High Blood Pressure
Blood pressure measures the force of blood being pumped from the heart against the walls of the arteries.
Your arteries may become narrowed for a variety of reasons. When this occurs, the same amount of blood must now flow through a narrower vessel, which increases the amount of pressure on your arterial walls. This is called high blood pressure or hypertension.
One in four Americans has high blood pressure. Many of those people do not realize they have high blood pressure.
Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to heart attack, stroke, blindness, and/or kidney failure.
People at higher risk include those who are overweight, smoke cigarettes, have a family history of high blood pressure, are African American (high blood pressure affects 1 out of every 3 African American adults), or who have been diagnosed with kidney disease.
Kidney disease can cause high blood pressure, and high blood pressure can also cause kidney problems.
• High blood pressure causes the arteries to thicken and narrow. This reduces blood flow to the kidneys, and can cause destruction of the nephrons, the tiny filtering units in the kidneys.
• Kidney problems caused by hypertension may result in kidney failure, which can lead to death unless treated.
How can you prevent and/or manage high blood pressure?
• Have your blood pressure checked regularly by a health care professional.
• If your blood pressure is over 140/90, consult with your physician.
• If your physician prescribes high blood pressure medication, be sure to take it as prescribed.
• Quit smoking. For help quitting, click here.
• Reduce your salt intake.
• Maintain a healthy body weight.
• Reduce the amount of fat and cholesterol in your diet.
• Learn to manage the stress in your life in a healthy way.
• Exercise regularly.