Everybody knows that high blood pressure or hypertension is a silent killer. About 60 million Americans are known to suffer from high blood pressure, but the irony is that only half of them might know that they have it. This is because for great majority of people with high blood pressure there are no symptoms at all. And for those that do have may recognize only when the blood pressure is already very high.
What Is Considered High Blood Pressure?
To know what high blood pressure is, it is necessary to know what exactly blood pressure is.
Blood pressure is measured in terms of systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
Normal blood pressure is a relative term and may depend on factors such as age, activity, emotional state and health of a person. Medical fraternity consider 120 (systolic) and 80 (diastolic) as normal with plus and minus 20 over the above range. The reading of blood pressure is measured with a device called sphygmomanometer. Blood pressure is considered to be high when the systolic pressure rises more than 140 and diastolic pressure is more than 100 mm of hg.
Signs And Symptoms Of Hypertension
Majority of patients with mild to moderate high blood pressure may not experience any symptoms at all. It is only when the pressure is too high; they turn up to their physician with symptoms such as; headache especially on the back side and nape of the neck in morning hours. Palpitation and flutter in heart, flushed face, blurred vision, difficult breathing during mild exertion, loss of energy, bleeding from nose, dizziness, and increased urinary frequency, tingling in limbs are other symptoms of high blood pressure.
In the early stage the blood pressure is labile rising to an abnormal degree under the influence of such stimuli as emotions, exercise and cold. Later on even during resting phase, the blood pressure remains elevated.
Causes Of High Blood Pressure
The exact cause of high blood pressure in majority of cases is not certain. However several factors play an important role in its development. This type of high blood pressure is considered to be essential hypertension. Heredity is believed to be an underlying risk. If both parents are known hypertensive, the incidence of the disease in children is about 45 percent higher. If one parent is hypertensive than the risk in children is 30 percent.
Aside from heredity, many other factors are believed to be involved in development of high blood pressure, they are; Growing age, obesity, high cholesterol level in blood, excess consumption of alcohol and smoking, increased intake of salt, lack of exercise, mental stress.
High blood pressure can also occur in certain conditions. It is known as secondary high blood pressure. However the numbers of people who suffer from it are less. Often kidney disease can cause high blood pressure. Tumors in adrenal gland and thyroid gland can also lead to secondary high blood pressure.
Natural Ways To Reduce Hypertension
For most people who are suffering from mild to moderate high blood pressure, nondrug approach is an effective first line of defense or at least should be tried before beginning anti hypertensive medicine. Steps that need to be taken are:
- Reduce your weight: Obese people are at greater risk of suffering from high blood pressure than people who are underweight. Stout people with high blood pressure can achieve reduction in their pressure even with minor amount of weight loss.
- Alcohol intake: Excess intake of alcohol causes rise in blood pressure. It also prevents antihypertensive therapies to act and can increase the risk of stroke.
- Stop Smoking: Smoking is the single most modifiable lifestyle factor to prevent cardiac disease in hypertensive patients. Ceasing smoking reduces blood cholesterol level and thus helps in lowering high blood pressure.
- Yoga and meditation: Yoga and meditation have shown effective results in reducing high blood pressure.
- Exercise: Regular exercise such as walking or cycling or swimming brings down weight as well as high blood pressure considerably.
Food Remedies For Lowering High Blood Pressure
There are several natural herbs and fruits that help to make the stiffened arteries more relaxed and flexible.
Restrict salt intake: Hypertensive patient should cut down the amount of salt they eat in their daily diet. Total intake of salt should be restricted to 6 gm. Patients should avoid eating processed foods, pickles, chips etc.
- Diet: Diet should consist of low calorie foods. Patient should increase eating vegetables, fruits, fiber food, grains etc. Low intake of saturated fats is beneficial in reducing high blood pressure. Instead of meat patient should consume more of fish.
- Apples: Apple contains enough potassium that helps the arteries to remain flexible. The diuretic action of apple is well known. Both these properties help to reduce high blood pressure. In addition apples help to lower the sodium level in tissue.
- Lemon: Drink lemon juice mixed in a glass of water. Lemon contains vitamin C in large amount. It strengthens the arteries and prevents cholesterol to get adhered to the vessel wall.
- Garlic: Garlic is considered to be the most effective remedy for treating high blood pressure. The contents present in garlic have power to ease spasm of arteries and make them wider. Thus it benefits hypertensive patients in long run.