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BLOOD PRESSURE
Have your blood pressure checked annually because approximately 23
million Americans - About one in seven adults - have high blood
pressure. Blood pressure is simply the pressure put on the
walls of the arteries as the heart pumps blood through them.
In all human beings, it varies from minute to minute, going up when
we are excited and going down when we rest. However, in some
people, blood pressure goes up too high and stays that way.
This is called high blood pressure, or hypertension. Local medical
authorities agree the blood pressure reading should be:
- Ages 15-40 No higher than 140/90
- Ages 40+ No higher than 150/90
The higher number, systolic pressure, is a measure of
the pressure in the artery of your arm when your heart muscle is
contracting. The lower number, diastolic pressure,
is a measure of the pressure in the artery when your heart
muscle is at rest.
In some cases, hypertension is caused by some other disease
which can be diagnosed and cured. In many cases, when the
underlying disorder is cured, the hypertension disappears.
But the cause of the most common kind of hypertension is still
unknown. However, it is controllable. Treatment
usually includes drugs to lower the pressure; diet to bring
weigh down; elimination of cigarette smoking; and modification
of stressful living habits. This latter type of
hypertension occurs when arteries thicken, making the heart work
harder to pump blood through the body. You can reduce the
work load to the heart by:
- Reducing saturated fats and cholesterol in your diet.
Saturated fats and cholesterol in the diet contribute to
arteriosclerosis, a condition in which the arteries harden
when cholesterol and other fatty materials become embedded
in the inner walls of the artery, interfering with the
circulation of blood.
- Meats and dairy foods are high saturated fats; egg yolks
and organ meats are high in cholesterol. These foods
tend to raise the level of cholesterol in the blood.
Polyunsaturated fats, on the other hand, tend to lower the
level of blood cholesterol. With moderate changes in
diet, blood cholesterol usually can be kept at normal
levels. This means cutting down on cholesterol-rich
foods and substituting some polyunsaturated fats for
saturated fats as much as possible. This can be done
in the following manners:
- For meats, substitute meals of fish (not including
shellfish) and poultry which contains less saturated fat
than meat. When serving meat, use lean cuts and
trim off fat.
- Cook with liquid vegetable oils and polyunsaturated
shortenings.
- Eat fewer eggs. No more than one a day and
four a week.
- Reduce salt intake.
- Count your calories. Avoid excess
weight. It has been shown that life expectancy
may be shortened for people who are markedly over
their normal weight. Most people reach their
normal adult weight between the ages of 21 and 25.
With each year after that, fewer calories are needed
to maintain their normal weight. There is no
quick way to reduce. If you need to reduce,
ask Student Health for advice.
- Reduce your salt intake. Salt and salty
foods contribute to fluid retention. This
fluidd retained will also elevate your blood
pressure.
- Don't smoke. It has been shown that aortic
and coronary atherosclerosis are more common and
severe in cigarette smokers. After a person
quits smoking, the damaged area gradually repairs,
and over a number of years of nonsmoking gradually
returns toward normal.
- Exercise regularly. The Class and Time
Schedule lists Fitness/Wellness activities.
Exercise tones the muscles, stimulates the
circulation, helps to avoid weight gain and promotes
a general sense of well being. Before
undertaking an exercise program or engaging in
unusual heavy physical activity, consult your
physician. Whenever undertaking an exercise
program, you should always increase your physical
activity gradually.
Although stress tends to increase high blood
pressure, a relaxed, easy-going manner is no
guarantee of low blood pressure. Diet,
exercise, and genetic traits also play a part.
Most people with hypertension begin to develop
the disease in their thirties. At first, the
blood pressure may rise above normal only
occasionally, then more frequently, until finally it
remains at levels too high for continued good
health. Older people are more likely to have
high blood pressure, but it does occur among
children and adolescents as well. Men are more
prone to develop high blood pressure than women
until about the age of 50. After 50, the
reverse is true. Hypertension seems to run in
families. If your mother, father, sister or
brother has it , the chances of your children
developing are increased. Obese people have an
increase risk of developing hypertension. Even
if a person is slim in youth, a substantial weight
gain in adulthood means a greater chance of
developing high blood pressure.
All too often the first indication of trouble is
a stroke. Symptoms of high blood pressure are
experienced only when the heart, the kidneys of the
brain no longer work properly 15 to 20 years after
the onset of hypertension. Doctors say
hypertension shortens life expectancy significantly.
If hypertension is detected early and treated,
however, these dangerous complications can be
avoided.
The screening test for high blood pressure is
quick and painless. A cloth cuff is wrapped
around the upper arm and inflated. While
releasing the air, the health professional listens
through a stethoscope to the flow of blood through
the arm.
In many people, high blood pressure can go
undetected for years because in its early stages
there are no symptoms which would cause individuals
to seek medical attention. Most people are
oriented to doing something only when they feel ill.
Since high blood pressure has no clearly defined
symptoms, people don't feel sick and don't feel they
need help. This is one of the most important
reasons for having regular medical check-ups.
People who know they have high blood pressure can
guard against most harmful effects by having medical
treatment for it.
HAVE YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE CHECKED ANNUALLY |
