Hypertension or high blood pressure is a condition where in the blood pressure or BP in the arteries are high. Continual high blood pressure can lead to heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and aneurism. An increase in BP may shorten the life expectancy of a person. There are two kinds of hypertension, the essential hypertension and the secondary hypertension.

The causes of Essential Hypertension include the lack of regular exercise, lifestyle, old age and genetics. Lack of exercise or what is medically termed as sedentary lifestyle or most commonly called as being a couch potato contributes a lot in the cause of hypertension. This is characterized by being inactive for most of the day with very little or no exercise at all. This will include watching TV, using the computer and reading.

This can also lead to obesity in which the complications include blockage of the arteries that also leads to high blood. Lifestyle may also be a cause of hypertension if they drink too much alcohol and smoke a lot. Most persons aged 50 years old and above usually have an elevated BP than younger people, this make them more vulnerable to hypertension. Hypertension can also be inherited.

Secondary Hypertension is somewhat different because its root cause is not identified or difficult to identify as many conditions result to this. This is the result of the imbalance of the glands that produce certain hormones that regulate plasma and the heart. Other causes include kidney disorder, pre-eclampsia during pregnancy, congenital defects and use of some prescription and illegal drugs. Symptoms of Hypertension and Secondary Hypertension include dizziness, throwing up, nausea, disorder of the sight and drowsiness.

Hypotension is the opposite of Hypertension. This is a condition wherein the pressure of the blood is lower than normal. There are several causes of low hypotension, and the most common is hypovolemia or reduced blood volume. Hypovolemia can result from blood loss, lack of fluid intake that result from starvation or too much fluid loss from vomiting or diarrhea. Reduced blood output of the heart can also cause hypotension because the body will not be able to have sufficient supply of blood. Symptoms of low BP include dizziness, chest pain, and shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, headache and fever higher than 38.5 degrees Celsius.

Hypertension and hypotension are called silent killers because they can strike any time that is why it is very important to constantly monitor blood pressure. One can go to some local drugstore as some of them have blood pressure monitors. Read the rest of this entry »