Hypertension or high blood pressure does not cause people to have a short temper like some people think of May. In fact, hypertension has no symptoms. Studies show that about one in three U.S. adults have hypertension, but because there are no symptoms, about one in three of these people are not aware of it. If left untreated, it can lead to heart disease, kidney damage or stroke. These are the reasons why hypertension is labeled as the silent killer. The only way to tell if you have hypertension is to have your blood pressure checked regularly. Although intensive and costly research was conducted on hypertension, determining the exact cause of hypertension is not elusive.
Doctors were able to determine the specific cause of hypertension in about 90 to 95 percent of all cases. This type of hypertension is marked as primary or essential hypertension. Although the exact cause of primary hypertension has yet to be identified, the researchers were able to find common attributes in people with primary hypertension.
studies show that primary hypertension occurs only in people with a daily intake of salt in excess of 5.8 grams. Heredity and race have proven to be factors in 30 percent of cases that were studied. People with a family history of hypertension were twice as likely to get it. And the number of cases of hypertension was highest among African Americans. Also most of these test subjects exposed to increased stiffness or resistance of their peripheral arteries. This stiffness was associated with genetic factors, obesity and lack of exercise, excessive salt intake and age.
Approximately 5 to 10 percent of cases of hypertension can be attributed to a specific cause and is called secondary hypertension. Chronic kidney disease, oral contraceptive pills, adrenal gland tumors, chronic alcohol abuse and coarctation of the aorta are known causes of secondary hypertension. Coarctation of the aorta is the most common cause of secondary hypertension in children.
Doctors could not find a cure for primary hypertension, but they were able to identify treatments that can reduce blood pressure to a level that will prevent complications of hypertension. Secondary hypertension can be controlled processing of the underlying cause. If you are a person with mild or moderate hypertension, with no damage to the heart or kidneys, you can take into account changes in your lifestyle. These changes include maintaining a healthy weight, reduce the amount of salt you consume, smoking cessation and reducing their consumption of alcohol. Some doctors recommend aerobic exercise for 20 minutes at least 3 to 4 times each week. diet plan that is proven to reduce blood pressure is the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) eating plan. This diet plan is the DASH clinical study, which was paid for by the National Institutes of Health. This diet consists of fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products. This diet is low in fat and cholesterol and high in calcium, potassium, magnesium and protein. Something else you might consider relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, biofeedback and hypnosis.
People with moderate or severe hypertension will probably have to use one of the many drugs that have been developed for the treatment of hypertension. These medications include beta-blockers, diuretics, calcium antagonists and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. People with heart failure, diabetes or asthma should use beta-blockers with caution. If you have heart failure, kidney disease or diabetes, then you should not use ACE inhibitors. Situations involving more severe hypertension may require a combination of two or more of these drugs. These medications mustbe taken on a daily basis, because they only control, and untreated hypertension.
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