Diseases related to our cardiovascular system have become the greatest risk to our health, especially as we age. Monitoring this health involves monitoring many factors, but keeping some of these factors under control is up to us.
What is it and why is it important?
Blood pressure refers to the level of pressure with which the blood circulates through the bloodstream. When these pathways constrict for some reason, the blood has less room to circulate, which increases blood pressure.
Pressure is used as a measure of the state of health of our cardiovascular system, since high pressures are related to failures of this. Keeping an eye on this measurement allows health professionals to intervene preventively to avoid life-threatening diseases.
It must be taken into account that heart diseases are usually among the main causes of mortality in developed countries, and especially among the elderly.
Milimeters of mercury.
The unit of measurement used to measure blood pressure is millimeters of mercury (mmHg or mmHg). It is not a standard metric unit of pressure, but can be converted to it, being equivalent to just over 0.133 kilopascals (kPa).
This measurement is due to the fact that blood pressure used to be measured with mercury sphygmomanometerswhich today is no longer common (as in the case of thermometers).
The blood pressure measurement is actually double. On the one hand, the maximum pressure reached when the heart pumps blood, the systolic pressure, is measured; and on the other, the minimum pressure of our arteries when the heart receives blood instead of pushing it, the diastolic pressure.
Different levels of hypertension.
As usual if we want to take into account the diversity in people, there may be variations in what is considered a normal pressure, but it is usual for a blood pressure below 120 and 80 mm Hg of systolic and diastolic pressure to be considered normal respectively.
A blood pressure slightly above 120 mm Hg but below 130 can already begin to be considered elevated. Hypertension can begin to be diagnosed between 130 and 140 mm Hg. Something similar occurs with diastolic pressure, with levels that could be considered normal-high up to 90 mm Hg and hypertension appearing at that point.
Hypotension: pressure that is too low.
Less dangerous than hypertension, low blood pressure or hypotension also carries its risks. In this case, the normal thing is that the tension does not drop below 90 and 60 mm Hg. Low blood pressure can cause mild symptoms like dizziness and fainting, but it can also have more serious consequences, even potentially lethal.
Take the control.
Keeping an eye on our blood pressure is just part of the job of getting it under control. There are guides for both prevention of hypertension as for its best management once it appears, although the key is, as usual, to prevent.
Of course, each body is unique, but there is a great consensus on what the key habits are when it comes to approaching healthy levels, and one of them is exercise. Avoiding a sedentary lifestyle and staying active on a daily basis can help, for example walking. The regular aerobic exercise can also be recommended there are guides on how to improve our physical activity, but consulting a specialist is also not out of place.
Healthy nutrition.
The next recommendation is also well known and is to eat healthy. In addition to the usual advice (increasing our consumption of fruit and vegetables, reducing that of ultra-processed foods and sugars) there are some dietary guidelines that are related to improving heart health, specifically reducing salt in our diet.
To help with this task, it is a good idea to increase our potassium intake. this item works as an electrolyte and is capable of counteracting part of the effects of sodium, in addition to help keep our heart rate steady.
Finally the fiber intake It has also been related to better cardiovascular health, in this case not because of its interaction with salt but because it keeps more stable our sugar levels in blood
Tobacco, alcohol and other risk factors.
Although tobacco use is often associated with poorer lung health and especially cancer, this habit can also harm our cardiovascular health. That is why it is recommended not smoking as a preventive measure.
Similarly, although we associate alcohol with liver problems, its consumption is not recommended either, although in this case there is some room for very moderate consumption.
There are more factors of our health that can be linked to our blood pressure and thus to our heart health, such as having diabetes or our body mass, being overweight is one of the best known risk factors along with age, the genetic and habits.
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