A ‘silent killer’ condition is lurking undetected in nearly one-third of UK adults, with many blissfully unaware of its presence.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a common yet often symptomless foe that can lead to serious health issues such as heart disease, stroke, and even dementia.
The NHS highlights that on rare occasions, symptoms like headaches, blurred vision, and chest pain may manifest, but these are not reliable indicators. The only sure-fire way to know if you’re affected is through regular checks either at home or by a healthcare professional.
Understanding blood pressure readings can be daunting without medical expertise, but GP Dr Martin McKee took to TikTok to demystify the numbers for the layperson. “I’ve been getting lots and lots of questions about the numbers when it comes to blood pressure.
“So let’s explain the numbers to clarify the muddy waters a little bit.”
He explained: “When you’re taking blood pressure, there are two numbers. The top number is the systolic number – that is the blood pressure when your heart is actively pumping. And the bottom number is the diastolic blood pressure, which is the pressure […] in the blood vessels when the heart is relaxing and filling up.
“So the textbook tells you that perfect blood pressure is 120/80. When we’re looking for high blood pressure in the clinic, we are concerned if we’re getting numbers 140/90, because we appreciate that when people are in the GP surgery, the blood pressure may be a little bit higher because they’re concerned about their health and that’s why they’re in the surgery and they’re in a healthcare setting.”
Dr McKee explained that “serial readings” measuring 140/90 or above would indicate you have high blood pressure. However, people can also measure their blood pressure at home, where blood pressure readings will be lower “because it’s in your own environment.”
At home, if your blood pressure reading is 135/85, you would be invited to a have a cardiovascular assessment, according to Dr McKee.
There, you will be assessed and given advice on managing your blood pressure. You may be prescribed medication.
“Of course, there are exceptions,” he added. “So in older, frailer, multimorbid populations, we may accept higher blood pressures because the risk of giving too much blood pressure medication might actually cause harm, and in younger, healthier populations we’d want to achieve really tight control of a blood pressure in order to really reduce a person’s cardiovascular risk.”
The NHS adds that if you are over 80, your blood pressure is considered high at 150/90 or higher when checked by a healthcare professional or 145/85 or higher checked at home.
Your risk of high blood pressure can be heightened by several factors including your age, having close relatives with high blood pressure, your ethnicity, maintaining an unhealthy diet particularly high in salt, being overweight, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and prolonged stress.