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Understanding High Blood Pressure
Many people don’t understand blood pressure and what their goal blood pressure should be. Here’s a primer:
Systolic blood pressure is the pressure in the arteries when the blood is being pumped to the body. Normal systolic pressure is <120 mmHg (which stands for millimeters of mercury). Readings between 120 - 139 mmHg are considered prehypertension.
Diastolic blood pressure is the pressure in the arteries when the heart is at rest or relaxed, between beats. Normal diastolic pressure is <80 mmHg. Readings between 80 – 89 mmHg are considered prehypertension.
When blood pressure exceeds either 140 systolic, 90 diastolic or both, it is defined as high blood pressure (also called hypertension). The majority of people with prehypertension will develop hypertension as they age.
Seventy-two million Americans (nearly one in three adults) suffer from hypertension, which is the major cause of strokes, heart attacks and heart disease. Yet, approximately one-third of them don’t realize they have the condition. High blood pressure does not have noticeable symptoms and it is often called “the silent killer”. Seventy percent of people living with hypertension do not have it controlled, despite the wide availability of medication.
Hypertension has traditionally been treated medications, such as diuretics (often called “water pills”), ACE inhibitors, beta blockers, calcium channel inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs). Lifestyle changes, including adopting a proper diet and exercising regularly, are also recommended for the treatment of high blood pressure.
RESPeRATE is a non-drug way to help you lower your blood pressure naturally, without the costly side effects and inconvenience of many drugs.
Information gathered from the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection and Treatment of High Blood Pressure, National Institutes of Health, 2004
Join in on interesting and helpful discussions in our vibrant online community. You’ll learn how others are dealing with their hypertension and gain valuable insight on controlling your own blood pressure. Take a look at the most recent post from our User Forum:
Forum - RESPeRATE User Reviews
Topic - Starting Breath rate
I start using my Reperate in the 4-5 breaths per minute range and end up around 2.9 BPM. Am I making a mistake with this approach? It is comfortable for me. It's easy to breathe 4-5 BPM. I feel the slower the better for the blood pressure control, but...
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Your questions about high blood pressure are answered by our board certified doctor. Browse through hundreds of helpful answers or ask your own question in our Ask Dr. Rowena page. Here’s a recent question:.
Diabetes and impotence
Topic - Sex
Q: I'm 72 years old, strong and still working as a music teacher. I take 1000 mg metformin for diabetes, eat well, weigh 198 lbs. What is causing my impotence? Is it just age related? A: Since you are on metformin, I am assuming you are diabetic. Even though you are strong, you have a sedentary occupation. You didn’t give your height but most people who weigh 198 pounds are at least overweight if not obese. Based on this, it is likely your impotence is caused by vascular damage from uncontrolled diabetes. Please accept my apology...
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For an interesting collection of information, blogs and news about hypertension, visit our All About Hypertension page. Take a look at a recent snippet:
The Minimal Impact of a Big Hypertension Study
Topic - The Minimal Impact of a Big Hypertension Study
(The New York Times) The surprising news made headlines in December 2002. Generic pills for high blood pressure, which had been in use since the 1950s and cost only pennies a day, worked better than newer drugs that were up to 20 times as expensive. The findings, from one of the biggest clinical trials ever organized by the federal government, promised to save the nation billions of dollars in treating the tens of millions of Americans with hypertension — even if the conclusions did seem to threaten pharmaceutical giants like Pfizer that were making big money on blockbuster hypertension drugs.
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