If you or an elderly loved one has been diagnosed with hypertension, you might wonder about your next steps. How serious is hypertension, and what can you do at home to help improve your loved one’s health? Thankfully, many individuals respond well to treatment for this condition.
Hypertension can cause heart complications the longer it’s left untreated. Lifestyle changes to diet, exercise and medication can make a difference for seniors with hypertension. Learn more about blood pressure management at home.
What Is Hypertension?
Hypertension, a medical term for high blood pressure, has to do with the power of your heart. When your heart pumps, it has two stages — contracting and relaxing. These stages are also called systole and diastole. To determine a person’s blood pressure, medical professionals measure the amount of pressure their blood has when moving from the heart through their arteries.
Systolic pressure describes blood pressure when the heart is contracting, or in systole. Diastolic pressure is the measure of blood pressure when the heart is relaxed. A normal blood pressure is 120/80 millimeters of mercury (mmHg), or 120 systolic pressure and 80 diastolic pressure.
If a person’s blood pressure is at 130/80 or higher, they will likely be diagnosed with hypertension. This means the pressure of the blood moving through their arteries is higher than it needs to be, and their heart is working much harder than it should. Over time, this can lead to complications with heart health.
Impact of Lifestyle Measures on Hypertension
Healthy lifestyle choices can help protect your loved ones from high blood pressure and ensuing complications. If a senior is diagnosed with hypertension, their doctor may recommend some of these lifestyle changes. Thankfully, each of these choices has additional positive benefits for a senior’s health and no negative side effects:
- Diet: A heart-healthy diet includes plenty of whole foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Reducing salt intake can help with high blood pressure, and staying hydrated can also keep blood pressure balanced during the day. You should stop drinking alcohol or using tobacco products if you have hypertension.
- Exercise: As adults get older, exercise can become more challenging. However, simple physical movements like walking can improve a person’s health. Swimming is another low-impact exercise many seniors enjoy. Regular movement can improve blood pressure and keep your heart healthy.
- Rest: If your loved one has sleep apnea, that can contribute to hypertension. Getting treatment for this condition can improve their blood pressure through quality rest. You can also consider gentle chiropractic treatment to improve sleep.
- Stress management: Emotional factors like high stress and loneliness can also negatively impact your loved one’s health. People with chronic stress have a higher risk of hypertension, so it’s important to reduce stress. You can do this by removing the stressor or finding ways to cope with stress when it comes. Companionship can often help since it’s easier to reach high stress levels when a person is alone.
Each positive lifestyle change you make can help reduce your loved one’s high blood pressure. However, their doctor may also prescribe medication to improve hypertension. Since high blood pressure can be dangerous, it’s essential to consult with a medical professional before deciding on the best treatment option for your loved one.
How Can You Tell if Someone Has Hypertension?
Sometimes, people with high blood pressure experience symptoms like dizziness, confusion or vision issues. Other symptoms may include headaches or shortness of breath. However, most often, hypertension doesn’t present symptoms until it has created a larger problem.
To catch hypertension early, you should have your loved one’s blood pressure checked at routine doctor appointments. If you or a loved one has a higher risk for hypertension, you can also invest in medical equipment to test blood pressure more regularly at home. This is a good option if your loved one only sees their doctor once a year.
Hypertension Causes and Effects
High blood pressure often doesn’t have a single, specific cause. Instead, a variety of lifestyle choices and genetics may increase the risk of developing hypertension as people age. Some common factors that make it more likely for a person to develop high blood pressure include:
- Genetics: Black people are more likely to develop high blood pressure than people of other races. Hypertension also tends to run in families.
- Physical shape: Being overweight puts pressure on your body, causing your heart to work harder to supply blood to all your tissues. Staying physically active can reduce this risk and keep your heart rate low.
- Age: As people age, their risk of hypertension increases for several reasons. Arteries start to harden, kidney function declines and many older people become sensitive to sodium intake.
- Chronic illness: People who have diabetes, sleep apnea or kidney disease have a higher risk for developing hypertension.
If your loved one has these risk factors, you should have their blood pressure checked frequently. Catching high blood pressure early allows you to treat it and prevent health complications.
Implications of High Blood Pressure
There’s a strong link between hypertension and heart disease. When it’s not treated, high blood pressure can overwork your heart and lead to serious health issues, such as:
- Coronary artery disease: Hypertension can damage your arteries and lead to plaque buildup, reducing blood flow to the heart. This can lead to chest pain, also called angina.
- Heart failure: When someone’s heart works too hard for a long period of time, the heart muscle can thicken. Eventually, this can cause heart failure.
- Stroke: High blood pressure is one of several factors that increase the risk of a stroke. It can also cause a ministroke, or a temporary reduction of blood to the brain.
- Kidney disease: Hypertension can damage blood vessels in the kidneys. Eventually, this can lead to kidney failure and require dialysis.
- Peripheral artery disease: Sometimes, high blood pressure can cause arteries in your limbs to become narrow or blocked. This can cause cramping, pain and numbness in your legs or feet.
Cognitive decline can be another side effect of high blood pressure. Hypertension in the elderly can damage blood vessels in the brain and cause memory problems. Because cardiovascular disease and hypertension are connected, reducing high blood pressure is an important way to care for your heart health.
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