Tag: strokes

High Blood Pressure 101

Knowing about your body can be very beneficial to your health as you age. Knowing about your blood pressure can help prevent strokes, heart disease and kidney disease. In this article you will find everything you should know about your blood pressure.

Anyone can have high blood pressure. It doesn’t matter your age, race, ethnicity or gender. Many people suffer from high blood pressure and have a higher risk of strokes and heart diseases than those with regular blood pressure.

What is high blood pressure?

High blood pressure is the force of blood against the walls of your arteries. Your blood pressure is always rising and falling throughout the day and if it rises and stays that way over time, you have high blood pressure.

High blood pressure is usually referred to as hypertension. When you have high blood pressure it puts more pressure on the heart, making it work harder than usual. This is why you end up at risk for strokes or heart disease.

What is the normal blood pressure level?

The normal blood pressure level is less than 120 over 80 or less. The first number is your systolic pressure and the second number is your diastolic pressure. Your numbers are read 120 over 80, etc. If your pressure is 140 over 90 or higher you have high blood pressure.

What is systolic blood pressure? This is the force of blood in your arteries when your heart is beating.

What is diastolic blood pressure? This is the force of blood in your arteries when your heart is relaxing.

What are the risk factors of high blood pressure?

The most common risks of high blood pressure are stroke and heart disease. There are a few other risk factors that can be modified and some that cannot be. The following are some risks:

Tobacco
Physical Inactivity
Diabetes
Abnormal Cholesterol
Being overweight

Who can get high blood pressure?

Unfortunately anyone can get high blood pressure but it is more common among African Americans. Nearly one in three American adults has high blood pressure. African Americans also have a much higher death rate from kidney disease and stroke than white Americans. Even so, with treatment you can help lower your blood pressure.

How can I lower my blood pressure?

Fortunately there are many different ways of helping to lower your blood pressure. Exercise is a great way to lower it. Doing physical activity will make your heart stronger over time. If you have a stronger heart it can pump blood easier lessening your risks of stroke and kidney diseases. It is never too late to start exercising!

If you are concerned about your blood pressure consult your physician. Ask any and all questions you might have and find the best way for you to lower it. If all regular ways fail, consider medication. Talk with your doctor about your health and lifestyle so he can choose the best medicine for you. If you want to live a healthy life, taking control of your blood pressure is very important.

Bextra and Vioxx — Tips for Arthritis Relief Without Them

Bextra and Vioxx — Tips for Arthritis Relief Without Them
Charles Essmeier

The recent withdrawal of Vioxx and Bextra from the marketplace, due to concerns over unwanted side effects, has many arthritis sufferers concerned. These drugs, which belong to a powerful class of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs known as COX-2 inhibitors, are quite effective at fighting the pain and inflammation of arthritis. Unfortunately, they have been linked to increased risk of strokes and heart attacks. Their manufacturers have voluntarily withdrawn them from the market. There are still alternative medications available, such as Celebrex, and traditional medications, such as aspirin or ibuprofen. Aspirin and ibuprofen may not be suitable for everyone, as they can cause stomach discomfort in some people. While a good anti-inflammatory can certainly provide more comfort for arthritis pain, there are some non-medicinal steps that patients can take that may provide some relief from their pain.

  • Get plenty of rest. Your body works best when its well-rested, and its a well-known fact that most Americans fail to get the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep each night.
  • Exercise. Joints and muscles work best when theyre well toned, and that is true for arthritis sufferers as well as the public at large. Not all exercises will be appropriate, however. A patient with arthritic knees will probably not benefit from playing basketball or tennis. Low impact exercise like walking or water aerobics may help, however. Patients with arthritis are advised to discuss exercise options with their physician.
  • Watch your weight. Arthritic joints work best when they arent overly burdened. If you are overweight, you are making a bad situation worse by forcing your joints to work harder than they otherwise might. A loss of just a few pounds could make a huge difference, especially if you suffer from arthritic knees.

    • These tips are certainly not intended to be a substitute for medication, but with a chronic condition like arthritis, every little bit that you can do to ease the stress on your aching joints can provide a bit more relief. About the Author
    Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including Bextra-Info.net, a site devoted to the withdrawn drug Bextra and StructuredSettlementHelp.com, a site devoted to structured settlements.

    Stress, High Blood Pressure, and Acupuncture

    When a person is under stress, their body starts what is known as a stress response. A number of chemicals are released into the bloodstream, the heart beats faster, breathing becomes more rapid, and muscles tense up. If the person is planning on running away from a large animal, these are all very good responses. For the businessman at his desk taking a phone call, these are not good reactions. The body easily takes care of an occasional response like this, the chemicals are cleaned out, and the body becomes relaxed once again. However, when this reaction occurs a number of times a week, the stress starts to affect the resting state of the body. Muscles no longer entirely relax, and the frequent release of these chemicals create other problems. Chronic stress can cause such problems as sleeplessness, stomach and digestion problems, panic attacks, and pain of some sort (such as frequent headaches). Long term problems related to stress include strokes, high blood pressure, and colitis or other bowel problems.

