Dietary modifications play a significant role in how our health progresses with age. In addition to a healthy diet, an active lifestyle is quite important for the wellbeing of our heart as well as other organs. In order to eliminate or reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, it is very important to adapt a lifestyle that promotes better heart health, improved diet and sufficient activity. In this regard, altering your addictions and averting yourself from sedentary habits would be a wise decision, or else you’ll suffer the ramifications. However, accepting aloofness from a constant addiction such as excessive smoking or drinking might be uproar of conjecture during the healing process, but a compelling change in lifestyle could be pivotal in battling a few persistent medical conditions such as hypertension.
Dr. Asim Hameedi, MD, a non-invasive and interventional cardiology practitioner in Queens offers some great insights on how you can simply improve your heart health. He is considered one of the best NYC doctors and has constantly implied that medical care associated with a lifestyle change is the most feasible way to deal with hypertension.
Let’s now take a look at one of the leading causes of cardiovascular diseases.
What is hypertension? – What you need to know:
Hypertension is a medical term used for higher blood pressure. It is the most common form of cardiovascular disease and a condition that keeps your blood pressure steady and sometimes lofty than usual. Hypertension happens when your blood briefly spurts through your arteries at a higher speed, and it can be caused by multiple factors. If this condition stays for a long time and you couldn’t get a hold of it yourself, then this might be an indication of exposure to fatal cardiovascular diseases. Instead of taking it for granted, one must be attentive to his regular physical activities as the blood pressure changes occasionally.
The constant conditions of strokes and cardiovascular diseases could lead to the diagnosis of hypertension, and it certainly contains numerous side effects that can turn into a nightmare if not treated frequently. These medical irregularities aren’t only vicious for the life expectancy but in some cases, can be fatal.
With the evolution of smart technology, non-invasive cardiology and interventional cardiology is now an easier way to tackle this compulsive disease. It effortlessly treats patients with hypertension, making the entire process tolerable for them, and ultimately leading to peaceful lifestyle habits.
Types of Hypertension:
Hypertension is often called a “silent disease” because it generally doesn’t show its existence and you can be utterly unaware. Initially,employer health insurance vs. individual plans – Eden Health there might be no signs or symptoms, but it’ll be causing great damage internally and eventually leads to various cardiovascular diseases. To prevent this, self-monitoring your blood pressure regularly is the safest option. Blood pressure might increase or decrease as per your age group, cardiac health, physical activities, and prescribed medications. Blood pressure is often determined by a specific device known as a sphygmomanometer, which should be working at all times. To make a sound diagnosis of hypertension, at least three higher readings are usually required.
Oftentimes, your arteries become docile as the blood pressure forcefully pushes into it as your heart pumps. In that case, it could be a vibrant sign of hypertension. If left undiagnosed, hypertension might lead to severe cardiovascular diseases, indicating a heart attack or a stroke.
While we’re evaluating the specifications of Hypertension, how can we forget its different types and stages? Well, every individual varies from the other one, so the kind of blood pressure they’ll be having would be different. Here’s a short guide for the types of hypertension, which might be helpful for you in differentiating the signs of blood pressure.
- Resistant Hypertension:
Resistant hypertension is a state of high blood pressure that doesn’t respond well to violent medical treatment. It eventually increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases and kidney failure. Surprisingly, you might be having resistant hypertension without any symptoms, and the best way to determine is to opt for cardiac catheterization for this purpose. However, symptoms might be felt when blood pressure shoots up during a hypertensive crisis including, headaches, chest pain, shortness of breath, and nosebleed.
- Malignant Hypertension:
Malignant hypertension refers to an extremely high blood pressure that shoots up rapidly and causes organ damage to some extent. Normal blood pressure usually varies like 120/80, but a patient with malignant hypertension generally contains a ratio of 180/120. In a nutshell, the condition of a malignant one should be treated as an emergency. You’ll need to stay under observation until the blood pressure gets in control and you might be provided medications through an (IV) vein to reduce BP.
- Isolated systolic hypertension:
Generally, human blood pressure is recorded into two stages, the first stage and the second one. the first one is known as systolic pressure, which is the pressure implied during the heartbeat, while the second one is known as diastolic pressure, which indicates that the heart is resting between the beats. As mentioned above, a normal BP varies like 120/80. However, in isolated systolic hypertension, the systolic pressure reaches 140, while the diastolic one stays normal. Isolated systolic hypertension is the most common among aged people and is caused by the lack of elasticity in the arteries.
Diagnosing Hypertension- Is it a complex process?
