High Blood Pressure

Hypertension is one of the most prevalent diseases throughout the world. It is considered as one of the major causes for development of cardiovascular diseases.

Hypertension is characterized by a high blood pressure (BP).

BP is the force existing in the walls of arteries due to blood flow.

• The normal BP is 120/80mmHg (120 denotes systolic blood pressure and 80 denotes diastolic blood pressure).
• If BP is more than 120/80mmHg, but below 140/90mmHg, then that condition is called as pre-hypertension.
• If BP is more than 140/90mmHg, then that condition is considered as hypertension.

Causes of hypertension

Based on the cause, hypertension can be classified as either essential (unknown cause) or secondary (specific cause).
The main causes of hypertension are:

• High intake of sodium (>1500mg/day)
• Older age and stress
• Smoking and alcohol consumption
• Adrenal and thyroid gland problems
• Chronic kidney disease
• Increased cholesterol
• Diabetes
• Vitamin D deficiency
• Drug use (e.g., Steroids)

Symptoms

In general, patients with high blood pressure may not have any symptoms. Some patients might complain of severe headache, nausea or vomiting, confusion, changes in vision, etc.

Diagnosis

Hypertension is diagnosed by measuring the persistent elevation of blood pressure.

Treatment:

Treatment of hypertension includes:

• Lifestyle modifications
• Reduce salt intake.
• Achieve and maintain normal body weight.
• Avoid stress.
• Avoid smoking and drinking alcohol.
• Regular exercise and physical activity.
• Consume a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and with low intake of unhealthy fats.
• Prescriptions
  If hypertension is not controlled even after modifying lifestyle, then prescription drugs may be recommended to reduce blood pressure to avoid damage to your arteries and kidneys. Different prescriptions are available to help reduce blood pressure. According to your personal health history and how well your blood pressure is controlled, Dr. Pinto may prescribe either a single prescription or a combination of two or more prescriptions. The common prescriptions used to reduce blood pressure are diuretics, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.

The common drugs used to reduce blood pressure are diuretics, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.

At Healthy Living Dallas we want to get to the root of your hypertension. We will look at body composition, stress assessments, inflammatory markers, kidney function, adrenal and thyroid health, cholesterol levels and descriptors, advanced diabetes markers, vitamin D levels, and lifestyle habits that could contribute to your hypertension. When we know that cause of your condition, reversing it becomes much easier to achieve.