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Hypertension: What Causes It?

Author: CarlPruitt Total views: 9 Word Count: 508

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is known in the health care field as the "silent killer". It usually exhibits no symptoms until it has already done substantial damage to a patient's body. Most people only find out about their hypertension when they go in for a routine physical, but most people also tend to skip their routine physicals. Do not take this disease lightly, or delay treatment, just because there are no symptoms. A great majority of the people who experience heart attacks or develop congestive heart failure start out with hypertension. High blood pressure is the number one causative factor in heart disease and one out of every 3 people has high blood pressure

A standard procedure of any medical physical examination is to check blood pressure. Most often this will be done by the nurse either before entering or upon first entering the examination room. Take into consideration a condition called "White Coat Syndrome" in which nervousness about visiting the doctor actually causes increased blood pressure. This is a common reaction that has sometimes resulted in trips to the emergency room. If you experience this, consider buying a relatively cheap home digital blood pressure monitor. Wrist units are available which are very simple to use and are very accurate. Do not use this home device as a replacement for doctor visits though.

Although hypertension is a major causative factor in strokes and coronary heart disease, the sad truth is that 90% or more of cases have unknown or uncertain causes. For this reason, there is no simple answer to the question of what causes high blood pressure and there is no simple solution to the problem. The problem is best approached in a holistic fashion.

In a normal person blood pressure is kept within strict limits naturally. Low blood pressure results in arteries constricting to increase resistance and raise the blood pressure. When blood pressure goes too high, the body relaxes the arteries and veins to lower the pressure. People suffering from long term hypertension do not experience this normal pressure regulation and the disease must be treated with drugs, diet and major lifestyle changes.

Some of the factors which are thought to cause high blood pressure include the following:

* Excess consumption of alcohol

* Smoking

* Excess weight

* Too much sodium intake

* Excessive Stress

* Too much caffeine

* Genetics

Obviously most of these factors are within our individual control. Therefore we can make great strides towards lowering blood pressure by natural means. Following a healthy diet with increased fruit and vegetable intake and lower fat intake, while at the same cutting out those bad habits we know are harmful to our health usually help to lower blood pressure. If you are overweight, losing a few pounds will make a tremendous difference. Action as simple as walking for 30 minutes, 3 times a week can have beneficial effects on your blood pressure. The DASH diet has been clinically proven to lower blood pressure. Of course, as with all things medical, please consult your doctor before starting any exercise program or drastically changing your diet.

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About the Author

Controlling high blood pressure is crucial to preventing heart disease lby going toer in life. Find out more about how to treby going to high blood pressure by going to http://bloodpressuredanger.blogspot.com This and other unique content 'control high blood pressure' articles are available with free reprint rights.

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