There are numerous causes for hypertension. Some are genetically inflicted while others are voluntary. Diagnosing hypertension at an early stage minimizes the risk of cardiovascular diseases and stroke. Besides early diagnosis, regular monitoring is also essential to meet hypertensive treatment targets. Genetics and stress are the two primary causes that have been found to contribute a major role in causing hypertension.
Other main causes include obesity, which produces a lot of fats, in a concentration higher than required by an average human body. There is a certain weight limit set for a human body, beyond which he’ll be considered obese. However, being obese is an unpleasant combination of both unhealthy eating habits and a perilous lifestyle which means that both factors are contributing to hypertension.
Next, a person with hypertension must be working on his drinking habits, and 1-2 drinks would be sufficient for a day. While we couldn’t imagine eating a meal without salt, the excessive ratio of salt in one’s diet can cause persistent hypertension. The list goes on but these are some of the main factors participating in the generation of hypertension. Let’s evaluate the main diagnostic measures we can opt for to determine the emergence of hypertension in one’s body.
- Self-monitoring:
Everyone must be aware of symptoms of a heart attack and escalating blood pressure. Fortunately, you can determine your blood pressure at home through a simple procedure known as home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM). Besides cardiac catheterizations, this process has become much accessible and accurate in recent times and is now a viable option for diagnosing hypertension and controlling it once identified.
Presently, devices for measuring blood pressure are becoming more understandable and attainable. Many of them are multi-functional and can be utilized for different purposes. For instance, the device that’s applied to anticipate the blood pressure can also be used to keep a check on your comprehensive health such as temperature control.
This is particularly useful for those who’re scared of medical treatments like interventional cardiology and non-invasive cardiology. So, wouldn’t it be safest to keep monitoring yourself occasionally? If your blood pressure keeps fluctuating, you can carry your portable home monitoring kit wherever you go.
- Opting for imaging and other medical tests:
Hypertension is closely associated with heart and kidney function, and imaging tests help in diagnosing blood pressure issues and identifying the potential causes and complications. Some of the most common imaging tests are as follows.
* Electrocardiogram (EKG):
A human heart’s functioning can be examined by using an imaging test that primarily visualizes the movement of the heart. Non-invasive cardiology methods put a great effort into diagnosing cardiac disorders. In case of extremely high blood pressure, there’s a requirement for echocardiography. Unfortunately, most heart abnormalities are created by higher blood pressure.
* Ultra-sound:
Generally, an ultra-sound is needed for the examination of kidneys and the blood vessels, but it might also be required in case your physician is concerned about the uncertain blood flow. For instance, if he believes that you’re having an excessive narrowing in one of the vessels, the assumption will be confirmed through ultra-sound.
*Cardiac Catheterization:
Not to mention, physicians often imply cardiac catheterization for diagnosing and explaining common heart and blood vessels conditions including, chest pain, and workload stress. As discussed earlier, these factors fully contribute to the existence of hypertension. As the world is getting more digitalized, cardiac catheterizations have become of pivotal importance in providing medical diagnoses.
- Occasional lab tests:
The blood pressure of a human body fluctuates every minute throughout the day in response to physical activities, fluid status, anxiety level, and several other factors. It would be wise to keep yourself checked now and then to get a more accurate picture of your current blood pressure status. In some circumstances, the biologist might ask for additional urinary tests if secondary hypertension is suspected.
Ways to combat Hypertension:
Similar to the treatments for heart attack, hypertension must be adhered instantly. Unfortunately, it can’t be cured permanently. It is a chronic medical condition that continues to exist in the affected person. After a person has been diagnosed with hypertension, they can follow a variety of preventive measures and medications to keep the disease under control. If there’s slight leniency shown by the patient during the healing process, blood pressure would escalate which ultimately results in fatal cardiovascular diseases or a stroke.
To avoid any mishap, a lifestyle change is significant for hypertensive patients so that their disease can be resisted from being compulsive. Indeed, one must be willing to make these modifications to live a healthy life. The best NYC Cardiologist, Dr. Asim Hameedi implies that the people suffering from hypertension must be able to give up all the unhealthy habits and create a regime that wouldn’t only help them intellectually, but also spiritually.
The following ways will help you combat hypertension. As mentioned earlier, there’s no permanent fix for this medical condition, but through a few alterations, we can certainly prevent it from escalating.
