Salt Intake And Blood Pressure
Salt is a mineral made up of sodium and chloride. Its the sodium in salt that is bad for your health. When looking at food labels on groceries, it is the sodium that is listed.
Reducing the amount of salt you eat can help to manage your blood pressure. The Heart Foundation recommends five grams of salt as a daily maximum.
In addition to following a heart-healthy eating pattern, follow these top tips to reduce your salt intake:
- Look out for hidden salt. Many packaged and processed foods are high in salt. You cant see the salt in these foods, so you dont know how much salt you are having. These foods arent part of a heart-healthy eating pattern.
- Get into the habit of checking food labels. Choose low-salt food where possible. Another simple alternative is to look for labels with low salt, salt reduced or no added salt.
- Avoid adding salt to cooking or at the table. Flavour meals with herbs and spices instead.
- Cook at home when you can. Take away food and food prepared outside the home are often high in salt. Preparing and cooking your own meals is a great way to stay in control of how much salt is added.
How Do I Know If I Have High Blood Pressure
Theres only one way to know if you have high blood pressure: Have a doctor or other health professional measure it. Measuring your blood pressure is quick and painless.
Talk with your health care team about regularly measuring your blood pressure at home, also called self-measured blood pressure monitoring.
High blood pressure is called the silent killer because it usually has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people do not know they have it.
Normal Blood Pressure For Children
Normal BP ranges vary in children by age. The University of Iowa Stead Family Childrens Hospital provides this blood pressure chart:
| Normal Blood Pressure for Children | |
|---|---|
| Systolic | |
| 112128 mm Hg | 6680 mm Hg |
What is considered healthy for your child also varies by height, age, and sex. You can use Baylor College of Medicine’s calculator to see if your childs blood pressure reading is in a healthy range.
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What Is Normal Bp
Do you feel dizzy and lightheaded after waking up, have problems viewing things due to blurred vision, or sometimes your nose bleeds, or you go through constant headaches and blackouts? If thats the case, you might be dealing with abnormal blood pressure . Trust us, and please dont ignore these signs. Our body shows certain signs or symptoms when something is not right internally or externally in the body. If you are experiencing any of the above-mentioned symptoms, its wise to analyze your body and consult a doctor.
Blood pressure is the pressure of blood circulation from the heart to the entire body. The Average blood pressure differs for different sex, and it tends to rise with age. You need to understand how blood pressure affects your health and how to combat those challenges. According to the American Heart Association, normal blood pressure for adults is less than 120/80 mm Hg.
What About Blood Pressure Thats Too Low
Low blood pressure is known as hypotension. In adults, a blood pressure reading of 90/60 mm Hg or below is often considered hypotension.
Hypotension can be dangerous because blood pressure thats too low doesnt supply your body and heart with enough oxygenated blood.
Some potential causes of hypotension can include:
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Managing Your Blood Pressure
- Achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
- Limit your alcohol intake to no more than 10 standard drinks a week and no more than four drinks on any one day.
Your doctor may also recommend you take medicines to manage your blood pressure. Even if you need to take medicines, its still important for make healthy changes too.
What Causes Low Blood Pressure
There are many possible reasons for low blood pressure, according to both Dr. Wong and Dr. Desai, including:
- Heart problems like heart failure or low heart rates
- Endocrine problems, such as parathyroid disease, adrenal insufficiency or hypoglycemia
- Side effects of medications for high blood pressure, prostatic hypertrophy, Parkinsons disease, depression and erectile dysfunction
- Massive weight loss
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High Blood Pressure In Adults
Blood pressure is a measurement of the force exerted against the walls of your arteries as your heart pumps blood to your body. Hypertension is the term used to describe high blood pressure.
Untreated high blood pressure can lead to many medical problems. These include heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, eye problems, and other health issues.
Blood pressure readings are given as two numbers. The top number is called systolic blood pressure. The bottom number is called diastolic blood pressure. For example, 120 over 80 .
One or both of these numbers can be too high.
- Normal blood pressure is when your blood pressure is lower than 120/80 mm Hg most of the time.
- High blood pressure is when one or both of your blood pressure readings are higher than 130/80 mm Hg most of the time.
- If the top blood pressure number is between 120 and 130 mm Hg, and the bottom blood pressure number is less than 80 mm Hg, it is called elevated blood pressure.
If you have heart or kidney problems, or you had a stroke, your doctor may want your blood pressure to be even lower than that of people who do not have these conditions.
What Does It Mean To Have High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure or hypertension is a medical condition where your blood pressure numbers are consistently above normal.
However, your blood pressure naturally rises and falls throughout the day. It could go up in the at a healthcare office if you have “white-coat hypertension” or anxiety around medical professionals. Or you could have “masked hypertension” if your blood pressure is normal during a checkup but becomes higher later at work or home. That’s why to confirm a diagnosis of elevated blood pressure, yours will need to be measured with a blood pressure cuff multiple times under controlled conditions, said Dr. Lam.
