People take ownership of sickness and disease by saying things like MY high blood pressure MY diabetes, MY heart disease, MY depression, MY! MY! MY! Don’t own it because it doesn’t belong to you! ——— Stella Payton
Introduction
Despite constant exposure to information about it in mainstream media, local newspapers, and online, it remains difficult to fully understand blood pressure and hypertension. We have all had our blood pressure checked during a visit to the clinic.
A cuff is wrapped around your arm, given a quick squeeze, and then a reading with two numbers is displayed. To many of us, these numbers appear quite abstract, and their significance is not immediately clear. However, blood pressure is more than a pair of numbers displayed on a screen.
What is Blood Pressure?
By definition, blood pressure refers to the force blood exerts on the walls of arteries after it is pumped away from the heart. It is reported as two numbers. The first figure, which is known as the systolic pressure, is the pressure generated in arteries when the heart contracts to pump blood to the rest of the body. The second figure, known as the diastolic pressure, is the pressure exerted by blood on the walls of arteries when the heart relaxes between beats.
In effect, the systolic pressure represents the push force from the heart’s pump, whereas the diastolic pressure represents the baseline or resting pressure that the arteries maintain to keep blood moving. Both values together give doctors a better picture of how hard the heart is working and how healthy the blood vessels are.
What Exactly is High Blood Pressure?
High blood pressure, or hypertension, describes a heart that works harder than it should and arteries that are constantly under stress. Think of your blood vessels like garden hoses. When water pressure is too high, the hose gradually suffers damage. The same applies to our arteries when blood pressure is excessively elevated.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines hypertension as a systolic pressure greater than 140 mmHg or a diastolic pressure greater than 90 mmHg. However, context matters since factors like age, lifestyle, family history, and preexisting medical conditions can make a person’s slightly high reading riskier than another’s. Therefore, the diagnosis must be made by a health professional since relying only on the numbers without understanding is like reading only the headline of a story
The Global Picture
Globally, it is estimated that about 1.28 billion adults between the ages of 30 – 79 years have hypertension, with two-thirds living in low- and middle-income countries. Only 42% of adults living with the condition are diagnosed and treated, with only 1 in 5 having it under control. It is also estimated that 46% of individuals with the condition are unaware of their diagnosis. These numbers are more than statistics; they represent the story of millions of people living with this invisible risk.
A Quiet Saboteur
The problem with hypertension is its silence. You can live a completely normal life with dangerously high blood pressure readings and feel perfectly fine until the damage becomes too severe to ignore. Which is why it is often called the “silent killer,” because it tends to cause damage quietly.
At very high levels, symptoms like a persistent headache, blurred vision, ringing in the ears, nosebleeds, and chest pain may occur. Hypertension puts strain on arteries, making them stiffer and narrower, which can lead to various health issues such as heart disease, stroke, kidney damage, and even vision loss.
Unseen Triggers in Everyday Life and Prevention
Though it is tempting to blame genetic predisposition as the sole risk factor, lifestyle choices play a bigger role than we realize. Hypertension quietly builds over time, fueled by everyday habits we may dismiss as harmless.
A sedentary lifestyle weakens the heart’s efficiency. Diets high in salt, saturated fats, and trans fats can stiffen arteries, putting more strain on the heart and raising blood pressure. Chronic stress keeps the body in a constant “fight or flight” state by flooding it with hormones that elevate blood pressure. Poor sleep prevents the body from getting essential repairs, while excess alcohol and tobacco use cause direct damage to the cardiovascular system.
Fortunately, lifestyle changes can be powerful tools for both prevention and management. Regular physical activity, such as brisk walking for at least thirty minutes a day, and maintaining a healthy weight, helps keep arteries flexible. Reducing intake of salt and processed foods can support healthier blood pressure levels. Additionally, getting enough rest, limiting alcohol, and quitting smoking can provide lasting benefits for heart health.
A Call To Awareness
Hypertension is highly manageable and preventable. Regular monitoring is key. Healthy adults should check their blood pressure at least once a year and more frequently if they have risk factors or a prior diagnosis.
High blood pressure is not just a game of numbers. It is about understanding the quiet, daily forces that shape our health and taking small steps to protect our future. By going beyond the numbers and listening to the story behind them, we give ourselves the power to write a healthier, longer chapter to life.
Credits
Hypertension. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/hypertension
10 practical, daily tips to improve heart health | Heart | Prevention | UT Southwestern Medical Center. https://utswmed.org/medblog/heart-health-tips-habits/
About the Writer
Dr. ASUMANG ASARE is a medical doctor who received his training at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). He currently practices at COY Paediatric Practice in Tema. His interests include cardiology and public health communication. He is also a skillful guitarist and musician who connects music with his medical practice during non-working hours or leisure time.
