Hypertension

Hypertension does not always cause symptoms, which is why the condition often goes unnoticed. However, there are some signs and symptoms of hypertension (i.e. high blood pressure) to watch out for.

Often, people do not recognise the signs of high blood pressure until they have a stroke or heart attack. High blood pressure is known to be a silent disease that often does not produce obvious symptoms. It is recommended that you regularly check your blood pressure to make sure you spot a dangerous increase early on.There are, however, a few symptoms that occur in people with very high blood pressure. These include: chest pain, light-headedness, shortness of breath, tiredness and vision troubles.

What Are The Symptoms Of High Blood Pressure?
Let’s start with a bit of information on blood pressure and hypertension.When your heart pumps blood through your body, this increases the pressure in your arteries.
Normally, they respond by widening. High blood pressure happens when your arteries have hardened (due to aging, diseases or an unhealthy lifestyle). Hardened arteries do not relax sufficiently. As a result, your blood pressure increases.In other words, your arteries remain relatively narrow even when you have a lot of blood flowing through them. Over the years, the increased pressure on your arteries damages them as well as your heart.
Eventually, high blood pressure can lead to stroke and heart attack.

Symptoms of Hypertension
Hypertension does not commonly cause symptoms. However, in some cases, the following symptoms can occur:
*.Chest pain
*.Vision problems
*.Tiredness
*.Headache
*.Nausea or vomiting
*.Pale skin colour
These symptoms can indicate that you are havinga stroke, in which case you may also experience:
*.Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
*.Ringing or buzzing in the ear
*.Confusion
*.Severe headache
These signs and symptoms
of hypertension usually occur when patients are experiencing a “crisis” or an“emergency” because their high blood pressure has reached dangerously high levels.These signs are also common in people who suffer from a sudden increase in high blood pressure (accelerated hypertension). If you experience any of these symptoms, seek medical help immediately.

Hypertension Statistics - UK
Around the world, hypertension leads to more than 8 million premature deaths each year. In the UK, there are about 62,000 people who die prematurely each year from strokes and heart attacks as a result of high blood pressure. An estimated 7 in 10 people in Britain have increased blood pressure and the condition increasingly affects younger people, too - nearly half of the population under 35.
What these hypertension statistics also show, is that most high blood pressure patients (about a third) are not actually aware that theyhave the condition. This is primarily due to the fact that most of the time, high blood pressure remains symptomless.
Unaware of the condition, patients continue with an unhealthy lifestyle that puts them at risk of stroke, diabetes and other cardiovascular diseases. For this reason, high blood pressure is sometimes referred to as the “silent killer”.

Signs of Stroke
High blood pressure can lead to dangerous emergencies such as stroke. As soon as you recognise one of these symptoms you must seek medical care immediately; if you or any person around you:
*.Has issues speaking clearly and understanding someone else
*.Cannot use his/her arms (e.g. try raising them)
*.Suffers from facial weakness (e.g. drooping eye or mouth, inability to smile)

How to treat hypertension - medications & lifestyle changes
There are two ways to reduce blood pressure:
*.Lifestyle changes: eat healthily (less salt/caffeine/alcohol), quit smoking, lose weight (if you are overweight) and exercise more regularly
*.Medications: control blood pressure and maintain it at a safe level, even though they do not cure the disease.

Medical treatments for hypertension provide an effective protection against stroke, heart attack and other cardiovascular conditions.
However, to effectively treat your hypertension, you will also need to implement substantial lifestyle changes and improve your overall health.

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