More than a third of the world's population suffers from high blood pressure, popularly called hypertension. However, only half of them seek qualified help. Meanwhile, such an insidious disease for a long time may not manifest any symptoms and significantly increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes. The number of people affected by this pathology is constantly increasing and can often occur even in children.
What causes hypertension in humans
One of the main causes of this disease is the nervous system. People exposed to psycho-emotional stress suffer from this pathology much more often. Increased vascular tone, provoked by a stressful situation, can lead to an increase in blood pressure.
The presence of atherosclerotic plaques and sclerosis of the arteries can also trigger the appearance of hypertension. At the same time, the lumen of the walls of the vessels becomes narrower, and normal blood circulation is impossible. The heart begins to work more intensively, andincreased pressure is created in the vessels.
The risk of hypertension increases in people who are overweight, an additional factor in the disease is atherosclerosis. Also provoke such a pathology, metabolic disorders and normal blood supply to the kidneys, disruption of the internal organs and the function of the nervous system, high levels of potassium and calcium in the blood.
With a hereditary disposition, blood pressure remains at high levels much longer than in other people. The presence of such addictions as the use of narcotic and psychotropic drugs, alcohol, tobacco smoking also has a negative effect.
In the absence of proper attention to one's he alth, the cause of hypertension can be an elementary wear and tear of the body. Also, the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and medications to reduce appetite, glucocorticoids, oral contraceptives on an ongoing basis can also be attributed to negative factors.
Practically people who live far from cities, who do not delve into the political and economic situation in the country and do not receive information from the media, practically do not suffer from increased pressure.
Types of hypertension and their stages
In its course, this disease is divided into a slowly developing, benign type and malignant. The first, in turn, is classified into three stages.
Unstable and judgmental signs that pass quickly and arise easily, have hypertension of the 1st degree. Here, there are mainly such functional disorders of the nervous system asirritability, headaches, decreased mental performance. Sometimes there are no symptoms at all.
The increase in pressure is unstable and, as a rule, is discovered by chance after emotional overload. It returns to normal and is usually kept without medication as the nervous system calms down.
Organic lesions of organs with hypertension of the 1st degree are not observed. There are also no abnormalities in the work of the heart or changes in the fundus. Diagnosis here is not difficult and comes down to measuring pressure.
The most pronounced clinical picture characterizes the second degree of hypertension. Symptoms include sleep and performance disturbances, headaches and dizziness, and heart pain. There are cases of spontaneous decrease in pressure that does not reach the norm. These deviations go away only after the use of medications.
Quite often at this stage, a hypertensive crisis appears, the concentration ability of the kidneys decreases and the blood circulation of the brain is disturbed. You can recognize this stage of the disease by examining the fundus.
Sustained high blood pressure is characteristic of the third degree of hypertension. With it, complications from the fundus, kidneys, heart and brain begin to develop. The likelihood of a hypertensive crisis becomes much higher. Fatalities are not uncommon.
Main objectives of disease prevention
Currently observedthe rapid increase in the incidence of hypertension. This disease has become much younger in recent years, not sparing even teenagers. Many parents ask themselves: “What is the cause of juvenile hypertension?”. Most likely, such a pathology occurs due to malnutrition, heredity and a significant decrease in physical activity. In addition, the state of the environment has deteriorated significantly. A person cannot change some factors; it is possible to significantly reduce the adverse effect of hypertension on the body by following the recommendations for its prevention. Therefore, the main task for the prevention of the disease is, first of all, the prevention of the appearance and development of the disease. If he has already shown himself, then it is necessary to ease the symptoms. Well, and, of course, to prevent the occurrence and development of complications.
Primary prevention
The causes of hypertension in young people can be eliminated by timely preventive measures. Consultation of a specialist and timely help improve blood circulation and keep vascular tissues in good shape. First of all, it is necessary to stop drinking alcohol, and if necessary, eliminate the pathologies of blood vessels, kidneys and heart.
You should also significantly reduce the use of s alt (no more than five grams per day) and stop smoking. Physical education and the fight against extra pounds will also improve your he alth. The diet should be low-fat and low-carb foods rich in potassium, calcium and magnesium. It is worth normalizing the mode of rest and work, as well as avoiding stressful situations.
Secondaryprevention
If the diagnosis is accurate, the causes of hypertension can be eliminated through secondary prevention. Such measures are aimed at preventing the development of complications. Along with non-drug measures, drug therapy is prescribed to prevent pressure surges. The habit of people suffering from this pathology should include constant measurement of pressure and observation by doctors.
Prevention in old age
A very important task is to eliminate the causes of hypertension in the elderly. In the event that the pressure is not controlled, then in almost all cases a stroke develops and the situation reaches a fatal outcome.
First of all, representatives of this age category should change their lifestyle, which consists in proper rest and a strict diet, as well as the mandatory correction of drugs intended for the treatment of comorbidities.
Aging of the body, as a rule, leads to a decrease in cardiac output, hypertrophy of the walls of blood vessels and circulatory disorders, as well as changes in the functioning of the heart and kidneys.
