High Blood Pressure – Causes, Symptoms, and Prevention

What is high blood pressure?

High blood pressure is a serious condition that could lead up to various illnesses over time. When a person has high blood pressure, the force of the blood against the artery walls is too high. High blood pressure is also known as hypertension. The blood pressure test is a measure of the force that blood exerts on the walls of the arteries. 

While the heart pumps blood to all parts of the body, the blood delivers oxygen to different organs of the body. In simpler terms, if the arteries become top narrow, it becomes difficult for the heart to pump blood. This way, less oxygen reaches the organs.  

This condition is known as high blood pressure or hypertension. 

What causes high blood pressure?

The exact reasons or causes of high blood pressure are not known, but several activities can lead up to hypertension, these are: 

1. Smoking
2. Obesity 
3. High salt consumption
4. Age factor
5. High alcohol consumption
6. Genetics
7. Family history of Hypertension
8. Sleep apnea 
9. Stress
10. Inactivity

What are the types of high blood pressure?

1. Primary Hypertension: This type of hypertension develops gradually over years. In adults, there is no identifiable cause of hypertension. 
    
2. Secondary Hypertension: This type of hypertension is caused by an underlying condition. This type of hypertension appears suddenly mainly caused by certain medications or health conditions. It causes higher blood pressure when compared to primary hypertension. Conditions that cause secondary hypertension: 
   
   Obstructive sleep apnea
   Consumption of illegal drugs
   Kidney disease
   Adrenal gland tumor
   Thyroid

Other causes of high blood pressure are medications such as birth control pills, medicines for cold, pain relievers, decongestants, etc. 

What are the signs of high blood pressure?

The condition of high blood pressure or hypertension is also known as a “silent killer”, since people with high blood pressure problems do not really experience a lot of symptoms. If the readings are too high, then, at this stage some people may experience: 

1. Headache 
2. Vomiting
3. Nausea 
4. Dizziness 
5. Problems in vision
6. Nose bleed
7. Heavy breathing 

If you, or someone you know is experiencing high blood pressure symptoms should seek immediate help or can book their tests with Pathkind for health checkup at home. 

What are the stages of hypertension?

Normal blood pressure readings are generally below 120/80. Elevated hypertension is when the readings are 120-129/below 80. 

The two stages are:

Stage 1: Readings- 130-139/80-90

Stage 2: Readings- Above 140/above 90

Hypertensive crisis is when the blood pressure readings are over 180/over 120. 

What ages does hypertension affect?

It is surprising that even teenagers can develop the problem of high blood pressure. Teenagers are most likely to develop high blood pressure in the case of obesity and other underlying medical conditions such as, type 2 diabetes, kidney disease, endocrine diseases, vascular diseases, or neurological diseases. Even newborns can have high blood pressure due to an underlying health condition. 

Older people must make it a habit to monitor their blood pressure readings. People aged between 18-39 are at a higher risk of high blood pressure. The risk of the condition increases with age. 

What are the risk factors of high blood pressure?

Risk factors of high blood pressure includes: 

1. Age: With an increase in age, there is an increase in the chance of developing  high blood pressure.
2. Family history: In many families, high blood pressure runs through generations. 
3. Being overweight: The weight of your body is a serious risk factor for this medical condition. The more you weigh, the more blood is required to supply oxygen to the organs. 
4. Physically inactive: Physical inactivity tends to increase your risk of heart issues.
5. Stress or anxiety: Long term stress or anxiety could lead to temporary increase in the blood pressure.
6. High alcohol consumption: Heavy drinking can cause a drastic increase in blood pressure. 

What is the treatment for high blood pressure?

Making lifestyle changes is one of the biggest pros for treating high blood pressure. It is possible to control and manage high blood pressure. 

Some of the lifestyle changes include: 

1. Healthy diet with less salt 
2. Consistent physical activity
3. Maintaining a healthy weight 
4. Limiting alcohol 
5. No smoking
6. Breathing exercises 

A doctor may also prescribe medicines when the patient is not able to manage their blood pressure or, you can also visit the nearest Pathkind Labs for health test packages in order to monitor your blood pressure.