How
to Prevent High Blood Pressure
High
Blood Pressure, also called hypertension, is a risk factor for
heart and kidney diseases and stroke. This means that having high
blood pressure increases your chance (or risk) of getting heart
or kidney disease, or of having a stroke.
This
is serious business: heart disease is the number one killer in
the United States, and stroke is the third most common cause of
death.
About
one in every four American adults has high blood pressure. High
blood pressure is especially dangerous because it often gives
no warning signs or symptoms. Fortunately, though, you can find
out if you have high blood pressure by having your blood pressure
checked regularly. If it is high, you can take steps to lower
it.
Just
as important, if your blood pressure is normal, you can
learn how to keep it from becoming high. This fact sheet will
tell you how.
The
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute--part of the National
Institutes of Health--sponsors a nationwide education program
to help people avoid the ill effects of high blood pressure, and
to help prevent high blood pressure altogether.
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THE
NATIONAL HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE EDUCATION PROGRAM
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The
National High Blood Pressure Education Program (NHBPEP),
coordinated by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI), works to reduce death and disability related to
high blood pressure. The program also promotes prevention
of this important public health problem. This nationwide
network is composed of many organizations and gives information
to health professionals, patients, family members, and the
public about the dangers of this serious problem.
The
progress made to date has been impressive! The NHBPEP has
helped to improve blood pressure control, contributing to
a 50 percent decrease in deaths from coronary heart disease
and a 57 percent decrease in deaths from stroke over the
last 20 years. Many Americans are alive today because they
are controlling their high blood pressure.
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