Health and Fitness : What's your BP?

Blood pressure is the force of blood against your artery walls as it circulates through your body. Blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day, but it can cause health problems if it stays high for a long time. Having high blood pressure raises your risk for heart disease and stroke, leading causes of death in the United States.

High blood pressure is called the "silent killer" because many people don't realize they have it. High blood pressure often has no warning signs or symptoms.

Measuring Your Blood Pressure
Measuring your blood pressure is quick and painless. A doctor or health professional wraps an inflatable cuff with a pressure gauge around your arm to squeeze the blood vessels. Then he or she listens to your pulse with a stethoscope while releasing air from the cuff and watching the gauge. The gauge measures blood pressure in millimeters of mercury, which is abbreviated as mmHg.

Blood pressure is measured using two numbers. The first (systolic) number represents the pressure in your blood vessels when your heart beats. The second (diastolic) number represents the pressure in your vessels when your heart rests between beats. If the measurement reads 120 systolic and 80 diastolic, you would say "120 over 80" or write "120/80 mmHg."

Effects of High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure can damage your health in many ways. For instance, it can harden the arteries, decreasing the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart. This reduced flow can cause—

-Chest pain, also called angina.
-Heart failure, which occurs when the heart can't pump enough blood and oxygen to your other organs.
-Heart attack, which occurs when the blood supply to your heart is blocked and heart muscle cells die from a lack of oxygen. The longer the blood flow is blocked, the greater the damage to the heart.

High blood pressure can burst or block arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the brain, causing a stroke.

Blood Pressure Signs and Symptoms
High blood pressure is called the "silent killer" because many people don't realize they have it. High blood pressure often has no warning signs or symptoms.

The only way to detect whether or not you have high blood pressure is to have your blood pressure measured by a doctor or health professional—it is quick and painless

High Blood Pressure Facts:

67 million American adults (31%) have high blood pressure—that’s 1 in every 3 American adults.

69% of people who have a first heart attack, 77% of people who have a first stroke, and 74% of people with chronic heart failure have high blood pressure. High blood pressure is also a major risk factor for kidney disease.

More than 348,000 American deaths in 2009 included high blood pressure as a primary or contributing cause.

High blood pressure costs the nation $47.5 billion annually in direct medical expenses and $3.5 billion each year in lost productivity.

About half (47%) of people with high blood pressure have their condition under control.

Almost 30% of American adults have prehypertension—blood pressure numbers that are higher than normal, but not yet in the high blood pressure range. Prehypertension raises your risk of developing high blood pressure.

Reducing average population sodium intake from 3,300 mg to 2,300 mg per day may reduce cases of high blood pressure by 11 million and save 18 billion health care dollars annually.

Been awhile since your last check up? Set up an appointment today with your Virginia Gay healthcare provider; click here for a list of clinics.

Source: CDC