Blood pressure is the pressure at which blood flows through tiny tubes (vessels) around the body and it is measured in two numbers. The top one is the pressure at which blood is pumped out of the heart while the lower one is the pressure at which blood flows back into the heart from the body when your heart relaxes.
It is important this pressure is within a normal range. For most adults, the average normal blood pressure is 120/80. Anyone can measure their blood pressure at home using a blood pressure home measurement kit.
If your blood pressure is continuously higher than normal, it is very important that you see a doctor who will be able to tell you if you have hypertension, a condition brought about when you have persistently high blood pressure.
It is very important you get treatment for hypertension because if left untreated, you stand a high risk of having the long-term effects of hypertension such as:
-
- Damage to blood vessels in the brain leading to a stroke
- Damage to blood vessels in the eyes causing sudden or gradual deterioration of your eyesight
- Damage to blood vessels in the heart leads to the risk of heart failure and heart attack
- Damage to blood vessels in the kidneys leads to kidney failure later in life.
Here are a few things you can do at home if you have raised blood pressure however, it is still important to get personalised health advice from your doctor:
-
- Try a nutritionally balanced diet
- Take regular exercise for example swimming running walking for at least 150 mins weekly
- Stop smoking
- Reduce your caffeine intake
- Reduce your salt intake
- Reduce your alcohol intake
What is a nutritionally balanced diet?
-
- 5 portions of fruit and vegetables daily
- Starchy food high in fibre (bread, pasta, rice, potatoes)
- Low-Fat dairy products (milk and cheese)
- A small amount of protein (egg)
It is also important to grill or steam your food instead of frying it.
You can register here for personalised healthcare from us and consult online with any of our doctors about your health issues.