Hypertension is a lifestyle disease, brought on by the way the modern world makes us live our lives. The magnitude of the problem is demonstrated by the fact the some estimates indicate that one person in six suffers from this problem. What is more worrying is that while the majority of hypertension sufferers are over the age of 35, 6% of teenagers and even 1% of children below the age of 12 suffer from it. Hypertension is basically high blood pressure which, while not producing any dramatic symptoms on its own, can lead to dangerous and life threatening conditions like heart attacks, strokes, renal failure and so on.
Scientists and doctors are still debating the exact root causes of hypertension, but there are many identified contributory factors that influence the development of this problem. A look at these basic causes of hypertension will show just how lifestyle related they are and how modifying the way we live can help to ward it off.
The Causes of Hypertension:
* Being overweight or obese
* A sedentary lifestyle and lack of regular exercise
* Smoking and other forms of tobacco consumption
* Excessive alcohol consumption
* Eating too much salt
* Improper diet – not consuming enough calcium, potassium and magnesium rich foods
* Vitamin D deficiency – caused both by a bad diet and not enough exposure to sunlight (spending too much time indoors)
* Medications such as oral contraceptives
* Stress in all forms, not just work related
As can be seen, all of these causes of hypertension are lifestyle related and can be either removed or brought under control by conscious effort. It will not be easy, but when one considers the consequences of ignoring the causes of hypertension that a person’s life may be creating, it is obvious that there are no options. Hyper tension is a serious problem by itself, but when it becomes one of the causes of pulmonary hypertension, the situation only becomes worse.
Hypertension should be treated by doctors and it is not something you can deal with at home with home remedies. But there are some basic things you can do to both reduce the causes of hypertension and so reduce the severity of the problem. Following these simple steps will also benefit those who do not suffer from hyper tension as it will greatly reduce their chances of getting it.
Remove the Causes of Hypertension:
* Control the diet and reduce salt, tobacco and alcohol intake
* Drastically reduce the consumption of foods with saturated fats
* Develop a regular exercise routine
* Lose excess weight
* Practice yoga or other de-stressing techniques
* Get enough rest and relaxation
There are some other causes of hypertension such as aging, renal diseases, genetic disposition to high blood pressure and thyroid problems and tumors. These causes of hypertension are beyond the control of the individual but that does not mean that nothing can be done. A healthy lifestyle and proper medication can keep these causes of hypertension under control.