High blood pressure (hypertension) is
consistently at or above 130/80 mm Hg.
High blood pressure typically has no signs
or symptoms but can cause problems for your
heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes.
No matter your age, you can take steps each
day to keep your blood pressure in a healthy
range.
Some people may be able to control their
blood pressure by making lifestyle changes or
taking blood pressure medicines.
Definition of high blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure
that occurs when blood pushes against the walls of your
arteries. Arteries carry blood from your heart to other parts of
your body.
Normal blood pressure is less than 120/80 mm Hg.
High blood pressure, also
called hypertension, is blood pressure that is higher than
normal.
High
blood pressure is consistently at or above 130/80 mm Hg.
Your blood pressure changes
throughout the day based on your activities.
Having blood pressure consistently above normal may result in a
diagnosis of high blood pressure.
The higher your blood pressure
levels, the more risk you have for other health problems, such
as heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.
Learn about how you can
prevent and treat high blood pressure during pregnancy, which
can put you and your baby at risk for health problems.
When the heart pumps blood through the arteries, the blood
puts pressure on the artery walls. This is called blood
pressure.
Diagnosis
Your health care team can
diagnose high blood pressure. They can also make treatment
decisions by reviewing your systolic (first number) and
diastolic (second number) blood pressure levels and comparing
them to guidelines.
Most health care professionals will use these guidelines from the ACC and AHA to
diagnose high blood pressure:
If a health care professional diagnoses you with high blood pressure, talk with
your health care team about your blood pressure levels and how they affect your
treatment plan.
Learn how and where to measure
your blood pressure and why it's important to know your numbers.
Signs and symptoms
High blood pressure usually has no warning signs or symptoms,
and many people do not know they have it. Measuring your blood
pressure is the only way to know whether you have high blood
pressure.
Causes
There are several causes of and risk factors for high blood
pressure. Fortunately, you can control many of them.
High blood pressure usually develops over time. It can occur
because of unhealthy lifestyle choices, such as not getting
enough regular physical activity.
Certain health conditions, such as diabetes and obesity, can
also increase the risk for developing high blood pressure. And
high blood pressure can occur during pregnancy.
People who have depression, anxiety, stress, or post-traumatic
stress disorder over a long period of time may develop other
health problems, including an increased heart rate and high
blood pressure.
Other risk factors, such as family history and the environment,
can also increase a person's risk for high blood pressure.
Potential problems having high blood pressure could cause
High blood pressure can damage your health in many ways. It can
seriously hurt important organs like your heart, brain, kidneys,
and eyes.
The good news is that, in most cases, you can manage your blood
pressure to lower your risk for serious health problems.
High blood pressure (hypertension) complications can damage
your health in many ways, including harming organs such as
your heart, brain, and kidneys.
Heart attack and heart disease
High blood pressure can damage your arteries by making them less
elastic. This decreases the flow of blood and oxygen to your
heart and leads to heart disease.
In addition, decreased blood flow to the heart can cause:
Chest pain, also called angina.
Heart attack, which happens when the blood supply to
your heart is blocked and heart muscle begins to die without
enough oxygen.
The longer the blood flow is blocked, the
greater the damage to the heart.
Heart failure, a condition that means your heart can't
pump enough blood and oxygen to your other organs.
Stroke and brain problems
High blood pressure can cause the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the
brain to burst or be blocked, causing a stroke.
Brain cells die during a stroke because they do not get enough oxygen. Stroke
can cause serious disabilities in speech, movement, and other basic activities.
A stroke can cause death.
Having high blood pressure, especially in midlife, is linked to having poorer
cognitive function and dementia later in life.
Learn more about the link between
high blood pressure and dementia from the National Institutes of Health's Mind
Your Risks campaign.
Heart valve disease
High blood pressure can cause heart valve disease, which is when any valve in
the heart is damaged or diseased.
Kidney disease
Adults with diabetes, high blood pressure, or both have a higher
risk of developing chronic kidney disease than those without
these conditions.
No matter your age, you can take steps each day to keep
your blood pressure in a healthy range.
Many people with high blood pressure can lower their blood
pressure into a healthy range or keep their numbers in a healthy
range by making lifestyle changes.
Talk with your health care team about:
Physical activity each week (about 30 minutes a day, 5
days a week)
Not smoking
Eating a healthy diet, including limiting sodium (salt)
and alcohol
Keeping a healthy weight
Managing stress
In addition to making positive lifestyle changes, some people
with high blood pressure need to take medicine to manage their
blood pressure.
Talk with your health care team right away if:
You think you have high blood pressure.
If you've been told you have high blood pressure but do not
have it under control.
By taking action to lower your blood pressure, you can help
protect yourself against heart disease and stroke, also called
cardiovascular disease (CVD).
High Blood Pressure Facts
What to know
Blood pressure is the pressure of blood pushing against the
walls of your arteries.
Arteries carry blood from your heart to other parts of your
body.
High blood pressure in the United States
Blood pressure is the pressure that occurs when blood pushes
against the walls of your arteries. Learn more about the
definition of blood pressure.
Having high blood pressure puts you at risk for heart
disease and stroke, which are leading causes of death in the
United States.
In 2022, high blood pressure was a primary or
contributing cause of 685,875 deaths in the United States.
About 1 in 5 deaths related to COVID-19 were people who
had a history of hypertensive disease.
Nearly half of adults have high blood pressure (48.1%,
119.9 million). This is defined as a systolic blood pressure
greater than 130 mm Hg or a diastolic blood pressure greater
than 80 mm Hg or are taking medication for high blood
pressure.
About 1 in 4 adults with high blood pressure has their
blood pressure under control (22.5%, 27.0 million).
About half of adults (45%) with uncontrolled high blood
pressure have a blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg or higher.
This includes 37 million U.S. adults.
About 34 million adults who should be taking medication
according to hypertension guidelines may need a prescription
or to fill their prescription and start taking it. Almost
two out of three of this group (19 million) have a blood
pressure of 140/90 mm Hg or higher.
High blood pressure costs the United States about $131
billion each year, averaged over 12 years from 2003 to 2014.
Blood pressure differences by sex and race
Uncontrolled high blood pressure is common, but some groups
of people are more likely to have control over their high blood
pressure than others.
A higher percentage of men (50%) have high blood
pressure than women (44%).
High blood pressure is more common in non-Hispanic black
adults (56%) than in non-Hispanic white adults (48%),
non-Hispanic Asian adults (46%), or Hispanic adults (39%).
Among those recommended to take blood pressure
medication, blood pressure control is higher among
non-Hispanic white adults (32%) than in non-Hispanic black
adults (25%), non-Hispanic Asian adults (19%), or Hispanic
adults (25%).
Geographic rates of high blood pressure
Hypertension prevalence in adults aged 18 and older in the US by
county, 2018-2020
The highest high blood pressure (hypertension) prevalence in
2021 for adults ages 18 and older are located primarily in
Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi,
North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, West
Virginia, and Virginia. Pockets of high-rate counties also were
found in Alaska, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, North Dakota, and
South Dakota. Insufficient data were provided from Florida and
U.S. Territories.
High blood pressure is more common in some areas of the United
States. Most statistics are underreported because about 1 in 5
adults with high blood pressure is unaware of it and would not
report having it.
