High Blood Pressure Education Month: State health department
encourages healthy lifestyles
One-third
of all Illinois adults have high blood pressure
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[May 21, 2013]
CHICAGO -- Reducing sodium
consumption by just 30 percent could prevent more than 100,000 cases
of high blood pressure and save more than $200 million in medical
costs in Illinois, where cardiovascular diseases such as heart
attack and stroke remain a leading cause of death. May is High Blood
Pressure Education Month, and the Illinois Department of Public
Health is encouraging healthy lifestyle changes to reduce cases of
high blood pressure, also known as hypertension.
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"High blood pressure, or hypertension, increases the risk of
cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke. Certain
lifestyle changes, like regular exercise, quitting smoking and
following a low-sodium diet rich in fruit and vegetables, can reduce
and help maintain a healthy blood pressure," said Dr. LaMar
Hasbrouck, director of the Department of Public Health. "Make
control your goal." Written as two figures, blood pressure is
measured as the pressure when the heart has pumped (systolic) and
when the heart is in between beats (diastolic), and is measured in
millimeters of mercury, written as mmHg. Traditionally, blood
pressure is considered normal when systolic pressure, the higher
number, is less than 120 mmHg and diastolic pressure, the lower
number, is less than 80 mmHg. People at risk for high blood
pressure, often called pre-hypertension, have systolic pressure
between 120 and 139 mmHg or diastolic between 80 and 89 mmHg. High
blood pressure means systolic pressure is 140 mmHg or higher or
diastolic is 90 mmHg or higher.
In the U.S., 1 in 3 adults have high blood pressure, but many are
unaware they have the condition because of a lack of symptoms. In
Illinois, one-third of all adults have been diagnosed with high
blood pressure. The prevalence of high blood pressure increases with
age -- 63 percent of adults age 65 and older in Illinois have high
blood pressure. Hypertension-related health conditions account for
more than 200,000 hospitalizations a year in Illinois, at a cost of
more than $9 billion.
African-Americans suffer from hypertension in disproportionate
numbers, representing about 14 percent of the population in Illinois
but 42 percent of all cases. Geographically, rural Pulaski County
leads the state in adults with high blood pressure, at nearly 45
percent; Bond County in the Metro East area of the state has the
lowest rate, at 23 percent.
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Blood pressure can be kept under
control with the following healthy habits:
that is high in fruits and vegetables and low in sodium,
saturated fats, trans fat and cholesterol.
Reduce sodium
intake. Guidelines recommend up to 2,300 mg of sodium per
day for an adult. Those at higher risk should consume even less
-- no more than 1,500 mg per day.
Manage stress.
Limit alcohol
consumption. No more than one drink each day for women and
two for men.
If you have high
blood pressure, take your medication as directed.
Quit smoking -- and if you don't smoke,
don't start. Call the Illinois Tobacco Quitline for free
assistance with tobacco cessation: 1-866-QUIT-YES
(1-866-784-8937).
[Text from
Illinois
Department of Public Health file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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