9. Blood Pressure – Beware of Six Serious Risk Factors

The risk of high blood pressure is quite high and you can’t afford to be complacent about it. Some specific risk factors that you have to guard against have been identified. There are six risk factors which are more significant.  If you have one or more of these factors, then you should take steps to protect yourself.

1. Age:
   The risk of contracting blood pressure increases with age. Statistics indicate that 50% of the people in the age group 50-60 and 75% of the people above 75 years suffer from high blood pressure.
2. Overweight:People who have excess weight are more prone to be affected by high blood pressure. In fact if you are overweight, your chances of contracting hypertension are 6 times the chances for a person with normal weight.
3. Family history of hypertension:
   If one or more among your parents, grandparents or siblings have had high blood pressure, you run a high risk of being  affected by high blood pressure.
4. Improper diet:As you know only too well, diet plays an important role in maintaining your health. High salt consumption and consumption of packaged foods will result in accumulation of excess fluid in your body. This condition will impose an additional burden on the heart and will translate into increase in blood pressure.
5. Inadequate physical activity:If you do not exercise regularly or if you are not otherwise physically active, the risk of hypertension will increase significantly.
6. High Stress:Hypertension is sometimes characterized as a psychometric disease in that it can be caused by emotional stress.  You may not be able to avoid stress completely but you should be able to keep it under control.

Be in the look out for these risk factors and if one or more of these factors apply to you, you should be cautious to avoid getting affected by high blood pressure.