血压:这些数字意味着什么，为什么它们很重要?

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这是任何医疗访问的标准部分. 一个人, 通常是护士, wraps a cuff around your arm and asks you to sit quietly while the cuff squeezes to the point of discomfort, 然后慢慢放松它的控制. 一些数字会被记在你的图表上.

136 / 79."

这到底是什么意思?

"The top number – the systolic – tells us how much pressure there is from blood pushing against the walls of your arteries when the heart beats,”医生说。. Niteesh影响, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a hospitalist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. "The bottom number – known as diastolic – is the amount of pressure from blood pushing against the artery walls when the heart is at rest" between heartbeats.

When either number is too high for too long, "it causes all kinds of bad things," Choudhry said. That can include strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure and other chronic illnesses. “高血压是心血管疾病的主要危险因素, 导致心脏和大脑的不良后果, 这就是为什么它在这么长线上电子游戏飞禽走兽内受到如此多的关注."

近一半的美国人.S. 成年人有高血压或高血压. Because there are often no symptoms, if people aren't checking for it, many don't know they have it.

什么是高?

According to the 美国心脏协会 and American College of Cardiology, a normal blood pressure for adults is a systolic measurement of less than 120 mmHg and a diastolic reading under 80 mmHg. Blood pressure is elevated when the systolic consistently reaches 120-129 mmHg and the diastolic is less than 80 mmHg. It is considered stage 1 hypertension when systolic blood pressure consistently hits 130-139 mmHg or the diastolic reaches 80-89 mmHg, and stage 2 hypertension when the readings consistently reach 140 mmHg or 90 mmHg or higher, 分别. Blood pressure readings that suddenly exceed 180 systolic and/or 120 diastolic are considered a hypertensive crisis that requires immediate medical attention.

Choudhry said much of the focus has centered on the top number (systolic) because there's a larger body of research tying it to poor cardiovascular outcomes. 但这两个数字都很重要. 如果一个高而另一个不高，我们就用异常的那个."

当数字保持在高位时会发生什么?

When blood pressure gets too high, arteries begin to stiffen, said Dr. 伊丽莎白·杰克逊, director of the Cardiovascular Outcomes and Effectiveness Research Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “它们应该是灵活的. 把动脉想象成花园的水管. 如果你推了很多液体，压力很高, 软管变硬，不能正常工作了."

什么导致高血压?

High blood pressure develops over time and can be caused by many things. 一些风险因素可以控制，而另一些则不能. Factors that may influence blood pressure levels include being overweight, 没有足够的体育活动, 饮食不良或摄入过多钠, 吸烟, 或者睡眠不好.

杰克逊说，有些人比其他人面临更大的风险.

“美国的非裔美国妇女.S. 拥有世界上最高的比率，”她说. 历史和体制因素在这一统计中起主要作用.

年龄增加, 家族病史, 健康状况，如肾病和糖尿病, 性别也会影响患高血压的风险. 在64岁之前，男性的患病风险高于女性. 65岁及以上的人则相反.

它是可以治愈的.

The good news, Choudhry said, is hypertension is treatable, regardless of which number is too high. 每个人的待遇都是一样的.

杰克逊说，改变生活方式是第一步. 这可以包括减肥，如果需要的话, 变得更加活跃, 限制饮酒, 管理压力, 戒烟，如果这个人吸烟，吃更健康的饮食.

“尽量少吃加工食品，”她说. “我们知道它们的糖和盐含量很高. Make your plate colorful by eating a variety of fruits and vegetables."

It's also important to get enough and good quality sleep, Jackson said. The AHA recommends adults get seven to nine hours of sleep each night to optimize cardiovascular health, 根据年龄的不同，孩子们可以吃更多.

If lifestyle changes alone don't do the trick, medications also may be needed, Choudhry said.

低血压怎么办?

乔杜里说，低血压不太常见，但仍然很危险. It can happen when people are overtreated with medication for hypertension or when people are dehydrated or have another illness.

不像高血压, 血压降得太低的人通常会感到不舒服, 他说. “他们会感到头晕或头晕. 治疗取决于根本原因."

But what's too low for one person may be perfectly fine for another, Jackson said. “它确实是根据个人的其他情况量身定制的."

None of these conditions can be treated if blood pressure isn't being checked regularly, s他说. “这就是为什么了解这些数字很重要."