Blood pressure is the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Each time your heart beats, it pumps out blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic pressure. When your heart rests between beats, it fills with blood and expands. This is called diastolic pressure. Healthy arteries have a smooth, elastic lining that helps keep blood flowing freely through them by expanding and contracting as needed to allow proper blood flow. However, over time, damage to this lining can occur from high cholesterol levels in the bloodstream which leads to hardening and narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis). When atherosclerosis occurs, less flexibility and elasticity are present in the artery walls which causes an increase in resistance to proper blood flow and results in higher blood pressure readings.
There are many factors that can contribute to highbloodpressure including: family history, age, smoking, being overweight or obese, lack of physical activity, too much salt intake, stress and anxiety, kidney disease and sleep apnea. Highbloodpressure can also be caused by certain medications such as birth control pills, cold remedies containing decongestants (such as pseudoephedrine), some over-the-counter pain relievers (such as ibuprofen) and some prescription drugs (such as corticosteroids).
If left untreated or uncontrolled, highbloodpressure can lead to serious health complications such as heart disease (including heart attack), stroke, kidney disease and vision loss. That’s why it’s important to get regular checkups with your doctor and have your blood pressure checked often – at least once every two years starting at age 20 according to recent guidelines from The American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Task Force on Clinical Expert Consensus Documents..