Understanding Hypertension?
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Factors You Can't Control
Gender
Men are more likely to have hypertension than women - until a woman reaches menopause. Women tend to ultimately have the same risk of cardiovascular disease as men, but generally develop it 10 years later. Despite the sex difference, coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women.
Age
It is likely that your blood pressure will increase with age. For men the risks begins to rise significantly at the age of 45. For women, the risk escalates at age 55. After age 75, more than three-quarters of all women have high blood pressure.
Heredity
If you have a family history of heart disease, you should speak to your family doctor. People with a father, brother or son who have had a heart attack or stroke before turning 55, or a sister or daughter who have had a heart attack or stroke before the age of 65, are at greater risk.
Heredity does not necessarily mean you will follow in your family's footsteps. By modifying other risk factors, you can reduce your chance of dying of a heart attack or stroke, regardless of family history.
Race
Studies show that there is a greater incidence of high blood pressure among people of African descent.
Diabetes
While it is still unclear how diabetes affects heart disease, we do know that diabetes accelerates the development of atherosclerosis, which, in turn, increases the risk for heart attack, stroke and reduced circulation to your feet. In fact, female diabetics are five times more likely and male diabetics twice as likely to develop heart disease than people without diabetes.
There is no doubt that quitting smoking, getting regular exercise and having a healthy diet will help to control hypertension and slow down any build-up in your arteries. The opposite is also true: By continuing to smoke, staying inactive and eating unhealthy food, it is much more likely that your blood pressure will go up and your arteries will continue to clog causing heart disease.
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