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Blood pressure is an important indicator for overall health.
But, putting one at even greater risk was having hypertension in middle age and then having low
blood pressure in late life, which increased one's dementia risk by 62 per cent.
The recently updated American College of Cardiology and AHA guidelines now recommend more closely monitoring people at increased risk of high
blood pressure. The findings of the new study that both systolic and diastolic hypertension have an effect at the lower threshold of 130/80 mm Hg support this change.
You can get your
blood pressure tested at a number of places, including: |your GP surgery |at some pharmacies | as part of your NHS health check |in some workplaces You can also check your
blood pressure yourself with a home
blood pressure monitor.
Overall, there is little evidence to support lowering systolic or diastolic
blood pressure below the levels of current guidelines.Doctors do agree, however, that symptoms are an unequivocal sign of excessively low
blood pressure.
Without visible symptoms, most people are unaware that they have high
blood pressure.
Overall, taking a nap during the day was associated with an average 5 mm Hg drop in
blood pressure, which researchers said is on par with what would be expected from other known blood pressure-lowering interventions.
"You don't want to get reassured by an incorrectly low pressure or worked up over a false reading of high
blood pressure," says Cleveland Clinic preventive cardiologist Luke Laffin, MD.
To determine the effects of
blood pressure reduction among hypertension on patients, Dr.
The lower number is called diastolic
blood pressure, the pressure when the heart is at rest.
In a study published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, researchers found that older people with higher
blood pressure may have more signs of brain disease, specifically brain lesions, and more tangles in the brain, which are linked to Alzheimer's disease.
Besides this,
blood pressure is a constant variable and there is a continuous relationship between levels of
blood pressure (both systolic and diastolic) and reduction in lifespan.