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Blood Pressure Reading
When your health care provider is doing a blood pressure reading you
may not understand how the process works. Many people do not but are
reluctant to ask their physician to explain. When the reading is
done your doctor will tell you that your results are one number over
another. It even looks like a fraction when it is written. But these
numbers actually represent specific findings. They tell what your
systolic and diastolic pressures are.
When your blood pressure is taken the health care provider wraps a
blood pressure cuff around your arm and then tightens it to measure
the pressure that is now constricting your blood vessels. How these
vessels react will tell your physician a lot about your blood flow.
The systolic pressure is the top number that your doctor tells you.
It tells how the pressure is when you blood is surging thought the
veins as your heart is pumping. The lower number, which tells the
diastolic pressure, shows how the pressure is when your heart is
between beats.
The reason these numbers are checked it that if they are too high
they can be a sign that you are at higher risk for heart attack or
stroke. If the blood pressure test you are having tells you that
your blood is flowing through your veins in a healthy manner then
the reading you will receive will usually be between 120/80 and
130/85. If it is lower than that rate it is also healthy as long as
it does not go too low. It is common sense to have your blood
pressure checked once a year.
If it is discovered that our blood pressure is too high there are
things that must be done to bring it under control as quickly as
possible. You will be given medication to help bring down your blood
pressure as well as suggestions on diet and lifestyle changes. Diet
changes will include lowering the amount of salt in your diet,
cutting down on the amount of alcohol and upping the fruits and
vegetables eaten. Once these changes have been made your health care
provider will want to regularly take a blood pressure reading to
ensure that it is being kept under control.
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