New Orleans – You could be living with a silent killer. Dr. Rachel explains.
Dr. Rachel says that your blood pressure could be slowly harming you, and the only way to know, is to get it checked. High blood pressure affects about 85 million Americans, which is 1 in 3 adults. But it is extremely under-diagnosed because most people don’t get their blood pressure checked.
The American Heart Association recommends if you are over the age of 20 and your blood pressure is within the normal range, under 120/80, then you should get checked every two years.
If your blood pressure is higher than 120/80 then the American Heart Association recommends that you start checking your blood pressure at home.
If your blood pressure continues to stay over 120/80, see your doctor. If you do check at home, you really need to make sure you’re doing it correctly.
The American Heart Association recommends sitting with your back supported and legs uncrossed. Make sure your upper arm is bare. Your arm should be supported at the level of your heart.
High Blood pressure or Hypertension is when the force of the blood flowing through your body is consistently high. Dr. Rachel says that high blood pressure is known as the ‘silent killer’ because most of the time there are no symptoms.
So, people are walking around with high blood pressure causing irreversible damage to vessels and organs and they have no idea.