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Hypertension Can Be A Very Dangerous Condition With An Often Simple Solution

In the last few years alterations to the lifestyle and diet in most western countries have led to an increase in the number of people suffering from high blood pressure.

High blood pressure (otherwise called hypertension, or more properly arterial hypertension) is a dangerous condition that rarely has any symptoms and that, if not detected and treated, can lead to stroke, heart attack, arterial aneurysm, heart failure or renal failure � all of which represent potentially serious life-threatening conditions.

So precisely what is high blood pressure and precisely what causes it?

The arteries of the body are continuously filled with blood that provides a normal 'background' pressure against the artery walls. When the heart pumps freshly oxygenated blood around the body it forces this blood into the arteries which briefly raises the pressure exerted on the artery walls with every heartbeat. These two pressures are known as the systolic pressure (the higher pumping pressure of the heart) and the diastolic pressure (the reduced 'background' pressure).

Normal levels of blood pressure vary from person to person but, generally, systolic pressure should be approximately 120mm and diastolic pressure should be approximately 80mm. This is generally written as a blood pressure of 120/80.

If your blood pressure starts to rise and stays at a level above 120/80 then you are said to be 'prehypertensive' and, while this is not in itself serious, it is an indication that you might be at risk of developing hypertension and all of the problems which are linked with it. As soon as your blood pressure reaches, and maintains, a level of 140/90 or above you are suffering from hypertension and steps should be taken to lower your blood pressure.

But just what causes your blood pressure to rise and remain at a high level?

Well, there are a number of factors involved here and the first is a group over which you have little, if any, control. This group of factors includes low birth weight, various genetic factors, certain types of diabetes (in particular type 2 diabetes) and your age (with increasing age the arteries have a tendency to become fibrous and lose their elasticity, producing a reduced cross-sectional area for the blood to flow through).

The second group of factors is much more controllable and includes stress, alcohol abuse, high quantities of salt and saturated fats in the diet, being overweight, smoking, a sedentary lifestyle and working in specific occupations such as motorway maintenance or flying.

The vast majority of these factors are treatable and, in a lot of cases, a quite simple change in your diet and the addition of a bit of exercise into your daily plan is all that is necessary to reverse the problem. The difficulty however is that, with few symptoms, the vast majority of people are not aware that they are suffering from high blood pressure in the first place.

So how can you go about curing the problem?

Well, fortunately, the answer to this particular question is very simple. All you have to do is to drop by your physician's office on a regular basis (for most of us about twice a year should do the trick) and ask him or her to check your blood pressure for you. The whole procedure is pain free, easy and fast and will provide you with peace of mind and possibly save your doctor a lot of time, work and expense later on when you are forced to call in at his office once hypertension sets in.

If you are not too keen on visiting your doctor then a very good alternative nowadays is to simply check your own blood pressure at home. A wide range of simple to operate and quite inexpensive monitors are now available, allowing you to keep an eye on your own health, and that of your entire family, in the privacy and comfort of your own home.

Article Source: http://www.bylamoarticles.com

TheBloodPressureCenter.com provides information on a variety of topics including high blood pressure and exercise, the importance of blood pressure monitoring and finding the best Omron blood pressure monitor

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