What is High Blood Pressure?

Question

like what does it do to a body?
and
what cause's it?

Answer 1

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE IS CALLED SILENT KILLER-

You can have high blood pressure (hypertension) for years without a single symptom. But silence isn't golden. Uncontrolled high blood pressure increases your risk of serious health problems, including heart attack and stroke.

Blood pressure is determined by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure.

High blood pressure typically develops without signs or symptoms. And it affects nearly everyone eventually. If you don't have high blood pressure by age 55, you have a 90 percent chance of developing it at some point in your life, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Fortunately, high blood pressure can be easily detected. And once you know you have high blood pressure, you can work with your doctor to control it.

In 90 percent to 95 percent of high blood pressure cases, the American Heart Association says there's no identifiable cause. This type of high blood pressure, called essential hypertension or primary hypertension, tends to develop gradually over many years.

The other 5 percent to 10 percent of high blood pressure cases are caused by an underlying condition. This type of high blood pressure, called secondary hypertension, tends to appear suddenly and cause higher blood pressure than does primary hypertension. Various conditions can lead to secondary hypertension, including kidney abnormalities, tumors of the adrenal gland or certain congenital heart defects.

Certain medications — including birth control pills, cold remedies, decongestants, over-the-counter pain relievers and some prescription drugs — also may cause secondary hypertension. In a 2005 study, women who took an average of 500 milligrams or more of acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) daily over several years were more likely to develop high blood pressure than were women who didn't take any acetaminophen. It's not known if the same holds true for men.

Various illicit drugs, including cocaine and amphetamines, also can increase blood pressure.-

Answer 2

Blood pressure measurements don't count for anything if you've been walking around. Ideally, you should be sitting down for at least 5 minutes or so. Blood pressure also can vary during the day, so it's best to get measurements from similar times during the day. No caffeine in the morning either. These measurements should be repeated on a few separate occasions. Some people get "white coat hypertension" when they go to the doctor's office because they are nervous. Probably blood pressure medicines wouldn't kill you. But you don't necessarily need blood pressure medicines if your blood pressure is only high while active. When doctors study the effects of high blood pressure, they study the effects of people who are diagnosed with it as described above. You are probably at no higher cardiac risk from your blood pressure.

Answer 3

Being overweight makes your heart work harder at pumping your blood thus HBP but other contributors are ...Smoking and over indulgence in alcholic beverages...which overwork your lungs and kidneys and liver. High salt intake and eating of saturated fats from fried food, processed meats and ready-made meals contribute to plaque buildup in arteries thus making your heart work harder leading to HBP.

Answer 4

Fatness?
i think.