A medical professional can detect and treat high blood pressure depending on which stage you’re in, per the AHA. Here’s what each stage means.
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Medicines For High Blood Pressure
are available to lower and manage high blood pressure. Your doctor may call them antihypertensives, .
Medicines for high blood pressure can include:
- Calcium channel blockers
- Thiazide diuretics.
These medicines help maintain a healthy blood pressure to improve the flow of oxygen and blood around the body. Some help the heart to pump more easily and efficiently.
What Is Normal Blood Pressure
A normal blood pressure reading indicates that the heart and blood vessels are not working too hard pushing blood and that the blood is not exerting too much pressure on the walls of the vessels, says Aseem Desai, M.D., a cardiologist at Providence Mission Hospital in Southern California. Recent data from the American Heart Association suggests the optimal normal reading for adults over 20 is lower than 120/80 mmHgVirani S, et al. Heart disease and stroke statistics – 2021 update . American Heart Association Journal. 2021 143:e254-e743. .
Dr. Desai notes blood pressure can vary depending on a persons age, gender, race and ethnicity, but it should still fall within the general normal range. While numbers lower than 120/80 are generally considered normal, Dr. Desai adds, The target blood pressure for treatment varies depending on age and associated co-morbidities .
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Low Blood Pressure Range
The prevalence of low blood pressure is unknown, but we know its a common condition that affects people worldwide. Normal blood pressure is defined as a systolic less than 120 and a diastolic less than 80, and low blood pressure is considered to be 90/60 or lower.
According to the American Heart Association, Within certain limits, the lower your blood pressure reading is, the better. There is also no specific number at which day-to-day blood pressure is considered too low, as long as none of the symptoms of trouble are present.
In other words, one person may have a low blood pressure of 85/55 and feel just fine, while another may have the same blood pressure and have symptoms. When one or more of these symptoms are involved, the persons low blood pressure can be dangerous. Low blood pressure can affect the body in many ways.
What Is High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is blood pressure that is higher than normal. Your blood pressure changes throughout the day based on your activities. Having blood pressure measures consistently above normal may result in a diagnosis of high blood pressure .
The higher your blood pressure levels, the more risk you have for other health problems, such as heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.
Your health care team can diagnose high blood pressure and make treatment decisions by reviewing your systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels and comparing them to levels found in certain guidelines.
The guidelines used to diagnose high blood pressure may differ from health care professional to health care professional:
- Some health care professionals diagnose patients with high blood pressure if their blood pressure is consistently 140/90 mm Hg or higher.2 This limit is based on a guideline released in 2003, as seen in the table below.
- Other health care professionals diagnose patients with high blood pressure if their blood pressure is consistently 130/80 mm Hg or higher.1 This limit is based on a guideline released in 2017, as seen in the table below.
| systolic: 130 mm Hg or higherdiastolic: 80 mm Hg or higher |
If you are diagnosed with high blood pressure, talk with your health care team about your blood pressure levels and how these levels affect your treatment plan.
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Checking Blood Pressure At Home
Keeping track of blood pressure at home is important for many people, especially if you have high blood pressure. This helps you and your doctor find out if your treatment is working.
Your doctor may also suggest that you check your pressure at home if they think you may have “white coat hypertension.” It’s a real condition. The stress of being in a doctor’s office raises your blood pressure, but when you’re home, it’s normal.
Ask your doctor to recommend an easy-to-use home blood pressure monitor. Make sure the cuff fits properly. If your arm is too big for the cuff, the reading may be higher than your blood pressure really is. Ask your doctor for a larger cuff or make sure you buy a home monitor with a cuff that fits you.
You also can use a wrist blood pressure monitor, but they often aren’t as accurate. Follow the directions that come with the device to make sure you are using it correctly.
No matter which type of blood pressure monitor you have, it’s a good idea to take it to your doctor’s office. You can compare its reading to the numbers your doctor gets. Avoid caffeine, cigarettes, and exercise for at least 30 minutes before the test.
When you take your blood pressure at home, sit up straight in a chair and put both feet on the floor. Ask your doctor or nurse to show you the right way to position your arm so you get accurate readings.
How Is Blood Pressure Measured
Blood pressure is measured in millimetres of mercury and is given as 2 figures:
- systolic pressure the pressure when your heart pushes blood out
- diastolic pressure the pressure when your heart rests between beats
For example, if your blood pressure is “140 over 90” or 140/90mmHg, it means you have a systolic pressure of 140mmHg and a diastolic pressure of 90mmHg.
As a general guide:
- ideal blood pressure is considered to be between 90/60mmHg and 120/80mmHg
- high blood pressure is considered to be 140/90mmHg or higher
- low blood pressure is considered to be 90/60mmHg or lower
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More Than Blood Pressure
The new guidelines have other changes, too. First, they don’t offer different recommendations for people younger or older than age 65. “This is because the SPRINT study looked at all patients regardless of age and didn’t break down groups above or below a certain age,” says Dr. Conlin.
