Medical Questions » Blood Pressure Questions » Question No. 144
| Question: | What is the correct figure for blood pressure? Mine is 140/90 and my doctor keeps checking it every time I see him. He says it is alright, but this constant checking worries me. |
| Answer: | The actual values for blood pressure vary with many things such as exercise, anxiety, age, fitness, smoking and drinking habits, weight and medications. This is why doctors never give absolute values for what is normal and abnormal in blood pressure values.
It is a good idea to have your doctor check the pressure at regular intervals, particularly if you are over 40.
Your general practitioner is a good and careful one. It is very easy to forget that a patient might have a blood pressure problem, and not take it regularly. Your blood pressure is bordering on being too high, and that is why he is checking it every visit.
There are two figures quoted when blood pressure is measured. When the heart contracts, blood is moved around the body under high (or systolic) pressure. When the heart relaxes between beats, the blood continues to flow due to the lower (or diastolic) pressure exerted by the elasticity of the artery walls. In your case, your systolic pressure is 140, and diastolic 90.
When one, or both, of these pressures exceeds a safe level, the person is said to suffer from high blood pressure or hypertension. It is more dangerous to have the diastolic pressure high, as the systolic pressure can vary considerably due to exercise or stress. You can help prevent and treat hypertension by keeping your weight within reasonable limits, not eating excessive amounts of salt, not smoking and exercising. |
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