High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure – facts and fiction

Fiction: High blood pressure can be cured and treatment discontinued.
Fact: Most high blood pressure cannot be cured, but it can be controlled. Daily treatment usually must be continued for life in order to get your blood pressure down and keep it down.
Fiction: High blood pressure has symptoms.
Fact: You can look and feel terrific and still have high blood pressure. Some people think that when they have a headache, feel dizzy or anxious, their blood pressure is up – and that’s when they take their medicine. They are wrong. They should follow their doctor’s advice. Just because a person feels well doesn’t mean his or her blood pressure is normal.
Fiction: Nervous and tense people are the ones with high blood pressure.
Fact: You can be a calm, relaxed person and still have high blood pressure.

“Hypertension” is the technical term for high blood pressure, but it does not refer to being nervous or upset. High blood pressure is a physical condition – it means the force of blood pressing against your blood vessel walls is too high. You cannot control your high blood pressure just by staying calm and relaxed. Your blood pressure can be controlled only by proper treatment. Follow your treatment plan daily – when you feel great, as well as when you feel tense or upset.

Fiction: You can skip the medication – if you do the other things your doctor tells you.
Fact: If your doctor has put you on medication, you must take it regularly to lower your blood pressure. But don’t try to choose your own treatment plan. Talk to your doctor about your plan. If you are on medicine, keep taking it, while you are following the other recommendations.

What do the numbers mean?

Blood pressure is recorded as two numbers, one on top of the other. For example: 100/60.

The first or top number measures the force of your heartbeat pushing blood from the heart into the vessels (systolic pressure). The second or bottom number measures the pressure when your heart is at rest between beats (diastolic pressure). Your blood pressure goes up and down, depending on what you’re doing. But if it stays high all the time (in adults that’s usually anything over 140/90), it means there is too much pressure or strain on your heart and blood vessels.

If you have high blood pressure, follow your doctor’s advice, take your medication regularly, and have it checked as often as your doctor recommends.

When your doctor prescribes medication, take it regularly, not just when you remember to or when you feel like it. Before the prescription runs out, get more pills. And keep appointments with your doctor. High blood pressure is a very common, serious disease, but it can be treated easily and controlled.

If you are a diabetic patient, it is even more important to control your blood pressure since that can make complications from diabetes worse. Have your blood pressure checked regularly and have a dilated eye examination on yearly basis, or more often if your eye doctor recommends.

How does high blood pressure affect the eyes?

People with high blood pressure should see their eye doctor on a yearly basis, even if vision seems to be the same. High blood pressure can damage the blood vessels in the eyes, which can cause vision loss due to damage of the retina.

Who is at higher risk?

People with a family history of high blood pressure
African Americans
People over 35
Overweight people
People who use too much salt

People who use too much alcohol
Women who take birth control pills
People who aren’t active
Pregnant women

What can untreated high blood pressure lead to?

Stroke
Heart attack

Heart failure
Kidney failure
Death

What can untreated high blood pressure do to my eyes?

Damage to the blood vessels in the eyes
Blockage of eye blood vessels and permanent damage to the retina

Swelling of the retina and optic nerve
Decreased vision/permanent vision loss

What can I do about it?

Lose weight if you are overweight
Eat a healthy diet that is low in salt and fat
Limit alcohol to no more than two drinks a day

Be more active
Take medicine the way your doctor tells you
Know what your blood pressure should be and work to keep it at that level

*The information provided by this Web site is for educational purposes only. This Web site is not comprehensive on the topics addressed. It is not a substitute for direct consultation with your health care provider. Always consult a licensed professional regarding your specific condition. Any trademarks referred to are the property of their respective owners.