Hypertension is a condition in which the blood pressure in your arteries is too high. High blood pressure can be one of the major risk factors for heart disease and stroke, as well as other health problems. It is also known as high blood pressure.
High blood pressure can lead to heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure. It’s a major risk factor for these conditions and other health problems. High blood pressure is the leading cause of cardiovascular disease, which includes heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral vascular disease. Hypertension also increases your risk of kidney failure and dementia. If you have high blood pressure, it means that the force of blood against the walls of your arteries is too great. If this pressure is high enough over a long period of time, it can damage your heart and blood vessels.
There are several causes of hypertension, including genetics, age, and gender. A number of studies have suggested that the environment can also play a role in the development of high blood pressure.
- Genetics: In some cases, genetics may be a factor in determining whether or not someone develops high blood pressure. Certain genes may make you more likely to develop high blood pressure if they’re inherited from your parents. It’s not clear exactly why this is the case, but it may be related to how your body responds to stress during childhood and adolescence.
- Age: High blood pressure tends to occur more often as we get older—and this is especially true for women. As we age, our hearts become less efficient at pumping blood throughout our bodies; this means that there’s more work to do with each beat of our hearts. As a result, there’s a greater risk of having higher blood pressure levels as we get older than there would otherwise be based on our genetics alone.
- Gender: Men are at increased risk for developing high blood pressure because their bodies produce less renin-angiotensin system (RAS) signaling peptide (SP). This SP helps control the amount of sodium and water that enters into the body; however, women produce more of this SP, which helps to regulate blood pressure levels and protect them from having high blood pressure.
There are many different types of hypertension. The most common types of hypertension are:
- Primary hypertension, which is also called essential or idiopathic hypertension and is the most common form of high blood pressure.
- Secondary hypertension, which occurs because of an underlying cause such as kidney disease, endocrine disorders (such as Cushing’s syndrome), obesity, or pregnancy.
- Chronic hypertension, which is the most serious form of high blood pressure and typically takes years or decades to develop.
Hypertension is one of the most common medical conditions in the whole world, and it’s often a silent killer. If left untreated, high blood pressure can lead to heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, and even blindness. In fact, more than 1 billion people in the world have high blood pressure—and that number is expected to rise over the next decade.
So, what are the risks if you don’t treat your hypertension? Here are some of them:
- Heart Disease: High blood pressure brings on atherosclerosis—the buildup of plaque in arteries that can lead to heart attack or stroke.
- Brain Damage: Brain damage from high blood pressure is often seen in patients with long-term uncontrolled hypertension.
- Stroke: Hypertension puts your brain at risk for a stroke caused by an aneurysm rupture or a hemorrhage in an artery near your brain. This can be deadly.
- Kidney Disease: High blood pressure causes kidney damage over time, which can lead to kidney failure and dialysis treatments for those living with end-stage renal disease (kidney failure).
- Cataracts: High blood pressure is also linked with cataract formation in people over 65 years old who have never had cataracts removed before because they may never develop them on their own due to damage done by high blood pressure.
- Heart Failure: Heart failure is a condition where your heart cannot pump enough blood to meet your body’s needs. It can be caused by high blood pressure and other factors such as being overweight or having diabetes.
Hypertension is a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and kidney disease. Typically, it’s treated with blood pressure medications or lifestyle changes like diet and exercise. But if this condition isn’t treated at all? Over time, it can lead to serious health issues. For some people, the symptoms of high blood pressure may be so subtle that they’re not aware of their condition. One can enroll themselves in hypertension clinical trials at Power when diagnosed with the illness. In this way, you can get access to medication and processes that are yet to be widely implemented. All of the risks listed in this blog are why it’s important to stay up-to-date on your and your loved one’s health and get regular checkups with a doctor. Stay healthy!