Weight and Exercise!
Even more common among high blood pressure causes is obesity. Obesity causes hypertension because it puts a strain on your circulatory system. This means that your heart has to work harder to pump blood, resulting in higher pressure in your veins and arteries. Along with obesity, another of the high blood pressure causes is lack of exercise. This allows your heart to atrophy, and so it needs to pump harder to circulate your blood. By using exercise to lose weight, you can treat both of these high blood pressure causes at once.
Sometimes It's Genetic
Some high blood pressure causes are not so easily treatable. For example, it appears that there is a genetic component, making some people simply more prone to high blood pressure. Along with this, there is a process called arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, which occurs with age. Diabetes, which can be treated through diet and exercise, but not necessarily completely eliminated, is another one of the high blood pressure causes which can't completely be ameliorated through conscientious treatment. But in spite of all of this, the facts remain that you can reduce your chance of high blood pressure through seeing getting your checkup, exercising, and eating right. You owe it to yourself.
I've battled high blood pressure for twenty years. It was a difficult process as the various medications the doctor prescribed were just okay and didn't eliminate it. But I'm happy to say that now my blood pressure is normal. I still take medication for it but at a much-reduced dosage. I'll talk more about what I learned about dealing with hypertension in future posts. I'll give you a hint: You really have to change your lifestyle--not dramatically or painfully, but you will have to make some changes. If you do, you'll add twenty years to your life
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Tags: causes hypertension, Diet, Exercise, High Blood Pressure, high sodium, medication, obesity, physician, salt
October 30th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
[...] High blood pressure, or hypertension, is called the “Silent Killer” because its symptoms are generally imperceptable. People who have it initially don’t realize it until they visit a doctor’s office and have their blood pressure taken. If you get high blood pressure, you really need to deal with it because if it remains unchecked, it most certainly will lead to a shorter life. We’re taking a long look at this serious health problem and our first article starts at the beinning–its causes. Visit Natural Health Trip and find out more about the causes of high blood pressure [...]