The Effects of High Blood Pressure

High Blood Pressure also called hypertension, is elevated pressure of the blood in the arteries. Blood pressure is the measurement of force applied to artery walls High blood pressure has to be taken seriously. It is a serious disease, the cause of which is more or less unknown. What we do know is that left untreated, high blood pressure over time can lead to serious heart disease and other vascular troubles, even death. Health professionals think that there are some genetic factors but as yet they cannot pin down the range of specific genes involved that cause high blood pressure. Studies suggest that people suffering from chronic high blood pressure may come from autonomic nervous system that controls heart rate, blood pressure and the blood vessels.

High blood pressure is strongly associated with diabetes, both type 1 and type 2. Obesity and insulin resistance are the factors associated with high blood pressure, in type 2 diabetes, the more common type. During the last decade, the number of Americans with high blood pressure has increased by 30%. Over 65 million Americans adults now have high blood pressure. Two thirds of Americans over age 60 have high blood pressure and women in that group have highest rates and higher mortality rates from high blood pressure. About 34% of African American men and women have high blood pressure, it may account for over 40% of all deaths in this group. Moreover, high blood pressure is becoming more common in children and teenage.

Detrimental Effects of High Blood Pressure

It is the reason why high blood pressure has been called the "silent killer". High blood pressure has detrimental effects on many organs like kidneys, eyes, and heart. High blood pressure is the primary cause of death in over 120,000 cases last year and contributes to 75% of all strokes and heart attacks and even more in African Americans. Research suggests that people with mild high blood pressure have three times more likely to have a heart attack as people with normal blood pressure and ten times the normal risk of stroke depending on the severity of the blood pressure. High blood pressure can also cause mental problems such as memory lost .

Fortunately, controlling blood pressure with the proper treatment can reduce or prevent those health complications. Healthy life style is a must for anyone with blood pressure (120/80mm Hg) and above in order to prevent serious complications of that disease.

Healthy life style includes: exercise on a daily basis, normal weight, healthy diet, reasonable alcohol consumption, limited sodium intake, more potassium and calcium intake. If you want to naturally support healthy blood pressure function, there are some key herbal supplements.

Article by Gilles Coulombe B.A. B.LL D.S.A.

Published 21st Feb 2007

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