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 Whenever visiting my local pharmacy, I make it a habit to use the free blood pressure monitor. Though such monitors have become commonplace in pharmacies across the country, our familiarity with them carries a distressing implication: more and more Americans are suffering from high blood pressure (hypertension).
More than nine out of ten Americans who are diagnosed with high blood pressure have what is called essential hypertension. Rarely can this condition be attributed to a single cause. Instead, a number a factors usually contributes to its development. These factors include genetic predisposition, obesity, high salt intake, aging, and an abnormal stiffness of the arteries furthest from the heart. Despite common misperception, extreme emotional stress does not produce a permanent increase in blood pressure.
Secondary hypertension can be easier to diagnose because it has a direct cause. Sufferers of this condition experience high blood pressure as a feature of a specific organ or blood vessel disorder. Kidney diseases, for example, cause renal hypertension, the most common type of secondary hypertension. Tumors of the adrenal glands and narrowing of the aorta also result in high blood pressure.
A distinct lack of visible symptoms has earned hypertension the label as "the silent killer." Countless individuals have experienced stroke, heart attack, heart failure, or kidney failure due to high blood pressure of which they were unaware. Occasionally, sufferers of hypertension have such symptoms as headache, dizziness, shortness of breath, and blurred vision. The only sure way, however, of detecting it is through consistent screening.
Once diagnosed with high blood pressure, an individual can treat it naturally with a variety of methods. Shedding a few extra pounds and reducing sodium consumption have been known to do wonders in lowering one's blood pressure. Both these things can be achieved through the DASH diet - a nutrition plan that favors fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat dairy products over meats and sweets. Other treatments for hypertension involve reduced alcohol and caffeine intake, relaxation exercises, and increased aerobic exercise.
Of course, there are a number of medications designed to lower blood pressure for those individuals who experience little benefit from natural methods or discover their condition too late. Diuretics flush out the body of unnecessary fluids and salt. Beta-blockers decrease heart rate and output of blood from the heart. Many other medications treat it by manipulating nerves in the brain and muscles in blood vessels with varying degrees of success.
As with any other kind of affliction, the best treatment is prevention. So, next time you find yourself in a pharmacy, make sure to take a minute from your busy life and take advantage of the free blood pressure monitor. Doing so could make a big difference in your life. |
