Reasons for High Blood Pressure

The heart muscles supply blood to the arteries, which in turn passes the blood to the rest of the body. When the muscles of the heart contracts, the pressure of the blood increases and it flows into the arteries. This is known as the systolic (high) blood pressure and after every contraction, the heart relaxes, leading to decrease in the pressure, known as diastolic (low) blood pressure. The blood pressure level in a healthy person is usually 120/80 mmHg. When the blood pressure level increases to 140/90 mmHg or more, the person is said to have high blood pressure or hypertension. Dangers of high blood pressure include various health problems and it is essential to treat this condition promptly.

What Causes High Blood Pressure?

The causes of high blood pressure can be attributed to two main reasons. Sometimes, people have high blood pressure as an effect of some other disease or health problem. This kind of high blood pressure is called secondary hypertension. Some of the ailments that can cause high blood pressure are chronic kidney disease, alcohol addiction, adrenal gland disorders, pregnancy, thyroid dysfunction, etc. In such cases, high blood pressure can be cured by treating the disease that caused it. However, the type of blood pressure which is commonly seen in people is called the primary hypertension. No single reason can be determined for a person having primary hypertension. Rather the variety of factors that causes this can be divided into unalterable causes and those that can be changed.

Unalterable Causes

• One of the most common reasons for high blood pressure is age. As one becomes older, the arteries become harder, thus leading to high blood pressure. This stiffening of the blood vessels is called as arteriosclerosis.
• It is also said that African Americans are more at risk of developing high blood pressure than the white people. This shows that the chances of high blood pressure can be determined by the race in which one is born.
• Studies have shown that even socioeconomic status can influence the occurrence of high blood pressure in a person. It is said that people who belong to the lower socioeconomic groups and those who are less educated are more at risk of having hypertension.
• Hereditary is also believed to be one of the causes for high blood pressure. If a person's parents or grandparents suffer from this problem, there is a high chance of it affecting him/her. Other than heredity, even gender plays a role in high blood pressure. Statistics have shown that men are more likely to develop high blood pressure than women.

These are some of the factors that cannot be controlled by humans. However, there are some other reasons for hypertension that are caused due to behavior and lifestyle of human beings.

Alterable Causes

• One of the most common causes of high blood pressure that is found nowadays is obesity. People who are overweight have a high chance of having this disease. It is caused due to faulty eating habits and lack of physical exercise. Obesity in a person can be calculated by measuring the body mass index of the person. People who have a BMI that is more than 30 kg/m2 are said to be obese and are at high risk of having hypertension.
• High blood pressure can be seen in people who are highly sensitized to salt or sodium. People who have this problem should eat food that contains less amount of salt. Moreover, these people should also avoid consuming processed and fast food because they contain high level of salt in them. It would also be beneficial to check the label of over-the-counter-medicines, especially painkillers as they also have high level of sodium in them.
• Alcohol and drug addiction are also said to be causes for high blood pressure. People who take diet pills or medicines for treating cold and other kinds of allergies are also at a higher risk of suffering from high blood pressure. Even women who take birth control pills are likely to have hypertension.

People who are diagnosed with this problem are treated with certain medications, after finding out the reasons for high blood pressure. Besides, they are also advised to follow a strict high blood pressure diet and exercise regime to prevent the dangerous effects of having hypertension.