Prevention and care of hypertension

Treatment of hypertension in young urban males.

Watch Dr. Martha Hill speak. She was the first non-physician to serve as the President of the American Heart Association.

Follow the DASH Diet when dining out

According to the National restaurant Association, follow these tips if you wish to watch your calorie intake -

• Order salad dressings and other sauces on the side.

• When ordering pasta dishes, look for tomato-based sauces.

• Drink water, diet soda, or unsweetened tea or coffee.

• Share the appetizer and dessert with a friend.

• Stop eating when you are full.

Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension – DASH Diet -

X-Treme Eating

Ruby Tuesday’s “Fresh Chicken & Broccoli Pasta” = 2060 calories and 128 grams of fat make it the equivalent of two 12-ounce sirloin steaks, two buttered baked potatoes, and two Caesar salads.

Uno Chicago Grill’s “Pizza Skins”= 2000 + calories and 48 grams of saturated fat, and 3,140 milligrams of sodium (more than a day’s worth). Jacobson says, “Even if you split it with two other people, it’s like eating dinner before your dinner even hits the table,”

More information on the deceptive “healthy ” foods at restuarants

Miso soup and grilled salmon = heart healthy = lower BP = smaller waistlines

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Where did “carino” go?

BP

Watch and learn.

High BP is drastic and deadly. Can cause myocardial infarction, and renal failure.

write more

Writing a blog is hard for non-writers. One has to churn out content day after day. How do those prolific blog writers have so much to post?

Hypertension – The Silent killer

Hypertension is called the silent killer because it has no distinctive symptoms of its own.
When symptoms do appear, the victim may already be in the late stages of the disease — one of the cruel facts of hypertension. This is why hypertension is called the silent killer.

What is Hypertension?
The hallmark of hypertension is chronic high blood pressure. Generally, insurance companies define this as 140 over 90 and higher for most people. High blood pressure increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (MedicineNet): statistical analysis reveals that beginning at a blood pressure of 115/75, the risk doubles with each increase in blood pressure of 20/10 (Nader Najafian, M.D., Associate Physician, Renal Division).
For people at risk, this means they must be monitored, treated, take medications, make changes in their lifestyles or all of the above.

Monitoring BP - The blood pressure usually is measured with a small, portable instrument called a blood pressure cuff (sphygmomanometer). (Sphygmo in Greek means pulse, and a manometer measures pressure).

Symptoms
Blood-pressure monitoring is important specifically because hypertension usually doesn’t have obvious symptoms. However, doctors look for signs that may indicate a problem. For example, while mild headaches are normal for most people, severe headaches may be a sign of dangerously high blood pressure called malignant hypertension (Wikipedia) or other serious diseases, and require medical attention. Other symptoms of malignant hypertension or related concerns include:
- tiredness
- confusion
- vision changes
- angina-like chest pain (crushing chest pain)
- heart failure
- blood in urine
- nosebleed
- irregular heartbeat
- ear noise or buzzing

Effects on the human body –
Hypertension can lead to the following afflictions: Cardiac diseases like coronary thrombosis, acute Myocardial Infarction or commonly known as a heart attack, and atherosclerosis – which is marked by the build-up of plaque in blood vessels, which can lead to a lack or loss of blood flow (Kuhn). In addition high BP can cause damage to the retina and chronic renal failure.

Who’s at Risk?
People at the greatest risk for high-blood pressure, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, include:
- African Americans – According to Health Day News, “Higher levels of uric acid in the blood are associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure”
- people with a family history of high blood pressure
- people who drink alcoholic beverages excessively
- people who are physically inactive
In addition, nearly two thirds — 65 percent — of people with diabetes have high blood pressure, according to the Report of the National heart and lung association.

Prevention –
Controlling hypertension: Diet is one of the most effective ways to keep hypertension under control. Many doctors recommend the so-called “Dash diet,” which is rich in fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products, but is low in fats and saturated fats.
The diet is also low in cholesterol but provides protein, dietary fiber, potassium, calcium and magnesium. DASH’s final results appeared in the April 17, 1997, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.”

Tips on eating the DASH Way:
- Start small. Make gradual changes in your eating habits.
- Center your meal around carbohydrates, such as pasta, rice, beans, or vegetables.
- Treat meat as one part of the whole meal, instead of the focus.
- Use fruits or low fat, low-calorie foods such as sugar free gelatin for desserts and snacks.
Change your eating habits gradually. Use carbohydrates, such as pasta, rice, beans, or vegetables, as the base of your meal. Include meat as only part of the meal, not the focus.

Lifestyle changes –
People who drink more than two alcoholic drinks a day are up to twice as likely to have hypertension.
Smoking even one cigarette can immediately raise your blood pressure.
Drinking excessive amounts of coffee may mildly increase blood pressure.
The American Heart Association recommends less than 6 grams of salt a day for most people and less than 4 grams for people diagnosed with hypertension.
People who are overweight tend to have high-blood pressure because the heart must pump harder to supply blood to the excess tissue.
Thirty to 45 minutes of regular, daily exercise such as jogging, bicycle riding, or swimming can help lower blood pressure.
Treatments – The goal of treatment is to reduce blood pressure to a level where there is decreased risk of complications. Treatment may occur at home with close supervision by the health care provider, or may occur in the hospital.

Drugs -
-Beta Blockers
-Diuretics
-Calcium channel blockers (CCB’s)
-Alpha Blockers
-Clonidine – it works in a control center for the sympathetic nervous system in the brain.
-Minoxodil – it is a muscle relaxant that works directly on the smooth muscle of the peripheral arteries throughout the body.
Stent Angioplasty is far better than Thrombolytic therapy
Bypass surgery

Emergency treatment of high blood pressure
In a hospital setting, injectable drugs may be used for the emergency treatment of hypertension. Routine lab tests are recommended before beginning treatment of high blood pressure to determine organ or tissue damage or other risk factors.

Side Effects of drugs –
These can range from rashes, sleepiness and weight gain to hallucinations and liver disease. Quality of life issues are very important, especially with regard to compliance with prescribed blood pressure medications. Dryness of mouth and fatigue is caused by Clonidine and increased growth of hair is due to Minoxidil.

Advances in care
Diseases that were uniformly fatal in the past have improved outcomes. Research continues in the area of interventional devices such that surgical repair might be eliminated or delayed. Blood pressure control improved among women, men, blacks, Mexican-Americans, obese adults, and people aged 60 and older.
Doctors should encourage patients to adopt healthy lifestyles and use medications to lower high blood pressure if needed. Lifestyle tips include limiting salt and fat in the diet, exercising, losing extra pounds, not smoking, and not drinking heavily.

Works Cited:
http://www.researchchannel.org/mov/uw_hcgr_stent_1300k_qt.mov
http://www.researchchannel.org/mov/uw_mm_carcar1_1300k_qt.mov
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/hbp/prevent/h_eating/h_eating.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9775754&dopt=Abstract
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/print/ency/article/000468.htm
“Medical Encyclopedia: Hypertension.” Medline Plus. 23 Feb 2007 .
23 Feb 2007 .
“Definition o fCardiovascular disease.” MedicineNet.com. 1996-2007. 23 Feb 2007 .
“Malignant hypertension.” 16 April 2006. Wikipedia. 23 Feb 2007 .
Kuhn, Helena . “The Role of Endothelin in Strokes.” Georgetown Journal of Health Sciences. March 15, 2006 . 23 Feb 2007 .

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