We know our blood pressure shouldn’t be too high or too low, but what exactly is it and why is it important?
“When your heart beats, it pumps blood around your body to give it the energy and oxygen it needs,” says Blood Pressure UK. “As the blood moves, it pushes against the sides of the blood vessels. The strength of this pushing is your blood pressure. If your blood pressure is too high, it puts extra strain on your arteries (and your heart) and this may lead to heart attacks and strokes.”
Blood pressure is important because without it, “oxygen and nutrients would not be pushed around our circulatory system to nourish tissues and organs,” Medical News Today provides. “Blood pressure is also vital because it delivers white blood cells and antibodies for immunity, and hormones such as insulin. … The fresh blood that gets delivered is able to pick up the toxic waste products of metabolism, including the carbon dioxide we exhale with every breath, and the toxins we clear through our liver and kidneys.”
Blood pressure is responsible for a lot more than we’d think. It plays a vital role in maintaining good health. Because of this, we can be in danger if our blood pressure is too high or too low.
Blood pressure is read in two numbers, systolic and diastolic. The American Heart Association (AHA) defines these two pressures as:
- Systolic blood pressure (the first number) – indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls when the heart beats
- Diastolic blood pressure (the second number) – indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls while the heart is resting between beats
They claim that anything no higher than 120/80 is in the normal range. Anything between 120-130 is considered elevated blood pressure. If you have blood pressure between 130-139/80-89 then you have high blood pressure and are in hypertension stage 1. A systolic number of 140 or higher and a diastolic number of 90 or higher is in hypertension stage 2. If you have a reading of 180/90 or higher you are in hypertensive crisis and should see a doctor immediately.
The AHA also says that the systolic blood pressure is usually given more attention because an abnormal number is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease for people over the age of 50, but both an “elevated systolic or an elevated diastolic blood pressure reading may be used to make a diagnosis of high blood pressure.”
If you let your blood pressure go awry, you’ll be at risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), such as heart attack or stroke.
Fortunately, there are many ways to ensure your blood pressure is in its proper range like medication and healthy lifestyle practices. These include maintaining a normal body weight, changing your diet, exercising regularly, and more.
Sources:
http://www.bloodpressureuk.org/BloodPressureandyou/Thebasics/Bloodpressure
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/270644#tips
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/high-blood-pressure/understanding-blood-pressure-readings