High Blood Pressure / Hypertension causes and prevention

 

Many people have high blood pressure for years without knowing it. Uncontrolled high blood pressure can lead to stroke, heart attack, heart failure or kidney failure. The only way to tell if you have high blood pressure is to have your blood pressure checked. According to recent estimates, one in four U.S. adults has high blood pressure, but because there are no symptoms, nearly one-third of these people don't even know they have it. This is why high blood pressure is often called the "silent killer."

Blood pressure is the force blood exerts on the walls of the arteries as the heart pumps it through the arteries. An increase in the blood volume pumped from the heart would increase blood pressure & cause blood vessels to dilate. It is measured as the systole & diastole pressures where systole blood pressure (SBP) accounts for the pressure when the heart contracts (resulting in a heart beat) whereas the latter (DBP) accounts for the pressure when the heart relaxes. Represented as 130/80mm Hg where the SBP is 130 mm Hg & 80 mm Hg is the DBP.

A normal reading should be 130/80mm Hg & below. When blood pressure is up, the reading would be above 140/90mm Hg.

What causes high Blood pressure  / Hypertension 

What can trigger hypertension? Excess alcohol, obesity & stress. Other possible triggers : air pollution, perfume, tobacco smoke, food allergens (like coffee, chocolate, milk, sugar, salt, wheat & nuts). People with BMI (Body Mass Index) greater than 25 are more likely to develop high blood pressure. 

In 90 to 95 percent of high blood pressure cases, the cause is unknown. In fact, you can have high blood pressure for years without knowing it. That's why it's the silent killer -- it creeps up on you. When the cause is unknown, you have what's called essential or primary hypertension. Factors that may lead to high blood pressure in the remaining 5-10 percent of cases, which are known as secondary hypertension, include:

• Kidney abnormality
• A structural abnormality of the aorta (large blood vessel leaving the heart) existing since birth
• Narrowing of certain arteries

According to a study at the Yale University School of Medicine, the use of medications containing phenylpropanolamine (PPA) may increase the risk of a stroke. PPA is a common decongestant found mainly in cold-cough medications as well as slimming products. People with hypertension should avoid taking PPA

Symptoms of High Blood Pressure

Symptoms of high blood pressure are almost non-existent. Although some patients complain of dizziness, headaches or blurred vision, most patients only discover they need hypertension treatment when their blood pressure is taken.

What does high Blood pressure  / Hypertension do to your body?

High blood pressure adds to the workload of your heart and arteries. Your heart must pump harder, and the arteries carry blood that's moving under greater pressure. If high blood pressure continues for a long time, your heart and arteries may not function as well as they should. Other body organs may also be affected. There is increased risk of stroke, congestive heart failure, kidney failure and heart attack. When high blood pressure exists with obesity, smoking, high blood cholesterol levels or diabetes, the risk of heart attack or stroke increases several times.

What about low Blood pressure  ?
Within certain limits, the lower your blood pressure reading is, the better. In most people, blood pressure isn't too low until it produces symptoms, such as lightheadedness or fainting. In certain disease states, it's possible for blood pressure to be too low. Examples include:

• Certain nerve disorders or endocrine disorders
• Prolonged bed rest
• Decreases in blood volume due to severe bleeding (hemorrhage) or dehydration

What can help prevent hypertension? A low-carbohydrate, low-fat, low-salt, high-fibre diet, quitting smoking, consuming fresh garlic or garlic tablets.

Blood pressure / Hypertension Treatment

The goal of treatment for most patients is to lower the systolic blood pressure below 140 mm Hg and the diastolic blood pressure below 90 mm Hg. In some patients, such as those with diabetes, it is recommended that blood pressure be lowered even further, to a systolic pressure below 130 mm Hg and a diastolic pressure below 85 mm Hg.

Treatment for high blood pressure involves life-style modification and drug therapy (or pharmacological therapy) .

Life style modification
In some patients, particularly those whose blood pressure is moderately elevated, life style modifications alone may achieve treatment goals. Patients who require pharmacological therapy may reduce the number and doses of medications through life style modification. The following modifications in diet and physical activity should be discussed with a doctor or health care provider.

