Hypertension is another word for high blood pressure. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, hypertension is “abnormally high blood pressure and especially arterial blood pressure.”
High blood pressure occurs when the arteriole arteries narrow, making it difficult for blood to pass through them. This forces the heart to pump harder to get the blood through. As the pressure increases above normal and is sustained, the result is high blood pressure.
High blood pressure is a common problem. It is the most common chronic illness in the United States. Almost twenty five percent of Americans have it, and a significant number of them do not realize they have it. That is because high blood pressure causes few, if any symptoms, until it has reached an advanced stage. This makes it important to have your blood pressure checked regularly.
High blood pressure is a very dangerous disease to have and leave untreated. High blood pressure significantly increases a person’s risk for stroke, heart failure, heart attack, kidney disease, vision impairment, dementia, and premature death. Left untreated, high blood pressure can shorten a person’s life by up to twenty years. Despite these alarming facts, a little over fifteen percent of the people in the United States who have high blood pressure and know they have it do nothing to control it.
There is no cure for high blood pressure but it is very treatable (http://www.gothypertension.com/treatment) and is also preventable. Lifestyle changes, along with medication if needed, can keep blood pressure at a safe level.
There have been substantial advances in knowledge about and treatment of high blood pressure in the past several decades. Increased awareness and medical advancements in regards to high blood pressure have helped decrease the number of deaths from strokes by seventy percent and the number of deaths from heart disease by more than fifty percent according to data from the Mayo Clinic.
The risk of developing high blood pressure increases as a person ages. Race is also a determining risk factor. Black Americans have the highest risk of developing high blood pressure