Sunday, November 11, 2012

3 Possible Causes of High Blood Pressure

By Melissa Hall


It's not always easy to identify the cause of high blood pressure, as there are many elements that can contribute to hypertension, and in some cases it isn't even possible to find a cause. It's important to get your diagnosis and treatment started early to avoid other potentially harmful side effects of hypertension. Knowing the causes can help you avoid them.

While usually not severe, pregnant women often experience high blood pressure. A sudden rise in blood pressure to extreme levels during pregnancy, called preeclampsia, can be dangerous for both mother and baby. A woman with high blood pressure before pregnancy is at a greater risk for preeclampsia but it can still affect a woman with no history of hypertension. For this reason, it's important for women who are pregnant to have their blood pressure monitored. Some families doom their offspring with high blood pressure via genetics. If one or both of your parents, or other family members, have hypertension, you should be especially watchful for this. Since diabetes and kidney problems can also be associated with high blood pressure it's important to make note of these conditions in your family history too. If you want to control your blood pressure it's important to take control of the factors you have control over such as lifestyle. The idea here is that while genetics may play a role in high blood pressure it's a good idea to pay close attention to your disposition to it.

Studies indicate, however, that if you quit smoking, you can improve your health and lower your blood pressure, no matter how long you've been smoking. Stress is another common cause of high blood pressure. All you need to do is learn to process life's little stressors more appropriately to calm your stress levels. For example, you can be very busy and still learn how to relax, or you can be a "Type A" personality and let everything upset you. You are more likely to develop high blood pressure if you tend to be angry, stressed, or tense more often than not. You will need to find some ways to relax and manage these feelings before they have an adverse affect on your health. If you can learn how to relax and reduce stress in your life, you can lower your blood pressure.

Your arteries and blood pressure are actually benefited by the good kind of cholesterol, which is HDL. You can increase the levels of good cholesterol in your body by getting more exercise and eating a healthy diet. Lowering your levels of bad cholesterol is mainly a matter of avoiding unhealthy foods, such as fast food, and most foods that contain processed carbohydrates and trans fats. Good health involves paying attention to many factors, and your blood pressure and cholesterol are among the most important of these.

Because there are many causes of high blood pressure, you should work with your doctor to determine why you may have developed it if you have been diagnosed. Knowing what caused your blood pressure can be a key in figuring out how to control or even reverse it. Because there are many causes of high blood pressure, even if some of the ones mentioned above apply to you, you should still examine your lifestyle and medical history.




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