Did you know that in the UK alone, around 1 in 3 people have high blood pressure? And on average, high blood pressure can cost the NHS around £2.1 billion just to manage, that’s a lot! What’s even more alarming is that up to 5 million adults every year in the UK are undiagnosed with high blood pressure and many are high at risk.
That’s just high blood pressure; low blood pressure is also equally dangerous, contributing to reduced oxygen to the brain, dizziness, organ failure, organ damage and increased risk of falls and a lot more.
But trust us, you don’t want to have high or low blood pressure. The best way is to be in between. Today, learn everything you need to know about blood pressure, effects and causes of unhealthy blood pressure and ways to live a lifestyle to support healthy blood pressure.
What is blood pressure?
Blood pressure is the force of blood that pushes against the walls of the arteries, causing the blood to pump around the body. It is typically recorded between two numbers: systolic (maximum pressure) and diastolic (minimum pressure). On average, a healthy normal blood pressure at rest is between 90/60 mmHg and 120/80mg. If it’s outside of this, it can often be seen as unhealthy.
Causes of unhealthy blood pressure
There’s more than one reason why blood pressure can be unhealthy. Here are 6 reasons why:
A lack of physical exercise
If you don’t participate in regular physical activity, there’s a higher chance of your arteries becoming stiffer and narrower, restricting blood flow and causing muscles to weaken and more difficult to circulate blood around your body, and causing elevated blood pressure. A lack of daily exercise can greatly increase your hypertension risk up to 50%, making you more likely to experience high blood pressure.
Unhealthy diet
One of the main culprits of unhealthy blood pressure is an unhealthy diet. Especially if you eat a diet full of processed foods, i.e., salt, which needs extra water to flush it out. The more water in your body, the more stress is placed on your heart and vessels, causing higher blood pressure.
Diabetes
If you have diabetes, there’s a likelihood you could have twice the risk of having unhealthy high blood pressure. This is because diabetes can cause blood vessels to be damaged, slowing down kidney function and causing a resistance to insulin, creating fluid retention and narrowing arteries. High amounts of glucose in the blood can cause fatty build-up, making your body retain sodium and increasing blood volume.
Excessive alcohol consumption
If you frequently drink too much alcohol, i.e., more than 14 units a week, there’s a high chance of having unhealthy blood pressure. Too much alcohol can increase blood pressure, tighten blood vessels, add stress hormones and put strain on the heart.
Smoking
Another major cause of unhealthy blood pressure is smoking. This is often due to the nicotine in the cigarette triggering the release of two major hormones, epinephrine and norepinephrine, increasing blood pressure.
Genetics
One factor of having an unhealthy blood pressure is if you have a family history of high blood pressure (hypertension). Research shows that high blood pressure can account for 30-50% of cases and isn’t typically caused by a single gene but a combination of genes and lifestyle factors.
Effects of unhealthy blood pressure
Having an unhealthy blood pressure can put your body at risk of:
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Heart attacks
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Strokes
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Heart disease
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Vascular dementia
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Kidney disease
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Heart failure
Staying on top of your blood pressure levels can greatly reduce the risk of this happening.
Ways to support healthy blood pressure
In order to live a good quality of life, you should never let your blood pressure levels escape the normal range. To maintain healthy levels within range, try doing the following:
- Eat a healthy, balanced diet
- Exercise for at least 150 minutes a week
- Don’t eat processed foods high in sodium
- Limit your alcohol intake
- Do not smoke
- Reduce your caffeine intake
Final thoughts
To summarise, having an unhealthy blood pressure can have a major impact on the quality of your life. If unmanaged, you’re at greater risk of experiencing heart disease, stroke, heart failure, dementia, kidney disease and much more!
While there are some contributing factors such as age, family history and diabetes that can increase your risk of an unhealthy blood pressure, they can be managed with simple lifestyle changes such as eating a balanced diet, regular exercise, limiting alcohol and caffeine consumption, not smoking and more.
However, if you feel you have an unhealthy blood pressure and it’s not staying within a normal range, you may need to book an appointment to see your local GP. There may be underlying reasons for your high blood pressure and your doctor may need to prescribe medication to treat it.
Another major cause of high blood pressure is stress- learn mindfulness techniques to manage it.
