How Does High Blood Pressure Affect The Heart
If you have uncontrolled high blood pressure , you have an increased chance for atrial fibrillation. High blood pressure is a very common health condition in the US, affecting men and women of all ages–even children. The problem with high blood pressure is that it causes no outward symptoms for years, so you may be unaware of the damage it is causing. Uncontrolled hypertension greatly increases the chance of serious problems such as stroke and heart attack. High blood pressure can be easily detected with a simple blood pressure test. Talk to your doctor about your blood pressure and, if it is high, be sure you take the medications as prescribed.
As your blood pressure elevates the amount of stress on your heart muscle increases. The extra workload will over time enlarge your heart. Your heart’s ability to function properly will also be diminished if the stress from the elevated pressure is not treated.
What Does It Mean To Have High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure is when your blood pressure is permanently higher than normal. High blood pressure is one of the main risk factors for heart disease, especially heart attacks and strokes.
Its possible to have high blood pressure without knowing, so its important to keep an eye on it by getting your heart health checked regularly by a health professional.
If you do have high blood pressure, you can help manage it with some simple changes to your lifestyle, such as eating a heart healthy diet and exercising more. Your doctor might also recommend some medications to keep it under control.
What Are The Risk Factors For High Blood Pressure
Nearly one-third of all Americans have high blood pressure, but it is particularly prevalent in:
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People who have diabetes, gout, or kidney disease
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African Americans
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People in their early to middle adult years men in this age group have higher blood pressure more often than women in this age group
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People in their middle to later adult years women in this age group have higher blood pressure more often than men in this age group
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Middle-aged and elderly people more than half of all Americans age 60 and older have high blood pressure
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People with a family history of high blood pressure
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People consuming a high salt diet
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Overweight people
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Women who are taking oral contraceptives
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People with depression
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How Can You Reduce Your Risk Of High Blood Pressure
Fortunately, there are certain things you can do to help reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure. These include the following:
- Eat right: A healthy diet is an important step in keeping your blood pressure normal. The DASH diet emphasizes adding fruits, vegetables and whole grains to your diet while reducing the amount of sodium. Since its rich in fruits and vegetables, which are naturally lower in sodium than many other foods, the DASH diet makes it easier to eat less salt and sodium.
- Keep a healthy weight: Going hand-in-hand with a proper diet is keeping a healthy weight. Since being overweight increases your blood pressure, losing excess weight with diet and exercise will help lower your blood pressure to healthier levels.
- Cut down on salt: The recommendation for salt in your diet is to have less than 1,500 milligrams of sodium a day . To prevent hypertension, you should keep your salt intake below this level. Don’t forget that most restaurant foods and many processed and frozen foods contain high levels of salt. Use herbs and spices that do not contain salt in recipes to flavor your food do not add salt at the table.
- Keep active: Even simple physical activities, such as walking, can lower your blood pressure .
- Drinkalcoholin moderation: Having more than one drink a day and two drinks a day can raise blood pressure.
Will Taking Birth Control Pills Increase My Chances Of Getting High Blood Pressure
Doctors and researchers have found a link between birth control pills and an increase in blood pressure among some women. They say that it is more likely to occur in women who are overweight, have kidney disease or have a family history of high blood pressure.
Talk to your health care team to determine what forms of birth control may be best for you. Women with known medical problems or other special conditions might need additional examinations or tests to determine the appropriate method of contraception.
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Better Blood Pressure For Life
Working toward a healthier blood pressure changes the way you live your life. When I prescribe medication for high blood pressure, I tell my patients theyll likely take it every day for the rest of their lives. Theyre often surprised when I say this, but its true.
Ive had patients tell me, I used to have high blood pressure, but I took this medicine for a while, and it went away, so I stopped taking it. Or some patients tell me, I need to take my blood pressure medicine only when Im feeling bad.
High blood pressure medication isnt like the antibiotics you take for a couple of weeks to get over an infection. Theres no magic pill or quick fix for hypertension. If you stop taking your blood pressure medicine, the control you have over your high blood pressure will go away.
You didnt get high blood pressure overnight. You wont be able to lower it overnight, either. But if you work with your doctor to create a treatment plan, you can successfully lower your blood pressure and your risk for heart disease.
If you have a family history of heart disease or are concerned about your heart health, request an appointment with a doctor and ask to have your blood pressure checked.
