What is high blood pressure?

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a common health condition that is a measure of how hard the blood pushes against the artery walls as it moves to other parts of your body. It is normal for your blood pressure to fluctuate due to stress, position changes, and activity; however, if your blood pressure stays elevated, you can have high blood pressure.

High blood pressure is often referred to as the “silent killer”, as you may go for many years without any symptoms. Most people do not even know that they have high blood pressure until they have their blood pressure checked by their health-care provider during a routine visit. High blood pressure left untreated can lead to damage to your heart, brain, kidneys and eyes.

Your blood pressure reading consists of two numbers:

• Systolic (top number) – measures how hard the blood is pushed out of your heart when the heart is pumping
• Diastolic (bottom number) – measures how hard the blood pushed out when your heart is relaxed and filling with blood

You may hear someone refer to a blood pressure of 120 over 80 or 120/80 as the ideal blood pressure. This means the systolic pressure is 120 and the diastolic pressure is 80. High blood pressure is considered 140/90 or higher. Your heart is working much harder to force blood to other parts of your body.

High blood pressure tends to affect adults more than children. It tends to be more common in men; however, women are more at risk of developing high blood pressure after menopause. In most cases, it is difficult to identify the exact cause of hypertension. There are several risk factors that may contribute to developing high blood pressure such as being overweight, drinking too much alcohol, physical inactivity, family history, smoking, and consuming too much salt in your diet.

It is important to have a yearly physical examination with your health-care provider to ensure your body is functioning well before you start to have any signs and symptoms of illness.

For more information about high blood pressure, or for available programs and services, contact Health Link Alberta where nurses are available 24-7 to provide health advice and information. Call 1-866-408-LINK (5465) or 780-408-LINK (Edmonton area) or 403-943-LINK (Calgary area).