10 steps for fighting the good fight against high blood pressure
It’s been more than a century since a Russian surgeon first described the simple and precise way to measure blood pressure that is still in use. We’ve learned a lot since then about what influences blood pressure and about how high blood pressure can wreak havoc throughout the body. What we haven’t managed to do is get the public, and a fair number of doctors, to take high blood pressure seriously. Nearly two-thirds of the 65 million American adults with high blood pressure don’t have it under control. That’s a big problem, because it’s a major cause of stroke, heart attack, heart and kidney failure, and early death.
Blood pressure basics
Some pressure is absolutely essential for circulation. Without it, blood couldn’t move from the heart to the brain and toes and back again. The heart provides the driving force — each contraction of the left ventricle, the heart’s main pumping chamber, creates a wave of pressure that passes through the aorta and all the arteries in the body.
Relaxed and flexible arteries offer a healthy amount of resistance to each pulse of blood. Arteries that are tensed, constricted, or rigid offer more resistance, which shows up as higher blood pressure. It also makes the heart work harder.
High blood pressure is not a disease. Instead, it is a sign that something isn’t right in the heart, blood vessels, kidneys, or elsewhere. Sometimes it stems from the overproduction of hormones by the thyroid or adrenal glands. It can also be caused by the use of prescription or over-the-counter medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen, pseudoephedrine, some antidepressants, steroids, and others. Most of the time, though, high blood pressure can’t be traced to a specific source.
Doctors use the term hypertension. We’ll stick with the more descriptive high blood pressure. Both mean the same thing.
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