Some Home Remedies That Help To Control Blood Pressure
Although medications can treat high blood pressure, we should avoid supplements if we have incredible natural homemade supplements to treat high blood pressure.
Garlic
Garlic is an antibacterial and antifungal food. Its primary active component, allicin, is frequently credited with related health advantages. It stimulates the body’s synthesis of nitric oxide, which aids in the relaxation of smooth muscles and the dilation of blood vessels. These modifications have the potential to lower blood pressure.
In hypertensive individuals, garlic extract decreased both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Garlic can improve the flavor of various savory dishes, including stir-fries, soups, and omelets. Using garlic instead of salt can help to improve heart health even further.
Oats
Oats include beta-glucan fiber, which has the ability to lower your blood cholesterol levels. According to certain studies, beta-glucan may also help to reduce blood pressure. A larger intake of beta-glucan fiber may reduce both systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
This fiber is also in barley. Start the day with a bowl of oatmeal, or add texture to the meat or veggie burger patties by using rolled oats instead of breadcrumbs.
Green Leafy Vegetables
Nitrates, which are abundant in leafy green vegetables, aid with blood pressure control. According to some studies, consuming 12 servings of nitrate-rich veggies each day can lower blood pressure for up to 24 hours.
Pomegranates
Cinnamon
Black Seeds
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Legs Hips And Stomach
Narrow and blocked arteries in the lower part of your body — especially your legs — can cause pain and cramping. Because it’s affecting blood vessels that aren’t near your heart, your doctor may call this peripheral artery disease . It can make muscles in your legs and hips sore and tired when you walk or climb stairs.
Living With High Blood Pressure
Controlling your high blood pressure is a lifelong commitment. You will always need to monitor your weight, make healthy food choices, exercise, learn to cope with stress, avoid smoking, and limit your alcohol intake. If you need medicine to control your high blood pressure, you will likely need it all your life.
Additionally, you will need to get used to regular blood pressure checks. Your doctor may want you to come to the office regularly. Or you may be asked to check your blood pressure at home and keep track of your numbers for your doctor. Some pharmacies and retail clinics have blood pressure machines on site. You can buy your own, automated arm blood pressure cuff for use at home. Your doctor may want you to check your blood pressure several times a day. Another option is to use an ambulatory blood pressure monitor.
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What Is The Treatment For High Blood Pressure
Mild high blood pressure can often be treated by making lifestyle changes, including:
- losing weight
- limiting your alcohol intake to no more than 2 drinks per day for men, or 1 drink per day for women with high blood pressure
However, lifestyle changes may not be enough. Some people also need medication to help reduce blood pressure levels to normal. While medicines are usually very effective at lowering blood pressure, they may cause side effects in some people.
Usually doctors will start a person on a low dose of a medicine and see how it goes. If it doesnt work well enough, or if there are troublesome side effects, other medicines will be used, sometimes in combination, until the blood pressure is controlled. This can take time. Some people will take medicines for life, although others will find that continuing to lose weight and changing their diet reduces the need for medicines.
Someone whose blood pressure is very high or causing symptoms such as headache, or if they have conditions such as heart disease or diabetes, may need urgent treatment with medicines to bring the blood pressure down to normal levels.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners recommends that you regularly review with your doctor or specialist any medications you are taking for high blood pressure or high cholesterol to assess the ongoing benefits and risks. For further information, visit the Choosing Wisely Australia website.
How Does Homeostasis Regulate Blood Pressure
regulate blood pressureblood pressuresisishomeostasis
The kidneys provide a hormonal mechanism for the regulation of blood pressure by managing blood volume. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system of the kidneys regulates blood volume. Angiotensin II constricts blood vessels throughout the body .
One may also ask, why is it important to regulate blood pressure? A. Blood pressure is important because the higher your blood pressure is, the higher your risk of health problems in the future. If your blood pressure is high, it is putting extra strain on your arteries and on your heart. This may also cause a heart attack or stroke.
Thereof, how does the heart maintain homeostasis in the body?
In order to maintain homeostasis in the cardiovascular system and provide adequate blood to the tissues, blood flow must be redirected continually to the tissues as they become more active. For example, when an individual is exercising, more blood will be directed to skeletal muscles, the heart, and the lungs.
What organ controls blood pressure long term?
The mere size of a grain of rice, the carotid body, located between two major arteries of the neck that supply the brain with blood, has recently been discovered to control blood pressure.
