hypertension

Hypertension is persistently elevated blood pressure above normal, usually above 140/90 millimeters of mercury.

Arterial essential hypertension is another name for it. It accounts for over ninety percent of cases of arterial hypertension. In the remaining cases, secondary arterial hypertension is diagnosed. These include renal up to 4%, endocrine up to 0. 4%, hemodynamic and neurological loads caused by taking iatrogenic substances. There is also hypertension in pregnant women, in which an increase in blood pressure is one of the symptoms of the underlying disease.

With different types of iatrogenic hypertension, the methods of various dietary supplements and contraceptives differ. In general, more than 25 combinations in the genetic code of the human body contribute to the occurrence of hypertension.

causes high blood pressure

When doctors talk about the cause of hypertension, they admit that the cause of its occurrence is still unclear. Therefore, this disease is also referred to as essential or as a disease of unclear etiology.

The theories that exist in our time that try to explain the occurrence of hypertension are in themselves untenable and can (if all methods have been tried) drive a person into a hopeless situation without explaining anything concretely or scientifically. The patient, to put it mildly, is being treated for the sake of treatment. A person is almost constantly forced to resort to the help of drugs to relieve the hypertensive condition.

In the human body there is something called a system that regulates blood pressure. It can also increase due to various reasons. When blood pressure rises, the walls of vessels such as the aortic arch or carotid artery become very tense. This stimulates the receptors in it. The resulting excitation, passing through the nerves, reaches the medulla oblongata. There is a vasomotor center. The activity of depressor neurons, in contrast to pressor neurons, will increase, causing blood vessels to dilate and blood pressure to drop. When blood pressure drops, such processes take place in a completely different way. This explains the normal process of rise and fall in blood pressure in the human body. Without a reason, the pressure will not increase. Everything in the body is connected.

The causes of high blood pressure include:

1. obesity and overweight. People with this problem very often have an increase in blood pressure and, as a result, hypertension. As a rule, people with such disorders in the body's metabolism should get it under control.
2. In five percent of patients, the causes of high blood pressure can be diseases of the kidneys or the thyroid.
3. If a person is not overweight and slim. He has no problems with the kidneys and thyroid, then the cause of hypertension may be a lack of magnesium in the body
4. Hypertension is caused in five percent of patients: a tumor of the adrenal glands, a tumor of the pituitary gland, poisoning with mercury, lead, etc.

More specifically, the main cause of high blood pressure in most patients is metabolic syndrome. As a rule, in such patients the level of cholesterol in the blood is disturbed. Metabolic syndrome is determined by several reasons: an increase in waist circumference (more than 80 cm in women, more than 94 cm in men); an increase in triglycerides (so-called fats) in the blood exceeds 1. 75 mmol per liter or the patient is already receiving medication to treat the disease; High-density lipoproteins should be less than 1. 3 mmol per liter in women and less than 1. 0 mmol per liter in men; systolic blood pressure exceeds 140 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure exceeds 85 mm Hg; The level of glucose in the blood on an empty stomach is more than 5. 5 mmol per liter. Overall, if hypertension is combined with obesity, you should check for the presence of metabolic syndrome.

In addition, the causes of hypertension are: psychological stress, diabetes, kidney and thyroid diseases, heredity also plays a role.

Hypertension Symptoms

Clinical manifestations of hypertensive disease do not have specific symptoms. Patients who are many years old cannot even guess what disease they have. You will feel a high level of vitality. Although sometimes they can still be overtaken by dizzy spells, weakness, sometimes with dizziness. But usually these people think it's due to overwork. Complaints arise when so-called target organs are affected. These are the organs most sensitive to changes in blood pressure.

The appearance of a headache and dizziness in a person, noises in the head, a decrease in working capacity and memory indicate initial changes in the cerebral blood supply. Later there are double vision, flies in front of the eyes, weakness, difficulty in speaking, numbness in arms and legs, but at the initial level these changes in blood supply are contingent.

If the stage of hypertension is far advanced, it can lead to complications in the form of a heart attack or stroke. The earliest and most consistent sign of high blood pressure is an enlargement (hypertrophy) of the left ventricle. In this regard, an increase in its mass is accompanied by a thickening of the walls of the vessels. First, the thickness of the wall of the left ventricle thickens, then the expansion of the ventricle of this ventricle occurs. The same applies to high blood pressure. In another way, this condition can be referred to as cardiac hypertension or hypertensive heart disease. With this form of hypertension, gross morphological changes in the aorta (atherosclerosis) can join, it can expand, as a result of which it can rupture or tear. Hypertension of the heart is very insidious in this regard.

