Your blood pressure rises and falls during the day. But when it stays elevated over time, it’s called high blood pressure. High blood pressure is dangerous because it makes the heart work too hard. Theelevated rate of the blood flow can harm arteries and organs such as the heart, kidneys, brain, and eyes. High blood pressure often has no warning signs or symptoms. Once it occurs, it usually lasts a lifetime. If uncontrolled, it can lead to heart and kidney disease, stroke, and blindness.
“Blood pressure” is the force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps out blood. If this pressure rises and stays high over time, it can damage the body in many ways.
High blood pressure (HBP) is a serious condition that can lead to coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, kidney failure, and other health problems.
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women. Although heart disease deaths in women generally have gone down, the death rate in young women (ages 35-44) is more than three times greater than for women ages 25-34. This suggests that women are not taking advantage of a critical time in their lives—their late 20s and early 30s—to take action to reduce their risk.
The good news is that heart disease is preventable. By leading a healthy lifestyle, we can lower risk of heart disease by as much as 82 percent
High blood pressure is responsible for 1.6 million deaths worldwide each year with 80 per cent of those deaths occurring in low-and middle-income countries including Nigeria.
5 Tips for Healthy Blood Pressure
1. Maintain a healthy weight.
2. Be moderately physically active on most days of the week.
3. Follow a healthy eating plan, which includes foods low in sodium.
4. If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.
5. If you have high blood pressure and your healthcare provider prescribes medication, take it as directed.
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