Hypertension, or high blood pressure is a common but very serious medical condition that many people suffer from, often without even knowing about it. Since there are not always symptoms, it’s a good idea to have your blood pressure checked regularly to make sure it’s within a normal range. Let’s look at some of the known causes of high blood pressure to help you protect yourself.
High blood pressure can be caused by many things, not all of them known, but one we do know about is smoking. Along with all of the other health problems smoking can cause, it can also increase your blood pressure. Your arteries can become blocked and hardened when you smoke, and this contributes to high blood pressure. The more you smoke, the more of a risk it is, both for high blood pressure and many other illnesses. Yet smoking at all, and even second hand smoke can pose risks as well. The good news is that no matter how old you are, you can reduce your blood pressure and improve your general health if you quit smoking.
High blood pressure can be caused or worsened by drinking too much alcohol. Recent evidence suggests that wine and other alcoholic beverages may actually be healthy in small quantities, and be good for your blood pressure. But drinking alcohol excessively raises your blood pressure, and can also create other problems, such as to your liver. The benefits of light drinking are also not available to alcoholics or anyone with a tendency in that direction. So if you are able to limit your intake of alcohol, light drinking may be good for your health, but more than this is harmful.
Sleep apnea is one cause of high blood pressure that is not as well known. Sleep apnea sufferers stop breathing for up to a minute at a time while they are sleeping at night. Snoring, which is a symptom of obstructed breathing while sleeping, is often common among sleep apnea sufferers. Because sleep apnea prevents you from getting restful sleep, people with this condition are often tired. Doing a sleep study at a sleep disorder center is the only way to diagnose this condition that mainly affects those that smoke and who are overweight. It’s important to find out if you have this problem because chronic sleep apnea can contribute to high blood pressure and heart disease.
These are only a few of the causes to be aware of for hypertension. Get regular checkups if you have a family history or any of the above risk factors for high blood pressure.
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