• Weight loss. Overweight patients can reduce blood pressure by losing weight. Gradual weight loss through modified calorie intake and increased physical activity is a good approach. A goal of losing 10-15 pounds is reasonable for many patients.
• Physical activity. Regular, moderate aerobic exercise can modestly decrease blood pressure and has many other beneficial effects. A program of gradually increased activity is most prudent, such as taking a brisk, 20-30 minute walk, 3-5 times a week. All persons with chest pain (angina) and known or suspected heart disease should talk to their doctor before beginning a exercise program.
• Salt (sodium chloride) restriction. Excessive salt intake can contribute to hypertension in some people. Even modest restriction of salt may decrease blood pressure. Generally, many doctors advise those with high blood pressure to avoid salty food and to limit daily sodium intake to no more than approximately 2.4 grams. 
• Alcohol consumption. Moderate alcohol intake (one or two glasses of an alcoholic beverage a day) does not appear to cause hypertension; however, chronic heavy alcohol use elevates blood pressure. This is the most common reversible cause of high blood pressure. Therefore, hypertension patients who drink alcohol excessively should discuss this issue with their health care provider and reduce their consumption of alcohol.

Treatment with Drugs

Blood pressure = Resistance of artery x cardiac output.

Reducing cardiac output

The drugs responsible for a cardiac output reduction are called beta-adrenoreceptor blocking drugs; these drugs are very effective in reducing the blood pressure and have, moreover, a protective effect on the heart.

Their principle is to decrease the cardiac output by decreasing the frequency of the heart. Thus, these drugs must be supervised regularly because they slow down the heart rate in a very significant way.

They are excellent products for the patients who have had a myocardial infarction or who present an angina pectoris. Nevertheless, they are contra-indicated in the case of a very low heart rate, of cardiac insufficiency, asthma, chronic bronchiolitis obliterans and in the case of a dead hand.

Their undesirable side-effects are represented by a tiredness, a cooling of the limbs, digestive disorders, impotence, insomnia and nightmares. It is very important not to stop this treatment suddenly. Generally, only one tablet per day is prescribed, in the morning.

Principal beta-blockers are: the atenolol, the acebutalol, the propranolol, the celiprolol, the metoprolol, the pindolol, the nadolol, the carteolol, the esmolol, the timolol, the penbutolol, the bisoprolol, and the betaxolol.

Relaxation of the peripheral artery 

These drugs, still called calcium blocker or calcium channel antagonist, are frequently employed because of their low number of counter-indications. Their undesirable side-effects consist of oedemas of the lower limbs (especially ankles), headaches and hot flushes.

The principal calcium antagonist therapies in France are: the nifedipine, the nitrendipine, the diltiazem, the lacipidine, the félodipine, the amlodipine, the nicardipine, the verapamil, and the bépridil.

Drugs that act on the cerebral receptor

Many drugs will reduce the blood pressure by acting directly on the cerebral receptor, which controls the blood pressure: these drugs are called central alpha agonist.

Their principal side-effects consist of: somnolence, sedation, dry mouth, impotence and galactorrhea.

 

 

 Measuring Blood Pressure

The device of measurement includes an inflatable cuff, a dial of measurement and a stethoscope.

The principle of measurement consists in recording not the blood pressure directly in the artery but the arterial counter pressure by squeezing the artery on which the pressure is measured. 

The doctor uses cuff (or an arm-band), which will be gradually filled with air to press the artery below. The doctor listens to, using his stethoscope, to the noise emitted by blood at the time of its passage in the artery.

When the band is sufficiently inflated to compress the artery that is below, blood cannot pass any more and the doctor thus does not perceive any noise. Then, the cuff is gradually deflated and the noise now perceived defines the maximal blood pressure (systolic blood pressure). As the band carries on its deflation, the noise of the artery disappears again and the physician measures the pressure corresponding now to the minimal (diastolic blood pressure).

False Blood pressure 

Certain people get a false high blood pressure for several reasons: the size of the cuff, which could be too small compared to the circumference of the arm, or the conditions of measurement of the blood pressure are not good (period of stress, absence of rest before the measurement of arterial pressure).

 

Homeopathic remedies for Hypertension

Lachesis: Main remedy for Hypertension. Patient is worse on walking. Sleeps into an aggravation. Restlessness. Can't bear tight clothes. This remedy should be tried first. Give in 1M potency once in a month.

Aurum Met: Due to suppressed anger or resentment. Over sensitiveness. Roaring in head; violent headache; fear of death; palpitation; hopelessness and despondency.

Aconite: Palpitation; great anxiety; pulse full, strong, hard.

Allium Sativa: Suitable for fleshy people who eat a lot especially non-vegetarians. This remedy has vaso-dilatory properties. Fall in blood pressure begins usually 30 to 45 minutes after 20 to 40 drops doses of mother tincture.

Natrum Mur: For patients who have craving for salt and who worry a lot. Suppressed anger. 200 of higher potencies are usually better.

Gelsemium: When due to sudden shock provoked by bad news. 1M.

Ignatia: Due to disappointments or grief. 200.

Lycopodium: For low blood pressure and weakness.

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