Impact of high blood pressure on your arteries

High blood pressure can significantly impact the ability of your arteries to open and close during blood circulation. If you have a high blood pressure, the surrounding muscles of the artery wall will react by pushing back hard. This causes them to grow bigger, which in turn makes the artery walls thicker. Thicker arteries results in is less space for blood circulation in the body. This condition will raise blood pressure even further. The higher your blood pressure is, the greater the risk that the extra pressure could weaken and burst your artery. However, the narrower the arteries are, the greater the chance of the arteries becoming blocked.

When there is an artery burst or becomes blocked, the parts and organs of the body that gets blood supplies from that artery will be starved of the oxygen and energy it requires and the surrounding cells in the affected area will die. Considering a fatal scenario, if a burst artery supplies blood to a part of the brain, it will result in a stroke. Also, if the burst artery supplies blood to a part of the heart, that area of the heart muscle will die, which will lead to a heart attack.

You can improve your arteries and stay healthy by controlling your blood pressure and by living a healthy lifestyle. Eating healthy will provide your body the required energy and nutrients needed to keep it in great condition. Get active to keep your heart and blood vessels healthy and fit. Majority of the drugs used to manage high blood pressure works by keeping the arteries wider. They act directly on the muscles in the artery wall, or control hormones that influence these muscles.

How to read your Blood Pressure: Using BP Graph

Blood pressure reading has two numbers or levels. They are represented as one number on top of the other number. The first (or top) number is called the systolic blood pressure. It shows the highest level your blood pressure exerted when your heart beats.

On the other hand, the second (or bottom) number is called the diastolic blood pressure. It shows the lowest level your blood pressure gets to when your heart relaxes between beats. Applying the blood pressure graph below shows you what your blood pressure value means. It shows the ranges of high, low and healthy blood pressure readings. The blood pressure graph is suitable for adults of all ages. (Please note that the level for high blood pressure does not change with age.)

You can use this blood pressure graph: To work out the meaning of what your blood pressure represents. All you need do is just find your top number (systolic) on the left side of the blood pressure chart and read across, and your bottom number (diastolic) on the bottom of the blood pressure chart. Where the two readings meet is your blood pressure.

As you can see from the blood pressure chart, only one of the numbers has to be higher or lower than it should be to count as either high blood pressure or low blood pressure:

* 90 over 60 (90/60) or less: You may have low blood pressure.

* More than 90 over 60 (90/60) and less than 120 over 80 (120/80): Your blood pressure reading is ideal and healthy.

* More than 120 over 80 and less than 140 over 90 (120/80-140/90): You have a normal blood pressure reading but it is a little higher than it should be, and you should try to lower it.

* 140 over 90 (140/90) or higher (over a number of weeks): You may have high blood pressure (hypertension).

Do you know your Blood Pressure ?

When your heart beats, it pumps blood that circulate round your body to give the body oxygen and energy it requires for well being. As the blood circulates through, it pushes against the sides of the blood vessels and exerts pressure. The strength of this pushing and pressure is your blood pressure. If your blood pressure is quite high, it exerts more force and strain on your heart and arteries which may lead to strokes and heart attacks.

For an ideal healthy condition, our blood pressure should be below 120 over 80 (120/80). This is an optimum blood pressure for people to have good health. At this level, the risk of heart disease or stroke is significantly lower.

If your blood pressure is optimal, this is great news. By following our healthy living advice, you will be able to keep it this way. If your blood pressure is reads above 120/80mmHg, it would do you a lot of good to lower it.

Majority of adults in Nigeria have blood pressure readings in the range from 120 over 80 (120/80) to 146 over 90 (146/90). If your blood pressure is within this range, you should be taking steps to bring it down or to stop it rising any further. The higher your blood pressure, the higher your risk of health problems. For example, someone with a blood pressure level of 137 over 86 (137/86) is twice as likely to have a heart attack or stroke as someone with a reading of 113 over 72 (113/72).