Blood Pressure

 Print This Post

Heredity

68.     As far as an individual is concerned, one’s BP level depends on the interplay of genetics or inherited factors and the influence of your lifestyle. Hypertension clearly runs in families and this holds true even after allowances have been made for the fact that families tend to share the same lifestyle and diet. Roughly speaking, about half of all the variations in BP between people, is the result of genetic factors and half is the result of dietary factors dating back to early childhood. However, it has been observed that with appropriate changes in lifestyle and especially in dietary habits, you can overcome the inherited disadvantage of developing high BP.

Age

69.     Blood pressure tends to increase with age but this is partly because of changes in lifestyle; many people put on weight and get less active as they get older, and both these factors may contribute to the development of hypertension. More importantly, the rise in blood pressure with age is greater in people who eat a lot of salty foods. Experts believe that over the course of lifetime, as many as 90% of persons with normal BP at age 55 will develop hypertension due to modern faulty lifestyle.

Cold Weather

70.     In winter our blood gets thicker, resulting in the requirement of extra force for it to circulate it throughout the body. Hence BP tends to be higher in winter compared to summer.

Manic Mondays

71.     It is well known that BP rises and falls over the course of the day. A new Japanese study suggests that a weakly cycle may accompany this daily one. In this study, daily BP fell from Thursday to Sunday, zoomed up on Monday and then began to fall again. The morning surge in BP was also highest on Monday mornings. Large jumps in BP between sleep and waking have been linked with stroke, leading the researchers to suggest this weekly cycle could help explain why strokes are more common on Mondays than other days.

COMPLICATIONS OF HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE (HYPERTENSION)

Introduction

72.     High blood pressure or hypertension is very common and lifelong disease which is preventable and controllable. Hypertension does not mean nervous tension. You can be perfectly calm, relaxed person and still suffer from high BP.