Our blood is a liquid and as such it follows the laws of fluid dynamics. As our blood circulates throughout our body, it’s trying to follow the rules of entropy and spill out. Liquids try to spread out and fill as large an area as gravity will allow it to. This is where blood pressure comes into play. Blood pressure (BP) is how hard your blood is pressing against the blood vessel walls.
For people who have high blood pressure, the blood in their arteries is pushing up against these blood vessel walls too strongly. Your BP is measured in two numbers. The first number is the pressure hile the heart beats and is pushing the blood through the body. The second number is the pressure while the heart takes a break between beating. The standard measure is around 120/80 mmHg.
High blood pressure is also often known as hypertension. Some people use the terms interchangeably or to describe the highest level of blood pressure. This is when BP exceeds levels of 140/90 mmHg. The thing about very high blood pressure is it can also depend on the person. Some people just have naturally higher resting blood pressures than others. It’s important to have comparative tests in different situations. Oftentimes, getting your blood pressure tested at the doctor’s office is the worst thing to get an accurate reading since people are often quite stressed out while they are there.
High Blood Pressure Symptoms
There are quite a few symptoms that suggest you have very high blood pressure. While these can also be symptoms of other things, when combined together, they paint a picture of what will give you warning signs.
- Fatigue - This can be both physical or mental. Those with high blood pressure may feel confused for no reason.
- Bloody Urine - This is certainly one of the most disturbing of the potential symptoms that you can have. Seeing it is very uncomfortable.
- Pounding Feeling in Chest - This is an uncomfortable feeling like you can feel your heart beating through your chest.
- Vision Issues - High blood pressure can often cause blurred vision.
Testing your blood pressure should ideally be done at a normal time. It should be done when you are not feeling additional mental or physical stresses.
What Causes High Blood Pressure?
There is no concrete singular reason that people get high blood pressure. There is a combination of factors that tends to cause it. People who smoke heavily often have high blood pressure. One of the main causes is often considered to be obesity or overweight. Going hand in hand with that is people who don’t get enough exercise. These two often tend to reinforce each other.
How to Lower Blood Pressure
There are several ways in which you can lower your blood pressure. Many of these have been known for quite a while and some are common sense ideas. Here are some ways you can work on your high blood pressure:
- Exercise - Being active is a great way to help manage things.
- Weight Loss - This can go hand in hand with exercise, but weight loss can also be independent of exercise.
- Diet - Eating healthy foods is always a good way to work on your blood pressure. It’s key to avoid processed foods whenever possible.
- Sodium is Bad - High sodium levels can increase blood pressure, so lowering your sodium is a great way to stop it. Processed foods are often loaded with sodium to keep them preserved and packaged.
- Reduce Alcohol - Another potential danger area is drinking too much alcohol. If can cause more blood pressure issues and thus needs to be limited appropriately.
- Reduce Caffeine - Many people have increased blood pressure due to too much caffeine in their diet.
- Relax - Stress is one of the biggest causes of high blood pressure. Being able to relax can be difficult, but is often necessary.
- Get Help - If you’re struggling with your health, oftentimes others can help. It’s important to make use of these people.
- Pay Attention - Regular blood pressure checks will give a person notice if things are starting to slip.
- Don’t Smoke - If you’re already a smoker, quitting smoking is a great way to reduce blood pressure.