What is High Blood Pressure

Many people live their lives without really understanding what high blood pressure is, especially if they don’t particularly suffer from it. And even those who have high blood pressure many not even realize they have it.  That's why it’s important to understand this condition, along with the symptoms of high blood pressure, so you can better maintain your health and well being.

High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, means there is high pressure or tension in the arteries. Your arteries are what carry blood from the heart to all the tissues and organs in the body, so it's vital to your health to keep them flowing properly. Despite popular belief, high blood pressure isn’t the result of excessive emotions or stress; although blood pressure can be heightened temporarily by anxiety.  

There are two forms of high blood pressure- essential (or primary) hypertension and secondary hypertension.

Essential Hypertension Causes
Essential hypertension is the most common between the two and accounts for about 95 percent of high blood pressure cases. There are many factors that when combined together cause essential hypertension, including:

• Genetic factors: Roughly 30 percent of essential hypertension cases are caused by genetic factors. For example, individuals that have two parents with hypertension are twice more likely to have the condition than those in the general public.
• Age and Race: Age and race also play a role. In the United States, blacks are twice as likely as whites to have high blood pressure, although the gap begins to narrow around age 44. After age 65, black women have the highest incidence of high blood pressure.
• Excessive salt intake: The link between salt and high blood pressure is especially compelling. People living on the northern islands of Japan eat more salt per capita than anyone else in the world and have the highest incidence of essential hypertension. By contrast, people who add no salt to their food show virtually no traces of essential hypertension.

Secondary Hypertension Causes
Secondary hypertension, which accounts for about 5 percent of high blood pressure cases, occurs when a direct cause can be identified. A few of the known causes of secondary hypertension include, kidney disease, tumors or other abnormalities that cause the adrenal glands to secrete excess amounts of the hormones that elevate blood pressure, birth control pills -- specifically those containing estrogen -- and pregnancy can boost blood pressure, as can medications that constrict blood vessels.