What is high blood pressure?
High blood pressure is caused by the excessive force your blood exerts on your arterial walls, damaging them, as most likely your heart. The actual blood pressure measurement is determined by how much blood is pumped through your blood vessels and how much resistance the blood encounters.
High blood pressure, also called hypertension, may come on gradually as your arteries begin to narrow, a condition called atherosclerosis. It’s sometimes called a silent killer, because high blood pressure often has no symptoms at all, until it causes a serious problem.
What causes high blood pressure?
Your risk for developing high blood pressure goes up as you get older, and tends to be more common in African Americans. There are many other factors that contribute to high blood pressure, including:
- Being overweight
- Poor diet, including too much sodium and sugar, and too little potassium
- Family history of hypertension
- Lack of exercise
- Too much stress
- Other health conditions, such as kidney disease and sleep apnea
In addition, certain other lifestyle choices, such as drinking too much alcohol or smoking, can have a considerable impact on whether you develop high blood pressure.
What are the complications associated with high blood pressure?
High blood pressure is called the silent killer because it often gives no warnings symptoms of the condition. All too often, the first signs are serious health complications, such as:
- Heart attack or stroke
- Vision problems
- Heart failure
- Kidney damage
- Aneurysms
Once these complications develop, your high blood pressure has already caused damage, which makes intervention critical.
How is high blood pressure treated?
The providers at Front Range Family Medicine embrace a multi-faceted approach to high blood pressure management, which includes:
Medications
There are a number of medications that address different aspects of high blood pressure. For example, a diuretic helps reduce the volume of blood in your circulatory system. Or, a beta blocker may be prescribed to open your blood vessels.
Nutrition counseling
Nutrition plays a key role in health and the providers help you modify your diet to manage your hypertension. Watching your sodium intake may be helpful. Eating a healthy diet of whole foods -- especially those with nutrients that promote a healthy heart and blood vessels -- can have a positive effect on your blood pressure numbers.
Herbal supplements
The providers at Front Range Family Medicine believe that nature offers some effective weapons in the battle against hypertension, including certain herbal supplements.
Now is the time to tackle your high blood pressure, before it leads to serious damage. Call Front Range Family Medicine, or use the online booking tool to schedule a consultation.