    A person may try to handle stress on his or her own, by finding something to mask it. Alcohol, caffeine, cigarettes, and even lots of sugar can make the person feel better. One of the most common “pills” after a stressful moment is a cup of coffee and a doughnut, or possibly a cigarette. Physicians can also prescribe medications to combat some of these symptoms, both psychological and physical. Antidepressants, one of the more common medications for this, only offer short-term relief at best.

    The obvious answer is to remove the source of stress. However, many times that simply is not possible. Is there another solution? One of the most successful results from acupuncture is the relaxation of the patient, followed by the removal of tension from the body. This relaxation response produces a decreased heart rate, lowered blood pressure, and increased energy and possible tissue regeneration. There is frequently a feeling of well being and self-confidence. As the acupuncture treatment stimulates and redirects the vital energy of the body, each muscle and organ system begins to function the way that it should. Acupuncture is not only used to relieve the stress response of a patient, but also in a number of cases it has made the doctor prescribed antidepressant unnecessary. With wider use of acupuncture, there could be a substantial reduction in the consumption of drugs such as Prozac.

    Standard acupuncture techniques using needles are very effective to combat chronic stress. If this were more widely accepted by Americans under routine stress, we would have a much healthier population. In addition, acupuncture treatments that use low levels of electricity have been found to be even more successful in lowering blood pressure. Several researchers that use electric stimulation have been able to regrow tissue in animals, and this without any scars. The combination of using acupuncture therapy for blood pressure management and possible healthy tissue regrowth is a very exciting topic for people with heart and circulatory problems

    Acupuncture is one of the most successful treatments for this American problem. Not only do the symptoms decrease, but the acupuncture treatment results in a healthier body as well.

    Understanding Your Blood Pressure

    What is blood pressure? Blood pressure is the force of your blood against the walls of your arteries. Blood pressure consists of two number; a top and bottom number. The top number is the systolic pressure. The bottom number is the diastolic pressure.

    Systolic blood pressure is the force of blood in your arteries as your heart beats. If your systolic number is higher than one hundred and forty you have high blood pressure. Even if your diastolic number is not high you can still have ‘isolated systolic hypertension.’ This means only your systolic number is high.

    This is more common for older Americans. This pressure usually increases with age whereas diastolic pressure decreases after fifty-five. You might not know if you have isolated systolic hypertension so ask your doctor if you are concerned.

    Diastolic blood pressure is the force of blood in your arteries when your heart relaxes between beats. For younger people this is a very important number. The higher this pressure is the more you are at risk. This blood pressure lowers as you get older and your systolic increases. Therefore diastolic is more important in younger people and systolic in older.

    Normal blood pressure is less than one hundred and twenty over less than eighty. If your pressure is between the normal numbers and one hundred and thirty-nine over eighty-nine, you have what is called prehypertension. This puts you at risk to develop high blood pressure in the future but it easily preventable.

    Hypertension is a name for high blood pressure. Having high blood pressure puts you at risk for heart disease or even strokes. High blood pressure makes your heart work harder than it should and can lead to blindness, kidney disease and even congestive heart failure.

    According to statistics high blood pressure killed over fifty-four thousand people in 2004. Statistics also show that twenty-eight percent of people have high blood pressure and aren’t even aware of it. Are you one of them?

    You should be aware of the risks of high blood pressure so you can avoid them as best as you can. High blood pressure is a risk for stroke and heart disease. While some risks can be altered or fixed, some cannot. For instance if you use tobacco or are overweight you are at risk for high blood pressure.

    You can easily fix this by trying to quit using tobacco and watching your diet to help lose weight. If you have trouble doing either of these on your own, consult your physician. They may be able to prescribe you something or give you useful information to help.

    High blood pressure can affect certain parts of your body as well. You might suffer from a stroke. This happens because the high blood pressure can break a weak blood vessel leaving it to bleed into the brain. Also if you have a blood clot blocking a narrow artery, you can also experience a stroke.

    Sometimes impaired vision or blindness can occur from high blood pressure. It might eventually cause your blood vessels in your eye to bleed or burst leaving you with blurred or impaired vision.

    Your arteries harden as you age, even more so for those in your heart, brain and kidneys. These harder arteries are associated with high blood pressure. When this happens your kidneys and heart have to work harder.

    If you have any questions or concerns about your blood pressure ask your doctor. They can answer any questions you might have and find a solution if you do in fact have high blood pressure or might be prone to it. It’s never too late to take care of your body, including your blood pressure.