The guidelines also redefined the various categories of hypertension. It eliminated the category of prehypertension, which had been defined as systolic blood pressure of 120 to 139 mm Hg or diastolic pressure of 80 to 89 mm Hg. Instead, people with those readings are now categorized as having either elevated pressure or Stage 1 hypertension .
A reading of 140/90 mm Hg or higher is considered Stage 2 hypertension, and anything higher than 180/120 mm Hg is hypertensive crisis.
Healthy And Unhealthy Blood Pressure Ranges
Learn whats considered normal, as recommended by the American Heart Association.
| SYSTOLIC mm Hg | and/or | DIASTOLIC mm Hg | |
|---|---|---|---|
| NORMAL | |||
| HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE STAGE 1 | 130 139 | ||
| HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE STAGE 2 | 140 OR HIGHER | ||
| HYPERTENSIVE CRISIS | HIGHER THAN 180 | and/or | HIGHER THAN 120 |
Note: A diagnosis of high blood pressure must be confirmed with a medical professional. A doctor should also evaluate any unusually low blood pressure readings.
The five blood pressure ranges as recognized by the American Heart Association are:
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When To Take A Blood Pressure Reading
Blood pressure can fluctuate on a daily basis due to myriad factors and its important to consider the source, Segal said. Things like stress, exercise, laughter, medication, caffeine, illness and sex can all contribute to pressure swings that are likely not a cause for concern.
Even the time of day blood pressure is monitored can affect the numbers.
When youre waking up, your blood pressure is on the lower level, Segal said.
Meanwhile, a dramatic uptick may be seen if pressure is taken during the workday, in a high-stress environment or right after exercise. Those are not the best times to monitor.
When done properly, the best readings to understand what a persons normal range is can be found at home, according to Segal.
To keep fluctuations at a minimum, and get a better baseline reading, there are a few things to consider:
- Make sure the home monitor fits well
- Take the pressure right before eating or in the evening about 30 minutes after dinner when most people are least stressed
- Avoid taking any medications first
- Keep as calm as possible
Segal finds that using an arm blood pressure cuff is more reliable than one that wraps around the wrist. When checking the pressure, the arm should be at the level of the heart.
So, if youre lying down, the arm should be beside you and if youre sitting up, put your arm, lets say, on a desk, Segal said.
What Is Normal Blood Pressure For Seniors
According to current guidelines from the American Heart Association, normal blood pressure for adults under the age of 65 is any blood pressure below 120/80 mmHg.
Average blood pressure readings for both men and women vary and often increase with age.
What causes hypertension in people over age 60?
- Age: Blood pressure increases with age, as more pressure is exerted on the artery walls.
- Obesity: Overweight and obese people tend to be at increased risk of hypertension.
- Salt intake: Consumption of high amounts of sodium is a risk factor for hypertension
- Sedentary lifestyle: As people get older, their levels of daily physical activity may reduce and lead to a greater risk of hypertension.
- Alcohol intake: Drinking too much alcohol can increase the risk of hypertension.
- Exercise regularly to encourage blood flow
- Avoid sitting or standing quickly
- While rising, take care to sit upright for a few seconds and then get off the bed
- Stay away from heavy lifting
- Avoid standing still for a prolonged time
- Avoid straining while passing stools
- Avoid prolonged exposure to hot water such as saunas, hot water springs, and spas
- Compression stocking covering the thigh and calf restricts the blood flow to the lower part of the body
- Try eating smaller, more frequent meals to avoid post-meal dizziness
- Any consumption of over-the-counter medications should be reported to the physician.
Medications such as fludrocortisone or midodrine may also help to treat low blood pressure.
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What Do The Numbers Mean
When a healthcare professional takes your blood pressure, its expressed as a measurement with two numbers, one number on top and one on the bottom , like a fraction. For example, 120/80 mm Hg.
Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury. Thats what the mm/Hg stands for. Heres what the numbers mean:
- Your systolic pressure is the pressure of the blood in your arteries when your heart contracts or beats.
- Your diastolic pressure is the pressure of the blood in your arteries between beats, when your heart relaxes.
Both numbers are important in determining the state of your heart health.
Numbers greater than the ideal range may be a sign that your heart is working too hard to pump blood to the rest of your body.
For a normal reading, your blood pressure needs to show:
- a systolic pressure thats above 90 mm Hg and less than 120 mm Hg, and
- a diastolic pressure thats between 60 mm Hg and less than 80 mm Hg
The American Heart Association considers blood pressure to be within the normal range when both your systolic and diastolic numbers are in these ranges.
If youre in the normal range, no medical intervention is needed. However, its important to maintain a healthy lifestyle and moderate weight to help prevent high blood pressure from developing.
You may need to be even more mindful of your lifestyle if high blood pressure runs in your family.