- Alter unhealthy Lifestyle habits:
A lifestyle change is of utmost importance when you’re hypertensive and has a great chance of getting better just by making slight adjustments to the ways you’re living your life. Lifestyle is an optimal way of leading a successful life, and you’re responsible for either making it worthwhile or taking the route of hypertension by accepting unhealthy dietary habits. If a hypertensive person is triggered by severe cardiovascular abnormalities due to excess fat production, interventional cardiology and non-invasive cardiology are now flexible ways of getting treated.
Your lifestyle not only reflects your intellectuality but plays a massive role in impacting your spiritual being as well. An ideal dietary habit would be well-equipped with nutritional elements and caters to every requirement of the human body and mind. To avoid hypertension, one must willingly opt for healthy addictions as it is the only way to increase your life expectancy.
Healthy nutrition and regular physical exercise is the primary step to satisfying living. Being exposed to hypertension, you might have to make small modifications that would significantly enhance your health and protect you from all the adverse reactions that hypertension contains. For instance, you can use herbs and spices instead of salt.
- Observe your increasing weight:
If you’re hypertensive, escalating bodyweight could be a nightmare blood pressure level in your body. Oftentimes, excess junk food intake ends up being the reason for our medical abnormalities, especially the diligent conditions, namely hypertension. Obesity increases your blood pressure reflexively and consumes a lot of time to depart from your body.
For a hypertensive person, losing some extra pounds would be the wisest decision. Not only will it make you physically active, but it’ll also help eliminate the excessive fat stored for months in your body. Of course, we couldn’t expect someone to make the changes frequently, but you’re required to be persistent with the workout and healthy diet, and it’ll go on its own.
Begin your day with a pleasant walk of at least half an hour, meanwhile, make a chart of meals in your head for the day. Your meals must include a supervised ratio of carbohydrates, protein, fruits, and veggies. All of these ingredients must be determined as per the requirement of your body for losing weight.
According to the recent interventional cardiology health experts, hypertension often triggers individuals with genetic history, which means that people who’re having a hypertensive family background are more likely to adapt to blood pressure issues. Moreover, it has been noticed that males are at a higher risk of being revealed to this condition. In this regard, men are obliged to observe the blood pressure levels in their bodies at all times.
- Limit your caffeine intake:
Who doesn’t like coffee or tea, especially in the morning when a soft breeze touches your face, and nothing in the world seems more comforting as a hot cup of cappuccino coffee or black tea. However, the impact of caffeine hits differently for everyone. Many individuals get an increased blood pressure level after sipping on caffeine while other experience no side effects at all.
We can’t deny the benefits of coffee on liver health, but it doesn’t make it good for other organs as well. Surprisingly, hypertensive people are more attracted to caffeine consumption, and that’s one of the reasons why they’re having improper blood pressure levels in the first place. To prevent this, one must resist having surplus mugs of coffee and opt for fresh juices instead. Regularly check your blood pressure after half an hour of caffeine consumption and if it hits anywhere between 5 mm Hg to 10 mm Hg, you’ll get your answer.
- Happiness is the key:
Previously, we’ve discussed how stress and anxiety contribute to the production of hypertension in one’s body, so there could be multiple reasons why a person stresses out. If you’re hypertensive, try focusing on the causes of your uneasiness and how to combat these issues efficiently. Consulting a psychiatrist always helps, or else you can opt for virtual sports since the covid-19 outbreak wouldn’t let us out anytime soon, so that might keep you occupied throughout the day.
In such a competitive world, stress has become a part of our daily routine, not that we intentionally make our life worrisome, but we join the aggressive race of stress impairment. We must be able to identify the gory details of our anxiety and what brings out body and mind in such a situation. This situation often gets worse and start adapting unhealthy dietary and drinking habits.
Above all, supportive friends and family can instantly enhance your mood, and they can practically encourage you to prioritize yourself. Moreover, working on anger issues is also a mandatory part of your healing procedure.
Besides recommendations for lifestyle changes, if you couldn’t manage the stress on your own, try seeking better ways to fight it. Don’t isolate yourself because it’ll only make the situation worse and leave more exposure for blood pressure issues. However, a change in dietary habits would be the most important alteration for those who wish to live a boost their mood without the risk of developing blood pressure issues.
Apart from the availability of multiple home remedies or the preventive effects of lifestyle modifications, hypertension remains an extremely prevalent disorder globally. The best cardiologists in USA including Dr. Asim Hameedi, also emphasize on the significance of self-meditating, and Yoga, both of which can drastically enhance your overall health, even for a short period. Woefully, hypertension can’t be healed permanently, but it isn’t compulsive either. By accepting the above-evaluated combating ideas, everyone can live a healthy life without any medical disorders.