Changing Blood Pressure Guidelines

BP matters, and high blood pressure is associated with a wide range of health issues, not just heart attack and stroke. The complications that high blood pressure can cause include:

• Heart attack or stroke.
• Aneurysm.
• Heart failure.
• Kidney damage.
• Eye problems/vision loss.
• Metabolic syndrome.
• Changes with memory or understanding.
• Dementia.(1)

High blood pressure may cause non-specific symptoms like fatigue and headache, but many have no symptoms at all. The longer high blood pressure persists untreated, the greater the damage it does.

The European Society of Cardiology has provide a revised definition of blood pressure conditions. In the US, the Mayo Clinic has already emended it’s website to agree with the European recommendations.

Blood pressure is defined in terms of 2 metrics:

• Systolic: pressure during a heartbeat, when the heart is propelling blood through the circulatory system, and
• Diastolic: pressure between heartbeats.

Systolic pressure is always higher than diastolic (except when dead, of course) and the overall measure is expressed as “systolic over diastolic”, e.g., 120/80.

Under the newly defined categories:

• Hypertension is defined as any blood pressure reading exceeding 140/90. This is a dangerous level.
• Elevated blood pressure defined as a range of 120-139/70-89.
• Normal pressure defined as below 120/70.(3)

There is abnormally low blood pressure as well. This is a reading of 90/60 or below. Low readings can cause fainting or even be fatal.(2,4)

Blood pressure levels can be aggravated by a range of common issues, including excess weight, lack of exercise, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and that favorite of all Americans, stress.

There are also a variety of ways to try to restrain your blood pressure, including exercise, diet, probiotics and meditation.(6,7)

Key learning: You need to know your blood pressure level. The level is best measured away from a doctor’s office due to “white coat syndrome”. That is, the stress of going to see a doctor can itself increase blood pressure readings. (5)

Sources:

1. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/symptoms-causes/syc-20373410
2. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/low-blood-pressure/symptoms-causes/syc-20355465
3. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/new-blood-pressure-guidelines-lower-treatment-target-2024a1000fvc?ecd=wnl_sci_tech_240904_MSCPEDIT_etid6801994&uac=446438BR&impID=6801994
4. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21156-low-blood-pressure-hypotension
5. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23989-white-coat-syndrome
6. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/high-blood-pressure-hypertension/natural-ways-to-lower-blood-pressure
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303565/

Thomas Mann and Albert Einstein, Princeton, NJ. Photo source unknown.