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Disorders Of The Cardiovascular System: Arteriosclerosis
Compliance allows an artery to expand when blood is pumped through it from the heart, and then to recoil after the surge has passed. This helps promote blood flow. In arteriosclerosis, compliance is reduced, and pressure and resistance within the vessel increase. This is a leading cause of hypertension and coronary heart disease, as it causes the heart to work harder to generate a pressure great enough to overcome the resistance.
Arteriosclerosis begins with injury to the endothelium of an artery, which may be caused by irritation from high blood glucose, infection, tobacco use, excessive blood lipids, and other factors. Artery walls that are constantly stressed by blood flowing at high pressure are also more likely to be injuredwhich means that hypertension can promote arteriosclerosis, as well as result from it.
Recall that tissue injury causes inflammation. As inflammation spreads into the artery wall, it weakens and scars it, leaving it stiff . As a result, compliance is reduced. Moreover, circulating triglycerides and cholesterol can seep between the damaged lining cells and become trapped within the artery wall, where they are frequently joined by leukocytes, calcium, and cellular debris. Eventually, this buildup, called plaque, can narrow arteries enough to impair blood flow. The term for this condition, atherosclerosis describes the mealy deposits.
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Effects Of High Blood Pressure On The Heart And Body:
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What Is The Pulse Rate
The pulse rate is a measurement of the heart rate, or the number of times the heart beats per minute. As the heart pushes blood through the arteries, the arteries expand and contract with the flow of the blood. Taking a pulse not only measures the heart rate, but also can indicate the following:
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Heart rhythm
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Strength of the pulse
The normal pulse for healthy adults ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute. The pulse rate may fluctuate and increase with exercise, illness, injury, and emotions. Females ages 12 and older, in general, tend to have faster heart rates than do males. Athletes, such as runners, who do a lot of cardiovascular conditioning, may have heart rates near 40 beats per minute and experience no problems.
Is Resting Heart Rate Different By Age
For most of us , between 60 and 100 beats per minute is normal.1 The rate can be affected by factors like stress, anxiety, hormones, medication, and how physically active you are. An athlete or more active person may have a resting heart rate as low as 40 beats per minute. Now thats chill!
When it comes to resting heart rate, lower is better. It usually means your heart muscle is in better condition and doesnt have to work as hard to maintain a steady beat. Studies have found that a higher resting heart rate is linked with lower physical fitness and higher blood pressure and body weight.2
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What Is Heart Failure
Heart failure does not mean the heart has stopped working. Rather, it means that the heart’s pumping power is weaker than normal or the heart has become less elastic. With heart failure, blood moves through the heart’s pumping chambers less effectively, and pressure in the heart increases, making it harder for your heart to deliver oxygen and nutrients to your body.
To compensate for reduced pumping power, the heart’s chambers respond by stretching to hold more blood. This keeps the blood moving, but over time, the heart muscle walls may weaken and become unable to pump as strongly. As a result, the kidneys often respond by causing the body to retain fluid and sodium. The resulting fluid buildup in the arms, legs, ankles, feet, lungs, or other organs, and is called congestive heart failure.
High blood pressure may also bring on heart failure by causing left ventricular hypertrophy, a thickening of the heart muscle that results in less effective muscle relaxation between heart beats. This makes it difficult for the heart to fill with enough blood to supply the bodyâs organs, especially during exercise, leading your body to hold onto fluids and your heart rate to increase.
- Greater need to urinate at night
Under Pressure: How Blood Pressure Affects Heart Disease Risk
One question I hear from patients regularly is, Dr. Hill, why does it matter so much that I get my high blood pressure under control?
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is an extremely common condition and a major risk factor for heart disease. Nearly one in three Texas adults has high blood pressure were diagnosed in 2010. And the scary thing is many dont have the condition under control.
Uncontrolled hypertension can lead to heart attack and stroke. Thats why its important for you to understand what high blood pressure is, whos at risk, and how to keep your blood pressure in a range thats healthy for you.
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Blood Pressure And Heart Rate Are Always Linked
False: It is true that blood pressure and heart rate often rise and fall together, Dr. Laffin says. When you face danger, for example, your blood pressure and pulse may both jump upward at the same time. However, if your heart rate rises, that doesnt automatically mean your blood pressure will rise or vice versa.
When the two are disconnected, you may be looking at a specific problem, Dr. Laffin says. For example, if you are dehydrated, bleeding or have a severe infection, blood pressure typically decreases and heart rate increases.