A sign or common symptom of high blood pressure is, of course, a headache. And as the most characteristic sign of this disease, with its further progression, it can appear at different times of the day (patients often complain about night time and time after waking up from sleep). The type of headache can be bursting or heaviness in the back of the head and can also affect other areas of the head. High blood pressure can cause swelling of the legs, which is also a sign of heart failure. They can also be a sign of impaired kidney function.

arterial hypertension

Arterial hypertension is the most common disease of the entire cardiovascular system. The word "arterial hypertension" refers to blood pressure that remains constantly elevated. An increase in blood pressure occurs when there is narrowing of the arteries and arterioles.

An artery is the main pathway that carries blood to all tissues of the body. In many people, the arterioles narrow very often. At first spasmodic and later its lumen remains narrowed almost constantly due to wall thickening. And then a greater effort is made to allow the flow of blood to overcome the narrowings, as a result of which the work of the heart muscle increases, and a large amount of blood flows into the vascular bed. Such people, as a rule, most often suffer from hypertension.

This condition is chronic. In about 1 in 10 people with high blood pressure, high blood pressure is caused by damage to a specific organ.

In these cases one speaks of symptomatic arterial hypertension, or as it is also known as secondary. About 90 percent of patients suffer from an essential form of hypertension, or as it is called primary. Patients with arterial hypertension very often suffer from headaches.

Hypertensive crisis is common in arterial hypertension. There are two types of hypertensive crisis:

• The first stage of the crisis (when an immediate reduction in blood pressure is required) is classified: hypertrophic encephalopathy, acute left ventricular failure, acute aortic dissection, eclampsia, postcoronary arterial bypass. In some cases, hypertension is observed, which is accompanied by an increase in the levels of catecholamines circulating in the blood.
• In the second phase of the crisis (when the necessary conditions for lowering blood pressure are met within 12-24 hours): malignant arterial hypertension without special complications, high hypertension, characterized by an increase in diastolic pressure above 140 mm Hg.

Emergency cupirization of a hypertensive crisis is carried out under conditions when it occurs: a convulsive form (hypertensive encephalopathy), a crisis in the presence of a pheochromocytoma, a crisis in myocardial infarction, stroke, pulmonary edema, aortic aneurysm.

Studies prescribed by a doctor for arterial hypertension should include: an examination of the fundus, an examination of kidney function, an examination of the heart. He may also prescribe patients antihypertensive therapy, which will help identify complications that may arise during high blood pressure (hypertension).

degree of hypertension

In order to properly diagnose hypertension, physicians must first determine the degree or stage of hypertension in a patient and, as it were, make a corresponding entry in their medical records. If the diagnosis of hypertensive disease occurred in the later stages, the second or third, the consequences for the body can be more serious than in the first stage of the disease. Nevertheless, only a few of the patients go to the doctor in the early or early stages of the disease. And in general, few people measure their own blood pressure at home.

Determine: normal blood pressure, in which the systolic blood pressure, in which the indicator is less than 130 mm Hg, and diastolic blood pressure, in which the values are less than 85 mm Hg. High normal, at which systolic blood pressure, at which the indicator is 130-140 mm Hg, and diastolic blood pressure, at which the indicator is 85-90 mm Hg.

• hypertension 1 degree (mild), at which systolic blood pressure has an indicator of 140-160 mmHg, and diastolic pressure, at which the indicators are 90-100 mmHg;
• Hypertension of the 2nd degree (moderate), in which the systolic blood pressure has an indicator of 160-180 mmHg, and diastolic blood pressure, in which the indicator is 100-110 mmHg;
• Grade 3 (severe) hypertension, in which the systolic blood pressure is greater than 180 mm Hg and the diastolic blood pressure, in which the values are greater than 110 mm Hg.

stages of hypertension

Hypertension in the first stage - characterized by an increase in blood pressure up to 160/100 mm, which can occur within a few days or weeks. However, under favorable conditions, it usually drops to a normal level.

At this stage, there are usually no symptoms of the disease. Sometimes there may be complaints of recurring headaches, sleep disturbances, mild heart pain.

In the second stage of hypertension, the pressure increases to 180/100 mm. Even when the patient is resting, it does not drop to normal levels. In addition to an increase in blood pressure, there may be narrowing of the artery of the retina, hypertrophy of the left ventricle of the heart, a protein in the urine during analysis, and a slight increase in plasma creatine. Headaches, dizziness, insomnia, angina pectoris, shortness of breath may occur. At this stage, misfortunes such as heart attacks and strokes can occur. At this stage it is necessary to take antihypertensive drugs.

