Risk Factors Of Hypertension

CERTAIN FACTORS ARE KNOWN TO INCREASE A PERSON'S RISK OF HAVING HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE.

THESE INCLUDE:-

1. Black Race- hypertension is more common amongst Africans and African Americans than in any other race. Persons of African descent have hypertension at a younger age, usually have a more severe rise in blood pressures, and are more prone to developing complications earlier than Caucasians.
2. Family History of Hypertension- family studies has shown that an individual is 1.6 times more likely to develop hypertension if he/she has a first degree relative with the condition.
3. Obesity- defined as excessive accumulation of body fat. Individuals who are obese are 35 times more likely to develop hypertension than non-obese individuals.
   A health care professional will use certain criteria to determine if a person is obese or not. One of such criteria is the body mass index (BMI)calculated by dividing an individuals weight in kilograms by the square of his/her height in meters square.
   A BMI of less than 18.5 kg/m2 is underweight. bmi values of 18.5 to 24.9 kg/m2 is normal weight. bmi values of 25.0 to 29.9kg/m2 is overweight. BMI values of 30.0 to 39.9kg/m2 is obese. A BMI of 40.0kg/m2 or higher is severely obese.
   Healthcare professionals also use other criteria such as the waist hip ratio (values > 0.9 for men and >0.85 for women are used as measures for obesity).
4. Chronic Alcohol Abuse- studies have shown there is direct relationship between chronic alcohol abuse and hypertension irrespective of the type of alcoholic beverage consumed. Further studies also show that reduction in the amounts of alcohol consumed or total abstinence from alcohol resulted in significant reduction in blood pressure levels. Alcoholics are more than twice likely to develop hypertension than non drinkers.
5. High Salt Intake- intake of large amounts of dietary salt (sodium chloride) has been linked to hypertension in all societies worldwide. However, not everyone with hypertension is salt sensitive. Africans, African Americans, diabetics, the elderly, obese persons and individuals with kidney problems are most sensitive to the effect of dietary salt on hypertension.
6. Inadequate Exercise – studies have shown that regular exercise is effective in reducing the relative risk of developing hypertension by 15 to 30 percent. It has been shown also that middle aged individuals who do not exercise regularly have a 50 percent risk of developing hypertension.
7. Cigarette Smoking - smoking is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis which have a direct negative effect on blood pressure.
8. Gender – it has been proven beyond doubt that men run a greater risk of developing elevated blood pressure than women of similar age do. Furthermore, studies have shown that women appear to better tolerate elevated blood pressure than men.
   However, post-menopausal women are more likely to develop elevated blood pressure than women who have not attained menopause.
9. Age- the older one gets the more the likelihood of developing hypertension.
   Persons aged between 18 and 39 years have only a 5% chance of developing high blood pressure as compared to persons aged between 40 and 50 years who have a 27% chance of developing high blood pressure.
   However, persons aged over 60 years have a 58% chance of developing elevated blood pressure.
10. Oral Contraceptives - recent studies have shown that women who have used oral contraceptives for several years have a small but significant risk of developing hypertension. Stoppage of the use of oral contraceptive pills greatly minimizes this risk. The risk is also minimal in past users of oral contraceptive agents.
11. Stress- the way a person handles stress can affect blood pressure. Stress of any form, either real or imagined, can contribute to elevated blood pressure. The longer a person is exposed to the cause of stress the greater the risk of developing elevated blood pressure.
12. Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus- see the blog topic: Diabetes and Hypertension.
13. Pregnancy- see the blog topic: Pregnancy and Hypertension.