Why blood pressure increases

You are more likely to be told your blood pressure is too high as you get older. This is because your blood vessels become stiffer as you age. When that happens, your blood pressure goes up. High blood pressure increases your chance of having a stroke, heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease, or early death.

Most of the time, no cause of high blood pressure is found. This is called essential hypertension. High blood pressure that is caused by another medical condition or medicine you are taking is called secondary hypertension. Secondary hypertension may be due to:. Most of the time, there are no symptoms. For most people, high blood pressure is found when they visit their health care provider or have it checked elsewhere.

Because there are no symptoms, people can develop heart disease and kidney problems without knowing they have high blood pressure. Malignant hypertension is a dangerous form of very high blood pressure. Symptoms may include:. Diagnosing high blood pressure early can help prevent heart disease, stroke, eye problems, and chronic kidney disease. Your provider will measure your blood pressure many times before diagnosing you with high blood pressure. It is normal for your blood pressure to be different based on the time of day.

All adults over the age of 18 should have their blood pressure checked every year. More frequent measurements may be needed for those with a history of high blood pressure readings or those with risk factors for high blood pressure. Blood pressure readings taken at home may be a better measure of your current blood pressure than those taken at your provider's office. Your provider will do a physical exam to look for signs of heart disease, damage to the eyes, and other changes in your body.

The goal of treatment is to reduce your blood pressure so that you have a lower risk of health problems caused by high blood pressure. You and your provider should set a blood pressure goal for you. Whenever thinking about the best treatment for high blood pressure, you and your provider must consider other factors such as:. When thinking about the best treatment, you and your provider must consider:. Your provider will most likely start you on medicines and recommend lifestyle changes.

Before making a final diagnosis of either elevated blood pressure or high blood pressure, your provider should ask you to have your blood pressure measured at home, at your pharmacy, or somewhere else besides their office or a hospital. You can also get a referral to a dietitian, who can help you plan a diet that is healthy for you.

How low your blood pressure should be and at what level you need to start treatment is individualized, based on your age and any medical problems you have. Most of the time, your provider will try lifestyle changes first, and check your blood pressure two or more times. Medicines will likely be started if your blood pressure readings remain at or above these levels:.

If you have diabetes, heart problems, or a history of a stroke, medicines may be started at lower blood pressure reading. There are many different medicines to treat high blood pressure.

Even if you have not been diagnosed with high blood pressure, it is important to have your blood pressure checked during your regular check-up, especially if someone in your family has or had high blood pressure. They can also look at the effects high blood pressure may have had on your organs.

During this time, your doctor may begin treating your hypertension. Early treatment may reduce your risk of lasting damage. A number of factors help your doctor determine the best treatment option for you. These factors include which type of hypertension you have and what causes have been identified. If your doctor diagnoses you with primary hypertension, lifestyle changes may help reduce your high blood pressure.

If your doctor discovers an underlying issue causing your hypertension, treatment will focus on that other condition. Sometimes, hypertension is persistent despite treatment for the underlying cause.

In this case, your doctor may work with you to develop lifestyle changes and prescribe medications to help reduce your blood pressure. Treatment plans for hypertension often evolve. What worked at first may become less useful over time. Your doctor will continue to work with you to refine your treatment. Many people go through a trial-and-error phase with blood pressure medications.

Your doctor may need to try different medications until they find one or a combination that works for you. Healthy lifestyle changes can help you control the factors that cause hypertension. Here are some of the most common ones. A heart-healthy diet is vital for helping to reduce high blood pressure. These complications include heart disease, stroke, and heart attack. In addition to helping you lose weight if your doctor has recommended it , exercise can help lower blood pressure naturally, and strengthen your cardiovascular system.

Aim to get minutes of moderate physical activity each week. If you regularly consume too much alcohol or have an alcohol dependency, seek help to reduce the amount you drink or stop altogether. Drinking alcohol in excess can raise blood pressure. If you have risk factors for hypertension, you can take steps now to lower your risk for the condition and its complications. Slowly work your way up to eating more servings of heart-healthy plants.

