High Blood Pressure Specialist
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Essencia Family Practice and Immediate Care Clinic
Olusesan Olotu, MD
Family Medicine located in Carrollton, TX
Nearly 75 million American adults suffer from high blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure. The health care team at Essencia Family Practice and Immediate Care Clinic in Carrollton, Texas diagnoses high blood pressure and treats patients with lifestyle modification counseling. Taking steps like adopting a healthy diet and an exercise regimen to improve your overall health can help manage high blood pressure effectively. If you have high blood pressure, call or schedule an appointment online today to learn about treatment options.
High Blood Pressure Q & A
What is high blood pressure?
Blood pressure is the force of your blood as it travels through arteries that transport blood from your heart to the other parts of your body. The beat of your heart pushes blood through these vessels, which applies pressure to the walls of your arteries. This is called blood pressure.
High blood pressure — also called hypertension — occurs when your blood rushes through your arteries with more pressure than normal. This condition can lead to a variety of health problems, including:
- Stroke
- Heart disease
- Heart attack
- Kidney failure
High blood pressure is often called “the silent killer” since it doesn’t have noticeable symptoms. Therefore, it’s essential to have your blood pressure checked regularly. At Essencia Family Practice and Immediate Care Clinic, they check your blood pressure at every check-up.
What causes high blood pressure?
Factors such as your diet, lifestyle habits, age, and your family history can cause or increase your risk of developing high blood pressure. Your doctor at Essencia Family Practice and Immediate Care Clinic can help you determine what’s causing your high blood pressure.
Common risk factors include:
- An unhealthy diet high in cholesterol, fat, or salt
- Underlying chronic conditions (diabetes, kidney problems, high cholesterol)
- Genetics
- Lack of physical activity
- Obesity
- Certain birth control medicines
- Stress
- Overconsumption of alcohol
- Tobacco
How is high blood pressure diagnosed?
Your doctor diagnoses high blood pressure with a blood pressure monitor, a common test during standard office visits.
A nurse puts a band around your arm that has a small pump and meter attached. The nurse then squeezes the pump, which tightens the band around your arm. Then the meter will produce two numbers.
The first, top number is your systolic reading. That’s your blood pressure when your heart pumps out blood. The second, bottom number is your diastolic reading. That’s your blood pressure when your heart fills with blood.
A normal blood pressure reading is less than 120 on top and less than 80 on the bottom. High blood pressure, stage 1 is 140-159 on top and 90-99 on the bottom. High blood pressure stage 2 is a reading of 160 or higher on top and over 100 on the bottom.
How is high blood pressure treated?
Your doctor at Essencia usually begins treating high blood pressure by facilitating changes to your lifestyle that can help lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease.
They may also prescribe antihypertensive medicines to complement diet counseling, and exercise regimens to improve your overall health and lower your blood pressure.
Regular monitoring to see how well your body responds to lifestyle changes is key. If your blood pressure doesn’t decrease, your doctor at Essencia alters your personalized treatment plan until it does.
If you’re ready to make changes that improve your health and limit your risk of high blood pressure, call or schedule an appointment online today to learn more.