In the third stage of hypertension, there is an increased increase in blood pressure to 180/110 mm and above. (Severe) changes in the internal organs occur in almost all patients. Shortness of breath, angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmias, headaches, dizziness, sleep and hearing disorders, vision and memory disorders are common. Development of renal and cardiac insufficiency. Strokes and heart attacks are guaranteed. Urgent treatment should be carried out.

treatment of high blood pressure

There are two methods of treating high blood pressure: drug treatment and non-drug treatment.

There are various treatments for hypertension, but treatment should start with treating diseases whose symptoms are secondary hypertension as well as symptomatic components of hypertension. Non-drug treatment of arterial hypertension consists of a low-salt diet, a favorable rest and work regime, dealing with stressful situations, giving up alcohol and smoking, and normalizing body weight. Drug therapy should only be used if this method is not very effective.

The aim of drug therapy is to lower blood pressure, i. e. to eliminate the cause of this vascular disease. At the beginning of treatment, monotherapy and combination therapy make sense. If it is ineffective, I use low doses of combinations of antihypertensive drugs. The first line of treatment is prescribed medications that improve prognosis.

• beta blockers. This is an outdated group of drugs that have an antihypertensive effect by reducing heart rate and blood volume per minute. They improve the work of the heart in its ischemic disease. But a side effect of such drugs is bronchospasm, so today most doctors move away from this method of treatment as monotherapy. And even with long-term use, they contribute to the development of diabetes and erectile dysfunction.
• diuretics. Saluretics, drugs that remove sodium and chlorine ions from the body, are also used to treat high blood pressure. But most diuretics provoke the excretion of potassium from the body. It's best to combine them.
• potassium antagonists. Used to prevent brain damage. Under no circumstances should you treat yourself for high blood pressure.

Only a doctor, after a properly conducted examination, can prescribe the right means of treating hypertension.

Although high blood pressure cannot be completely cured, it can generally be said that good treatment results can be achieved if the patient and the treating physician work in concert. It is possible to achieve a stable improvement in the state of the vascular system and the work of the heart, as well as an improvement in the level of cholesterol in the blood, which also contributes to good alleviation of the patient's condition. Compliance with the doctor's absolute orders and recommendations will help the patient get rid of many of the symptoms that this insidious disease can provoke.

Diet for high blood pressure

Rational nutrition is nutrition that maintains health. It also covers all of the human body's needs for vitamins, nutrients, minerals and energy.

The work of the entire cardiac system is closely related to the digestive processes. With hypertension, nutrition has a beneficial effect on the general condition of the patient. A large meal can greatly overfill the stomach, thereby displacing the diaphragm, which makes it harder for the heart to work. Excess liquid also creates a large strain. Well, when the diet is crowded with a large amount of sodium chloride, water is retained in the tissues of the body, which leads to an increase in blood pressure, which sometimes also causes swelling of the extremities.

nutritional principles. Nutrition: Adherence to the diet is considered a prerequisite - regular meals at the same time, it is best to also adhere to frequent and fractional meals - three to five times a day, which is very important if you are overweight; It is recommended to eat dinner no later than two hours before bedtime - a rich meal before bedtime provokes the accumulation of overweight and obesity, and also contributes to restless sleep. Nutrition during the diet should be varied and include products of different (vegetable and animal) origin.

What needs to be limited:

