July 1, 2021

What is blood pressure and how can you better control yours?

Blood pressure tells you about the force at which blood pushes against the walls of your arteries or blood vessels.

At some point you probably have stood up and felt lightheaded or been going through your day-to-day activities and suddenly felt faint. This is completely normal. Both occurrences are attributed to your blood pressure. Today, we are going to look at what blood pressure is, what can cause it to spike or to drop, and ways to better control your blood pressure.

What is blood pressure?

Blood pressure tells you about the force at which blood pushes against the walls of your arteries or blood vessels. Your arteries are what helps your heart pump blood throughout your body, so finding out this information can be especially important.

When you go to the doctor, usually they will take your vitals and one of the tests that they use involves a blood pressure cuff. After the doctor has inflated the cuff and then deflated the cuff, they tell you two numbers such as 120/80. These numbers can be a little confusing for the average person. The larger of the two numbers is what is called systolic pressure and is the pressure that your blood pushes with when your heart beats. On the other hand, diastolic pressure is the pressure that your blood is at when your heart is between heart beats. 120/80 is considered normal. If your numbers are higher or lower than that, your doctor may speak with you about it.

Why is my blood pressure changing?

Even though having a lower versus a higher blood pressure would be important, unfortunately it can still be a sign of trouble. A few things that cause lower blood pressure are dehydration, lack of eating, and some serious medical conditions. Even the amount of stress or how your body is positioned can affect your blood pressure. What is important is that there are some ways that you can help your body to maintain good blood pressure.

How can I control my blood pressure?

Some of the easiest ways to make sure that your blood pressure stays normal is to eat healthy foods, drink plenty of water and do not stay seated for too long. When you stand up or move positions from sitting, standing or lying down, make sure to go slowly and that you feel all right before doing the action.
Of course, if you are still worried, ask a medical professional for more assistance.