Since then, healthcare providers continue to find new ways to glean information about your health from your blood pressure readings. Here’s a rundown of what your blood pressure readings can mean for your heart health.
The Basics: What Does Blood Pressure Mean
Before we dive in, let’s first take a look at what blood pressure means in our body. Blood pressure is the pressure generated with each heartbeat, says Jennifer Wong, MD, cardiologist and medical director of noninvasive cardiology at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, California. Blood pressure is given in two numbers, with acceptable ranges for each one. The top, or systolic number, is the pressure inside your arteries when your heart “squeezes or contracts,” explains Dr. Wong, while the bottom, or diastolic number, “is when the heart is relaxed.” You want those numbers to be below 120 and 80, respectively. Blood needs to flow at a certain pressure to supply blood to our organs and body. But blood pressure that’s too high can cause damage to your circulatory system.
High Blood Pressure Means High Risk
When left untreated, high blood pressure increases your risk of a heart attack, organ damage and failure, as well as contribute to stroke and peripheral vascular disease, per Hopkins Medicine. Currently, almost 1 out of 2 (about 116 million) adults in the United States have high blood pressure, and 92.1 million don’t have their high blood pressure under control, according to the Million Hearts, a national initiative co-led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Wong says high blood pressure can also be more prevalent with age. “We check for blood pressure at nearly all ages, but we start seeing an upward trend as we get older, over age 40. So you need to pay closer attention to what’s happening with your blood pressure around that age and start treating it if necessary.” According to Mayo Clinic, people over 40 should have their blood pressure checked every year. High blood pressure plays a significant role in pregnancy, too. It can spell trouble for mom and baby if it’s not monitored or controlled. High blood pressure can affect a mother’s kidneys and increase her risk of heart disease and stroke, and can cause complications such as preeclampsia, per the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, as well as low birth weight and preterm delivery. If you have high blood pressure before you get pregnant, you’re more likely to have certain complications during pregnancy than women who have normal blood pressure. High blood pressure among pregnant women has doubled in the United States between 2007 and 2019, according to a study published in May 2022 in the Journal of the American Heart Association. That’s why monitoring your blood pressure is a vital part of prenatal care. In a study published in April 2022 in The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that pregnant women with mild hypertension who were given antihypertensive medications experienced fewer birth complications. For the open-label, randomized trial, scientists studied 2,408 pregnant women with hypertension by placing them in active treatment and control groups. Women assigned antihypertensive medications were in the active treatment group, while those in the control group did not get any such medicines unless their hypertension became severe. The researchers found that the active treatment group had fewer maternal and birth complications than the control group, concluding it’s best to target blood pressure levels of less than 140/90 mm Hg to promote better pregnancy outcomes.
The Lowdown on Low Blood Pressure
For people who have low blood pressure, it may be a sign that organs aren’t getting enough blood. “Most people don’t show severe symptoms until their blood pressure hits very low levels, like a systolic blood pressure less than 80 mm Hg and a diastolic blood pressure less than 40 mm Hg,” says Wong. Chronic illnesses such as severe inflammation or sepsis can cause dangerously low blood pressure levels, leading to heart failure. It’s tough to determine how many people low blood pressure affects because there’s usually no symptoms. According to Mayo Clinic, conditions associated with low blood pressure include:
AnemiaPregnancyDehydrationHeart conditionsNutrient deficienciesHormonal disorders
One type of low blood pressure that could predict future heart problems like bradycardia — as detailed by the American Heart Association — is postural or orthostatic hypotension. Here, a sudden drop in blood pressure happens when standing after sitting or lying down, causing dizziness, nausea, or even fainting. An estimated 5 percent of people at age 50 have it, and by age 70, more than 30 percent, research shows. Orthostatic hypotension is also more prevalent in new moms, teenagers, and people who have been on bed rest, according to the National Organization for Rare Disorders. Some research has found orthostatic hypotension to be associated with people who have heart failure. A study published in 2020 in the European Journal of Heart Failure found 10 to 15 percent of patients with heart failure were more likely to have low blood pressure, and in elderly patients, more than 10 percent had orthostatic hypotension.
Get Your Blood Pressure Checked
About 1 in 3 adults in the United States with high blood pressure aren’t even aware they have it, according to the CDC. Wong advises routine blood pressure checks at home and in your doctor’s office to encourage early detection of illnesses and medical intervention. Blood pressure readings to look out for, according to the American Heart Association:
If your systolic number is 120 to 129 mm Hg, which is considered high, you may need to have your blood pressure checked more frequently.If your systolic number is 130 to 139 mm Hg or your diastolic number is 80 to 89 mm Hg, you have stage 1 hypertension. At this stage, your doctor may intervene with lifestyle modifications and medications.A blood pressure reading above 140/90 mm Hg is considered stage 2 hypertension. Your doctor may start you on a treatment program.
“Our goal is to control blood pressure early on, especially at younger ages, when we’re healthy and not feeling the negative effects of blood pressure yet, so we can maintain that health into our older ages,” says Wong.
Ways to Read Your Blood Pressure
Get readings from both arms. Has your doctor ever measured your blood pressure in both arms? Finding a significant difference in blood pressure in both arms could be a sign that an artery is blocked, says Wong. “We see these differences — especially when the differences are small — because of the difference in time.” There can be a minute-to-minute variation in the blood pressure, where there’s a drop in blood pressure in the time it takes to measure both arms. She added that most people observe a high blood pressure reading at first, and after multiple takes, their blood pressure drops by a small amount, which means taking multiple readings from both arms can help ensure it’s accurate. Do it while standing. In a study published in March 2022 in the journal Hypertension, researchers found that people who had a spike in high blood pressure upon standing were most likely to experience cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke. The findings suggest that multiple blood pressure readings both seated and standing are needed to better identify people at increased risk. Check your blood pressure cuff size. According to an abstract presented in March 2022 at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology and Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health conference, people who get their blood pressure checked with the wrong cuff size can lead to incorrect blood pressure readings and misdiagnosis.The research looked at widely used automated blood pressure monitors. The AHA recommends the length of the bladder that wraps around patients’ upper arms be 75 to 100 percent of their arm circumference for a snug but not excessively tight fit. So the next time you go in for your check up and find your blood pressure cuff way too tight, ask your doctor if they have alternate sizes. Additional reporting by Jane Okoji.
