High blood pressure used to be an illness associated with older adults or those who are not physically fit. People belonging to this age group are often the ones who are viewed as hypertensive. That is why when recent reports from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated that 33 percent of the whole population now have problems with their blood pressure, health programs for its prevention have been strengthened. There are even other illnesses that may complicate hypertension such as diabetes. Concomitant treatment for diabetes is what most health care providers do in order to improve the outcome for their patients.
The trend of most lifestyle-related diseases has led to the decision of the United Nations to promote health related programs in all the members of the assembly to prevent the rise of death tolls related to preventable illnesses. The UN assembly has also determined that lifestyle diseases such as this, may affect the economy. Identifying the risk factors of such illnesses may help in decreasing the numbers of this saddening statistic.
Here are some of the known factors that may cause or increase the risk of high blood pressure:
- Genetic or family history predisposes a person to problems with the heart and circulation.
- Sedentary lifestyle or not having enough activities. Exercise helps improve circulation and a lack of it brings about many problems.
- Alcohol consumption and smoking also increases the pressure in the blood. Thus, habitual use of alcohol and cigarettes may result to high blood pressure.
- Research has also associated low levels of vitamin D and food rich in sodium with this problem.
- There are also several medications that may increase it, thus, many people are advised to monitor their blood pressure when taking such formulations.
The many factors that predispose a person to this health problem have lead health care providers to try different ways in keeping people in the prime of their health. Public health measures are being taken to fight the deadly lifestyle diseases. The national dance day, for example, was created to lead people to get off their couches and dance to a healthy life. Although the primary goal of this event is to celebrate dance, this may also be a fun way to encourage people to move and not to stay inactive. There are many ways to stay healthy without having to spend too much money and the government has many programs that promote a lifestyle made for better health. Visit this page to know more about it.
URL References:
un.org/wcm/content/site/chronicle/home/archive/issues2010/achieving_global_health/economicburdenonhealthservices
cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/hyprtens.htm
sma.org.sg/smj/4105/articles/4105cr4.pdf
dance.blogs.fox.com/tag/national-dance-day/
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