High Blood Pressure: 5 Commons myths of hypertension debunked

Did you know in India every one in three persons suffers from hypertension? For the unversed, High Blood Pressure aka Hypertension is when the pressure of blood against the arteries' walls are higher than the normal. If left untreated, it can lead to other health issues as well.

Daniel Pohlman, MD, a primary care doctor at Rush University Medical Center said, "When symptoms do occur, such as headache, nosebleeds or blurry vision, high blood pressure may have already reached severe and possibly life-threatening levels." Hypertension is one of the common ailments but still, there are many myths surrounding the topic. Today we have tried to debunk some of the common myths. 

The first myth is that high BP is not a big health issue.

People who have high BP, after a few years, develop stiff arteries and this could lead to many health issues such as heart diseases, eye disorders, brain disorders such as stroke and kidney-related ailments among others. Heart attack and stroke are the leading causes of death and both are linked to high blood pressure. As per reports, 7 out of 10 people who have a heart attack have blood pressure, around 8 out of every 10 who have a stroke and chronic (long-lasting) heart failure have high blood pressure. Doctors often call it as a silent killer as the symptoms are quite missable and if left unchecked and untreated then it can be fatal too.

The second myth is how reducing table salt will control sodium as well

One of the first pieces of advice people with high BP receive is lowering the intake of salt as controlling sodium levels positively impacts the blood pressure level too. One should know apart from table salt there are many food items which have sodium in it and one should curb the intake of such foodstuff too. One should check labels as 75 percent of the sodium we consume is hidden in packaged foodstuff such as sauce, soups, condiments, canned foods, and mixes among others. One should look for words such as “soda” and “sodium” and the symbol “Na” on labels.

The third myth is how people can stop medications as they have been maintaining BP levels.

High blood pressure can be a lifelong health issue and that's why one should keep checking their BP levels and seek constant recommendations from doctors. If doctors recommend having medication every day for the rest of your life then also one should follow the same as stopping medications can backfire.

The fourth myth is about how people who are calm can not have hypertension

Many people think that those who are naturally calm or who hardly get stressed won't have high blood pressure issues. However, that's not the fact as anyone can develop the issue regardless of personality.

The fifth myth is about how people think that young people cannot have hypertension

There is no doubt that with an increase in age also bolsters the chances of getting hypertension but this is an assumption that only older people can get the issue. Even kids, youngsters can get the same and that's why one should keep checking the blood pressure levels often.