Drugs for drug therapy
The specialist, as a rule, prescribes drugs to eliminate the underlying causes of hypertension in accordance with the stage of the pathological process. Usually such medicines, taken once or twice a day, have a prolonged effect and must be taken continuously. After all, the refusal of such therapy canlead to irreparable consequences. In medical practice, first and second line drugs are used. The latter are used only when first-line drugs no longer help the patient.
Eating regimen for high blood pressure
In the presence of this disease, a properly composed diet is necessary. Specialists observing their patients came to the conclusion that the right diet and the right foods help to effectively control pressure. Minimizing the consumption of regular table s alt helps to reduce cholesterol levels.
It is strictly forbidden to eliminate the causes of hypertension such products as fatty meats and steep broths based on them, lard and offal, various pastries and creams in them, cocoa and products from it, tea, coffee and alcohol, as well as s alty and spicy snacks. The exception here does not apply to oily marine fish. Such restrictions have a beneficial effect on the removal of fluid from the patient's body. Nutrition for this pathology should saturate his body with all important trace elements, vitamins and minerals.
Replace heavy animal foods by eating more fiber-rich vegetables, grains, nuts, and fruits. The most non-caloric and no later than two hours before bedtime, should be the last meal.
To improve the taste of food, you can use lemon, cinnamon, cranberries, dill. You can drink natural fruit and berry juices, eat prunes and candied fruits, and when baking s alt-free bread, you can add cumin or yogurt to the dough.
Ambiguous among doctors is the attitude towards therapeutic fasting, as it can lead to a decline in strength and bouts of weakness due to nutritional deficiencies. In addition, the lack of food provokes the formation of toxic substances, ketones, which disrupt the functioning of the kidneys. Exit from fasting should be extremely careful. Therefore, in order to prevent arterial hypertension, you can afford only separate fasting days.
Folk remedies
The use of traditional medicine is very useful and effective in the initial stage of the disease. And in combination with physical education and diet gives a stable positive result. Bee products, decoctions and infusions of herbs have diuretic and sedative properties, and also act as antispasmodics. The use of such treatment is long, but the effect of it is more stable. The best folk remedies for hypertension have already been tested and proven to work:
- Half a glass of beetroot and the same amount of lemon juice must be mixed, adding a glass of linden honey, and consumed one third of a glass an hour after eating.
- Each morning, take about ten drops of hawthorn flower tincture and eat a glass of cranberries.
- One hundred grams of marsh cudweed should be mixed with four glasses of beet juice and honey, add half a liter of vodka to them, mix everything. Infuse the resulting mixture in a tightly closed container in a cool and dark place for about ten days, then use it three times a day half an hour before takingone or two tablespoons of food.
- How to treat psychosomatic causes of hypertension? To do this, just mix a spoonful of honey and the juice of half a lemon, and dissolve in a glass of mineral water, and drink the remedy on an empty stomach at one time, continuing the treatment for ten days.
- In equal proportions, mix hawthorn and beetroot juice and take one tablespoon three times a day. But here it should be remembered that freshly squeezed beetroot juice cannot be taken. Before use, it must be infused for at least three hours.
If you often eat baked potatoes in the "uniform", then it also helps to reduce pressure. A small onion and a small clove of garlic have the same effect. Black currants and lingonberries will help relieve swelling, if you eat fresh berries in the season, and jam from them and compotes in winter.
Hypertension in women
In the representatives of the weaker sex, the signs of this pathology are much more pronounced than in men. Very often, this disease is diagnosed in menopausal women and pregnant women. Their disease is more severe and the pressure indicators are much higher, stronger and headaches.
As a result, complications such as obesity, varicose veins, diabetes, and metabolic disorders appear. If hypertension is uncontrolled, then the size of the heart becomes larger, and the walls of blood vessels become rigid. As a result, strokes and coronary disease develop.
For greater effectiveness of treatment, timely detection of symptoms of pathology is necessary. AtIn the first stage, the patient experiences pain in the occipital and temporal parts of the head, as well as increased sweating and fatigue, shortness of breath, decreased hunger, blanching or redness of the face, visual disturbances, nosebleeds. And in adulthood, the fairer sex experience nausea and vomiting. The first thing to do if these signs are present is to measure the pressure.
The second stage of hypertension is characterized by dizziness, vomiting and nausea. The fingers become numb and tremble, and there is severe squeezing pain in the back of the head and temples. In the morning, the face and eyelids become puffy. If such signs are ignored, then complications appear in the form of acute and stabbing pain in the heart, moving to the left hand, sleep disturbance, anxiety.
With the third degree of pathology, the symptoms become stronger and brighter. Headaches start suddenly and get worse quickly. Pressure indicators can increase significantly, reaching maximum levels. A pressing and aching pain appears in the heart, and breathing becomes frequent and superficial. Fainting and muscle spasms may also occur. These symptoms indicate that the patient is about to have a stroke or heart attack.
