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Basics of Blood Pressure
Basics of blood pressure are not too hard to understand. The heart works like a pump pushing blood out through arteries down to capillaries. The blood goes around your body and comes back to the heart through veins. The force that is applied to push your blood out is called blood pressure. The pressure is typically higher when the blood is pushed out of the heart. At this high point, it is called systolic pressure. The blood pressure is called diastolic when it is at its lowest level. That happens before the heart is ready to push the blood out. Regular blood pressure measurements indicate the readings of both - systolic and diastolic levels.
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Blood pressure is measured in milliliters of mercury (abbreviated to mmHg). The two measures are recorded side by side to each other, for example 120/70. The first number indicated systolic pressure, and the second number indicates diastolic pressure. The way you would say the reading in the above example is 120 over 70.
Blood pressure goes through a number of fluctuations depending on your daily activities. A person is most likely to experience the highest levels of blood pressure while exercising, standing up, and going through stressful time. The lowest blood pressure has been documented during rest and sleep. That is when you are most relaxed and your activity level is reduced to the minimum. It is not unusual that your blood pressure will fluctuate up to 40 mmHg depending on what you are doing throughout the day. Knowing this makes it important to try and standardize the conditions in which your blood pressure is measured. Otherwise, it may be difficult to explain the variations in your blood pressure readings.
The person gets diagnosed with hypertension or high blood pressure once his or her systolic pressure reaches 140 and above. Such condition puts an extra demand on your heart requiring extra strength to keep pushing the blood out of the heart. Simultaneously, you are at a greater risk to develop heart and kidney failure and have other adverse effects.
High blood pressure is curable if attended to in a timely manner. Pre-hypertension can be lowered with low-sodium diet and daily exercise. High blood pressure levels need doctor's advice and it is very likely that you may have to take prescribed medication for it. If this is the case, there is a number of appropriate drugs available that will help you lower blood pressure depending on each individual case. Some of these drugs include diuretics, alpha and beta blockers, and drugs of the CCB group.
Find out more about the factors leading up to hypertension. By increasing your awareness on such matters, you will be able to avoid risks surrounding this serious disease. The more you know the more action you will be able to take if it ever affects you. - Basics of blood pressure
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