Aim to eat more than seven servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Then aim to add one more serving per day for 2 weeks. After those 2 weeks, aim to add one more serving. The goal is to have 10 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Try to limit the amount of sugar-sweetened foods, like flavored yogurts, cereals, and sodas, you eat on a daily basis. Packaged foods hide unnecessary sugar, so be sure to read labels. People living with hypertension and those with an increased risk for heart disease may be advised by their doctor to keep their daily sodium intake between 1, milligrams and 2, milligrams per day.

The best way to reduce sodium is to cook fresh foods more often and limit the amount of fast food or prepackaged food you eat, which can sometimes be very high in sodium.

If your doctor has recommended you lose weight, talk with them about an optimal weight loss goal for you. This can be achieved through a more nutritious diet and increased physical exercise. Employing the help of a trainer or fitness app, and possibly even a dietician, are all methods to help you learn how to make the best choices for your body and your lifestyle.

Keep a log of your blood pressure readings and take it to your regular doctor appointments. This can help your doctor see any possible problems before the condition advances. People with hypertension can deliver healthy babies despite having the condition. People with high blood pressure who become pregnant are more likely to develop complications. For example, pregnant women with hypertension may experience decreased kidney function.

Babies born to birthing parents with hypertension may have a low birth weight or be born prematurely. Some people may develop hypertension during their pregnancies. Several types of high blood pressure problems can develop. The condition often reverses itself once the baby is born. Developing hypertension during pregnancy may increase your risk for developing hypertension later in life.

In some cases, pregnant people with hypertension may develop preeclampsia during their pregnancy. This condition of increased blood pressure can cause kidney and other organ complications. This can result in high protein levels in the urine, problems with liver function, fluid in the lungs, or visual problems. Most people who have high blood pressure do not have symptoms.

Some people experience headaches, nosebleeds, or shortness of breath with high blood pressure. However, those symptoms can mimic many other things serious or non-serious. Usually, these symptoms occur once blood pressure has reached a dangerously high level over a period of time. Food, medicine, lifestyle, age, and genetics can cause high blood pressure. Your doctor can help you find out what might be causing yours. Common factors that can lead to high blood pressure include:.

High blood pressure is diagnosed with a blood pressure monitor. This is a common test for all doctor visits. A nurse will place a band cuff around your arm. The band is attached to a small pump and a meter. He or she will squeeze the pump. It will feel tight around your arm. Then he or she will stop and watch the meter. This provides the nurse with 2 numbers that make up your blood pressure.

The top number is your systolic reading the peak blood pressure when your heart is squeezing blood out. The higher your blood pressure is, the more often you need to have it checked. After age 18, have your blood pressure checked at least once every two years. Do it more often if you have had high blood pressure in the past. If your high blood pressure is caused by lifestyle factors, you can take steps to reduce your risk:.

If your high blood pressure is caused by disease or the medicine you take, talk to your doctor. He or she may be able to prescribe a different medicine. Additionally, treating any underlying disease such as controlling your diabetes can help reduce your high blood pressure. The best way to lower blood pressure begins with changes you can make to your lifestyle to help lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of heart disease.

Additionally, your doctor may prescribe medicine to lower your blood pressure. These are called antihypertensive medicines. The goal of treatment is to reduce your blood pressure to normal levels. This treatment is highly successful. It is common to need more than one medicine to help control your blood pressure.

Otherwise, you may increase your risk of having a stroke or heart attack. Controlling your high blood pressure is a lifelong commitment. You will always need to monitor your weight, make healthy food choices, exercise, learn to cope with stress, avoid smoking, and limit your alcohol intake. If you need medicine to control your high blood pressure, you will likely need it all your life. Additionally, you will need to get used to regular blood pressure checks. Your doctor may want you to come to the office regularly.

Or you may be asked to check your blood pressure at home and keep track of your numbers for your doctor. Some pharmacies and retail clinics have blood pressure machines on site.

You can buy your own, automated arm blood pressure cuff for use at home.