Each time your heart beats, it pumps blood into your arteries so they can send oxygen to the rest of your body. Blood pressure is the amount of force used to pump the oxygen-rich blood through your arteries.
When your blood pressure is consistently too high, it’s referred to as hypertension. Hypertension doesn’t present with any symptoms, but having untreated high blood pressure for too long can cause serious damage to your body.
Because hypertension can be so dangerous to your health, Vijaya Nama, MD, and her team in Mesquite, Texas, want you to better understand the condition. This month’s blog explores what you need to know about hypertension, including how it’s diagnosed and managed.
Your arteries are narrow blood vessels that create resistance for blood flow. The more your arteries narrow, the more resistance there is and the higher your blood pressure will be. As this pressure increases, it starts to damage the arteries, raising your risk of serious health conditions such as heart disease and stroke. High blood pressure can also damage other blood vessels and some of your organs.
Even though hypertension can be wreaking havoc on your body, you probably won’t know you have the condition. Only when high blood pressure is incredibly severe will you maybe present with symptoms such as headaches or nosebleeds.
The only way to know you have hypertension is through regular appointments Dr. Nama. We take blood pressure readings during your wellness visits to keep an eye out for elevated levels.
Sometimes hypertension doesn’t have a known cause. It could simply be genetics or your age. In many cases, it’s a combination of the following risk factors:
In addition, having certain medical conditions such as thyroid disease, heart disease, or high cholesterol can make you prone to developing hypertension.
When we take your blood pressure during your primary care visit and you have elevated blood pressure, we make sure to take multiple readings over the next week or so to make sure that you actually have high blood pressure. This is because blood pressure can fluctuate, so we need to confirm that your blood pressure is actually consistently high.
If we do diagnose you with hypertension, we recommend starting with some lifestyle changes to see if those are able to bring down your blood pressure. These include achieving a healthy weight, eating a nutritious diet, cutting down on salt, exercising, and limiting alcohol consumption.
However, if these healthy habits aren’t enough, we may need to prescribe medication. Prescription drugs can keep your blood pressure down in order to protect you from the potential damage of high blood pressure.
If you haven’t had a wellness visit or a blood pressure reading for quite some time, don’t put it off any longer. Schedule an appointment with Dr. Nama her her team by calling your nearest office location or booking an appointment online.