• Salt. It is recommended to limit it to the minimum quantities and add only lightly to already cooked food. In general, salt itself causes fluid retention in the body and contributes to the accumulation of excess body weight. During a diet, five grams per day are usually taken. With an increase in blood pressure, it is recommended to take salt as a "preventive" type, that is, with a reduced sodium content. It may also contain essential minerals for health, such as magnesium, iodine and potassium ions. Products with low sodium content are products of plant origin: fish, cottage cheese, meat. Ready-made dishes such as cheese or sausage contain an incredible amount of salt. It is ten times more in it than in natural meat. If the dish is not salted or not at all, the taste can be improved by adding cranberries, citric acid, parsley, cinnamon, corianderor dill Salt restriction is very important in the diet for treating hypertension.
• Fluid. Reduce the amount you drink to one liter per day, including compote, soup, milk and tea. The purpose of this restriction is to relieve the work of the heart muscle and the work of the kidneys. You should also limit the intake of substances that stimulate the work of the cardiovascular system. These substances include caffeine and other tonics. They can cause heart palpitations, high blood pressure and insomnia. Also, be careful with instant coffee as it contains a lot more caffeine than regular coffee. Animal fat intake should be limited to 25 grams per day. Hypertension and atherosclerosis are closely related. Hypertension contributes to the development of such a disease as atherosclerosis, and it can itself occur against its background. To combat this syndrome, you need to reduce your consumption of animal fats rich in saturated fat and replace them with vegetable oils (olive, sunflower, cotton seed, and the like). Patients should avoid eating foods containing cholesterol (kidneys, liver, fatty meat, egg yolk).
• Sugar. The sugar limit should be up to 40 grams per day. Its excess is involved in the development of atherosclerosis.
• bakery products. Patients with high blood pressure are often overweight. In this case, it is necessary to reduce the calorie content in food, which will limit not only the consumption of sugar, but also the consumption of jam, flour products, white bread, etc. In such cases, a very effective remedy such as fasting days are welcome. But even here only on the recommendation of a doctor who is observing the patient. You can arrange fasting days once a week. That means absolutely nothing to eat, just water to drink. This will greatly contribute to weight loss. You can also arrange cottage cheese days: 400 grams of cottage cheese for five cans, two glasses of kefir, two cups of unsweetened and weak tea. And you can also arrange apple days: two kilograms of apples for five cans.

You should increase your intake of the following:

• Potassium. Products containing it are very useful in treating hypertension. And there should be more of these products. Potassium improves heart muscle function and also helps remove excess fluid. Potassium salts are found in large quantities in vegetables, fruits and berries, as well as in juices. They are also rich in cabbage, potatoes, squash, apricots, prunes, raisins, dried apricots, rose hips.
• Magnesium. It is necessary to provide the body with magnesium. Like potassium, it is necessary in the treatment of hypertension. Magnesium salts have a vasodilating effect that helps prevent vascular spasms. This macronutrient is found in bran and rye bread, as well as oatmeal, wheat, millet, buckwheat, barley groats, beets, carrots, lettuce, parsley, blackcurrants, walnuts, and almonds.
• Iodine. Iodine also has a good effect on metabolism and metabolism in general in hypertension. Foods containing iodine: fish, seaweed, squid. Salt restriction to provide the body with a sufficient amount of products containing magnesium and potassium salts, which are among the main features of therapeutic and preventive nutrition in arterial hypertension.

In general, the relationship between diet and treatment should be coordinated with the doctor treating you, since violating a prescription can have serious consequences for the body.

Folk remedies for hypertension

Treatment of folk remedies for hypertension is very, very effective. Its effects will always be more lasting and positive, but only if the patient leads a healthy lifestyle and adheres to a strict diet.

How exactly to treat hypertension folk remedies?

Herbal decoctions, as well as infusions for the treatment of hypertension, prepared according to folk recipes, are recommended by doctors for a long time. You can take a break for five or ten days every two to three months. The composition of these fees and decoctions includes special plants for lowering blood pressure. They also have sedative, sedative, diuretic and antispasmodic effects. Such collections contain a large number of specific compounds that have a beneficial effect on our body. They are called biologically active compounds. These include: macro and micro elements, vitamins, phytoncides, organic acids and other substances.

Examples of folk recipes used for hypertension:

1. Peeled onions - three kilograms, flower honey - half a kilo, vodka - half a liter, walnuts - about thirty pieces. The method of preparation is to squeeze the juice from the onion, mix it with honey and add nuts to this mixture. All this is poured with vodka and infused for about ten days. After that, this infusion can be taken one tablespoon three times a day.
2. One lemon, two glasses of beetroot juice, one and a half glasses of cranberry juice, one glass of vodka, 250 grams of blossom honey. Mix all this and take one tablespoon twice a day on an empty stomach.
3. Take half a glass of honey and chopped beets. Mix everything and take one tablespoon three times a day before meals for three months.

Bee venom also has good diuretic properties and blocks spasms of blood vessels and widens them. This action leads to a reduction in blood pressure. Therefore, it is also recommended to sting the limbs with bees twice a week.

Traditional medicine gives recommendations on the use of royal jelly and propolis. They are good powerful antioxidants, reduce fatigue and help cleanse the body, increase its resistance to nervous and physical stress.

In the treatment of hypertension, the fruits of aronia are also prescribed. They can be cooked in the form of jelly, compote, fruit drinks, syrup and even jam. The juice from these fruits has a great therapeutic effect, which is taken three times a day for half an hour before meals.