HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
Force of blood pushing against artery walls as the heart pumps
blood through the blood vessels
-Pressure is a stress on
something
-If you have pressure at work,
you’re stressed
-Blood pressure is the stress
on blood vessels
WHY IS HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
HARMFUL?
➤ Heart has to pump harder than
normal to get blood throughout
your body
➤ Heart gets larger and weaker if it
works harder than normal for a
long time
➤ Being overweight or obese
➤ Lack of physical activity
➤ Being sedentary
➤ Drinking too much alcohol
➤ Smoking or chewing tobacco
➤ Being under too much stress
➤ Not taking your prescription medicines as
your doctor advises
➤ Not changing unhealthy habits
Age (men over 35, women over 55)
b. Being African American/Black
c. Having diabetes or kidney disease
d. Having a family history of conditions that increases your risk
Know your blood pressure!
Have it checked at least annually. If it’s elevated, work with your doctor to keep it under control. Having high blood pressure, or hypertension, increases stroke risk four to six times.
115/70 — What does it mean?
➤ First number is called “systolic”
Refers to the peak blood
pressure when the heart is
beating or squeezing out blood
➤ Second number is called “diastolic”
Refers to the blood pressure
when your heart is filling with
blood or resting between beats
What causes a false reading:
➤ a dialysis shunt
➤ a broken bone in your arm
➤ open wounds on the upper arm
➤ rashes where the cuff would wrap
➤ history of mastectomy
➤ If you have the items on one side of your body only, you can use
the other side
When you go to have your blood pressure check, make sure you wait at least 30 minutes after:
➤ Exercising
➤ Eating a large meal
➤ Having a caffeinated drink
➤ Smoking
Systolic-refers to the amount of pressure in your arteries during the contraction of your heart muscle.
Diastolic-refers to your blood pressure when your heart muscle is between beats
mm Hg- stands for millimeters of Mercury. This measurement is used to measure pressure.
