Commonly known cardiovascular disease, Hypertension, also called as high blood pressure, is becoming the matter of worry. We should take this ailment a bit serious since it can lead to other life-threatening complications like heart disease, stroke, and sometimes to death.

Roughly, blood pressure is the force exerted by the blood against artery walls. The high blood pressure is caused by the blood your heart pumps against narrow arteries. It is one of the serious global concerns and determined by both-

• The amount of blood your heart pumps
• The amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries.

Fortunately, it can be diagnosed easily and you can live a normal life in consult with your physician.

Symptoms

Its symptoms are not always recognizable and you can live with high blood pressure for years without even knowing about. Some people have no signs even when blood pressure reaches dangerously high level.

Every year, 17 May is dedicated to World Hypertension Day (WHD). This is an initiative of the World Hypertension League (WHL), an affiliated section of the International Society of Hypertension.

Though, it continues to lesion your arteries and cardiovascular system. If you are a bit certain about your hypertension, checking it regularly is vital. Few common symptoms to be certain about hypertension are as:

• Sweating
• A headache
• Anxiety and dizziness
• Visual changes (blurred or double vision)
• Nosebleeds
• Sleeping problems
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Blood in the urine
• Vomiting

However, some symptoms are the major concerns since their complications could be fatal. It is better not to wait for any of these symptoms to be more triggering.

How to diagnose?

It may take decades to be obvious that you are hypertension patient. People, those who have a family history of heart disease or detected risk factors in regular physical check-up, the physician may recommend having blood pressure checked twice a year.

Contemplating its serious facts, most of the doctors check blood pressure as part of a routine visit. Since blood pressure levels change throughout the day, it is difficult to be sure in one reading only.

Also, read High blood pressure and new treatment guidelines.

In diagnosis, the doctor takes your blood pressure reading. Whether your blood pressure is raised and if so, the doctor may ask you to have more readings over the course of few weeks or days due to its changeable nature. There may be other possible reasons for your unstable or elevated blood pressure such as stress, environment (needle phobia or another phobia), etc.

After going through all initial diagnosis and found your blood pressure still high, the physician will ask you to go through more tests to discover the underlying conditions. These tests could be:

• Urine test
• Ultrasound of your heart or kidneys
• Blood tests
• ECG (Electrocardiography)

They start treatment to avoid later complications but through these tests, they investigate the secondary cause of your increased blood pressure as well the lesion happened to any of your organs.

High blood pressure is considered the first sign of your health condition. Ignoring the high blood pressure may further lead to serious health risk. Hence, it is necessary to take precautionary measures to control it. More focus should be on long-term ways rather than quick fixes to control high blood pressure.

Consider these 8 lifestyle changes you can make to lower your blood pressure.