Blood pressure, what you don't know can hurt you

  • Published
  • By Marilyn Leggett, RN
  • Civilian Health Promotion Services
EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  May is National High Blood Pressure Education Month and being knowledgeable about blood pressure is important to everyone.

Blood pressure is the force of blood against the walls of arteries. While blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day, it is called high blood pressure or hypertension when the pressure remains elevated over time. Hypertension makes the heart work overly hard, contributes to hardening and scarring of the arteries and increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, kidney disease and blindness. Hypertension affects an estimated one in four American adults.

According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, hypertension is a serious condition that usually has no symptoms. The only way to know your blood pressure is to measure it with a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope or a reliable machine.

The American Heart Association describes hypertension as "a widely misunderstood medical condition (as) some people think that those with hypertension are tense, nervous or hyperactive, but hypertension has nothing to do with personality traits. The truth is, you can be a calm, relaxed person and still have high blood pressure."

The organs in our body need oxygen to survive and oxygen is carried through the body in our blood. When the heart beats, it creates pressure that pushes blood through our circulatory system. Blood pressure is the result of two forces: the first as blood pumps out of the heart and the second is as the heart rests between beats. It is these forces that are represented by blood pressure numbers. A blood pressure reading is recorded as two numbers--the upper, or systolic pressure, over the lower number called the diastolic pressure. The upper number is the pressure when the heart contracts and the bottom number is when the heart relaxes between beats. Both numbers are considered important to know and a systolic pressure of less than 120 over a diastolic pressure of less than 80 (120/80) are optimal.

Risk factors that can contribute to or worsen hypertension include high blood cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, overweight, and lack of physical activity. In addition, the risk increases as men and women age. An important reason to know one's family history is because high blood pressure, like many other conditions, can be caused or exacerbated by genetic influences.

Everyone can take steps to prevent hypertension or to keep it controlled:
  • Maintain a healthy weight and be physically active. Before exercising see your physician if you are over 50, are not used to moderate-level activity, have heart disease or have had a heart attack, and if you have a family history of heart disease or other current health problem. If you're not sure, then check with your physician.
  • Follow a healthy eating plan and monitor the amount of sodium in foods. Buy whole, fresh foods as opposed to processed or "convenience" foods.
  • Drink alcoholic beverages in moderation meaning no more than 2 drinks for men and 1 drink for women daily.
If you have hypertension and have been prescribed medication, take it as directed. Many individuals don't take their medication regularly because they feel OK but, remember, hypertension typically doesn't make you feel bad. Even if you need to use medication, you should still follow a healthy lifestyle. Doing so will help your medication work better and may reduce how much of it you need. Stress can make blood pressure go up temporarily and has been thought to contribute to high blood pressure. The long-term effects of stress on high blood pressure are not conclusive. Stress management techniques don't seem to prevent high blood pressure but may help you cope with stressful situations and help you avoid unhealthy coping behaviors such as overeating.

You may not feel that anything is wrong, but high blood pressure can permanently damage your heart, brain, eyes and kidneys before you feel anything.
Civilian Health Promotion Services (CHPS) offers group blood pressure screenings at your workplace or individual blood pressure checks in our office. To find out more call 883-8024.