13 risk factors of high blood pressure

Hypertension, commonly known as high blood pressure, is a serious condition that can lead to cardiac arrest or heart attack, stroke, heart, kidney failure, blindness and more.

South Africa has one of the highest rates of hypertension worldwide, with an estimated 6.3 million people diagnosed as currently living with the condition – that’s one in three South African adults suffering from high blood pressure right now.

Increasing the severity of the situation is the fact that many more people remain undiagnosed, hence it can be assumed that the true number may be significantly higher. It is important that one checks their blood pressure regularly, especially if there is a positive family history.

Blood pressure is determined both by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure. You can have high blood pressure for years without any symptoms.

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Even without symptoms, damage to blood vessels and your heart continues and can be detected. Uncontrolled high blood pressure increases your risk of serious health problems, including heart attack and stroke. Although high blood pressure is most common in adults, children may be at risk, too.

For some children, high blood pressure is caused by problems with the kidneys or heart. But for a grow- ing number of kids, poor lifestyle habits, such as an unhealthy diet, obesity and lack of exercise contribute to high blood pressure. Most people with high blood pressure have no signs or symptoms, even if blood pressure readings reach dangerously high levels.

A few people with high blood pressure may have headaches, shortness of breath or nosebleeds, but these signs and symptoms aren’t specific and usually don’t occur until high blood pressure has reached a severe or life-threatening stage.

If you have persistent unexplained headaches it might be worth it to get your blood pressure checked, since none of the symptoms are specific to the condition.

Risk factors

The following factors increase the risk of one developing hypertension:

• Age. The risk increases with age. At around age 45, high blood pressure is more common in men. Women are more likely to develop high blood pressure after age 65.
• Race. High blood pressure is particularly common among blacks, often developing at an earlier age than it does in whites. Serious complications, such as stroke, heart attack and kidney failure, also are more common in blacks.
• Family history. High blood pressure tends to run in families. Therefore it is important that if a family member has it, you check it regularly with your local clinic.
• Certain medications, such as birth control pills, cold remedies, decongestants, over-the-counter pain relievers and some prescription drugs
• Illegal drugs, such as cocaine and amphetamines.
• Being overweight or obese. The more you weigh, the more blood you need to supply oxygen and nutrients to your tissues. As the volume of blood circulated through your blood vessels increases, so does the pressure on your artery walls.
• Not being physically active. People who are inactive tend to have higher heart rates. The higher your heart rate, the harder your heart must work with each contraction and the stronger the force on your arteries. Lack of physical activity also increases the risk of being overweight.
• Using tobacco. Tobacco can damage the lining of your artery walls. This can cause your arteries to narrow, increasing your blood pressure. Even second-hand smoke can increase your blood pressure.
• Too much salt (sodium) in your diet. Too much sodium in your diet can cause your body to retain fluid, which increases blood pressure.
• Too little potassium in your diet. Potassium helps balance the amount of sodium in your cells. If you don’t get enough potassium in your diet or retain enough potassium, you may accumulate too much sodium in your blood.
• Drinking too much alcohol. Over time, heavy drinking can damage your heart. Having more than two drinks a day for men and more than one drink a day for women may affect your blood pressure.
• Stress. High levels of stress can lead to a temporary increase in blood pressure. If you try to relax by eating more, using tobacco or drinking alcohol, you may only increase problems with high blood pressure.
• Certain chronic conditions also may increase your risk of high blood pressure, such as kidney disease, diabetes and sleep apnoea.
• Pregnancy can contribute to high blood pressure, as well. Some women will develop what is called gestational hypertension during pregnancy, which will go away once the baby is born. In some women, hypertension can first be detected in pregnancy and stay on as a chronic condition.

Lifestyle and hypertension

As much as hypertension is hereditary but it is largely a disease of poor lifestyle choices and one that can be better managed using simple diet and behaviour changes.

A normal blood pressure number is below 120/80, prehypertension is diagnosed between 120/80 – 139/89, Stage 1 hypertension is between 140/90 – 159/99, and Stage 2 hypertension is blood pressure above 160/100. Much like high cholesterol, elevated blood pressure (even in the prehypertension stage) is a sure sign of other problems going on in the body and should be managed.

By addressing underlying issues with diet and lifestyle changes, you may be able to reduce your blood pressure without resorting to drug treatment. One of the most important contributors to high blood pressure is high blood sugar and insulin resistance. There is evidence to show that pathological changes in glucose and insulin metabolism significantly affect the development and clinical course of hypertension, and thus should be primary targets for dietary intervention.