Educational Podcast/Radioshow
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hello and welcome listeners. My name is Natalie, a registered nurse, and I will be your host today. I'm here with Tyree, a registered nursing expert from the doctorate of nursing practice at Pacific Lutheran University. And we will be talking to you about a common condition called hypertension or high blood pressure. Also called the silent killer. Please note that prior to implementing any specific health recommendations made in this information session, you should discuss the information first. With your primary care provider to start off, I'll be explaining what high blood pressure is, why it matters, what causes hypertension, what symptoms you might have, how to prevent and manage the condition and possible life threatening complications. That can happen if high blood pressure is not treated. At the end of this Tyrie, our guest speaker will answer common questions about high blood pressure. So stay tuned. So what is hypertension or high blood pressure? Your blood vessels air like hoses that connect your heart to the rest of the body. When your heart beats, it pushes the blood through these hoses called arteries to the rest of our body to deliver oxygen and important nutrients to places like your brain or organs or your finger or your toes. When the pressure inside these hoses is too high, it is called high blood pressure or hypertension. To visualize this, imagine a water hose connected to an outdoor. Speak it in a garden. Imagine you are watering a delicate flower in your garden with the hose as you turn the *** it the water rushes out faster because of the rising pressure in the hose. If you turn the water up too high for too long, the delicate flower that you are watering gets damaged by the pressure of the water. High blood pressure and your blood vessels or hoses is like this with pressures that are constantly to high. There's damage to your body's organs, like your heart, your kidneys, your brain, your eyes or your sexual organs, or even those hoses that the arteries themselves, which are not made for such high pressures. While continuing this analogy, I will explain the blood pressure numbers. Have you ever wondered what numbers like 1 20/60 mean the first or the higher number is the pressure in the hose created by your heart when it squeezes the blood out of your heart, which is the pump into the artery blood vessels or the hoses. The second number, or the lower number, is the pressure When your heart is resting. To understand this, imagine a hose, which is partially on, so there's water coming out now. Imagine turning the *** it up and then back down to partially on and then repeating this motion when you turn the *** it up. The pressure on the hose is like the blood pressure in your heart when it squeezes or contracts, which is the higher number, also called systolic blood pressure. When you turn the *** it down, the pressure on the hose is like the blood pressure when your heart is resting, or the lower number, which is called the diastolic blood pressure. So if you have a blood pressure of 1 20/60 your blood pressure during your heart squeezing or contraction is 120 millimeters of mercury and the pressure during your hearts. Rest is 60 millimeters of mercury Millimeters of mercury is just a measurement of pressure, like inches or meters or feet is a measurement of length. Many people wonder what is the ideal blood pressure. Ideal blood pressure ranges depend on your age in your condition. For an average adult, normal blood pressure range is under 1 20/80 Elevated is a buff normal but under 130 for the higher number. High blood pressure ranges are broken into stages, with a range above 1 30/80 according to American Heart Association. So why is high blood pressure often called the silent killer? It is because high blood pressure often has no warning signs or symptoms. According to the CDC, in 17 2001 and three Americans have high blood pressure, but only a little over half of them have it under control. While some may experience headaches or vomiting, it is much more common that someone might not even know that they have it at all. You might wonder if I don't experience any symptoms, then why does high blood pressure matter? Well, at first it may not have any obvious effects, but the complications of unmanaged high blood pressure can lead to a myriad of serious complications, such as heart disease or stroke. So what are some changes that you can make to manage your high blood pressure, first of all, moderating it every day. It's simple and easy. This could be done by using an automatic blood pressure checker at home or by using a checker at the grocery store often found near pharmacies. Keeping a simple walk book off the time you checked it. And your blood pressure reading helps you and your primary care provider keep your high blood pressure under control. Your home blood pressure measurements are just as good as those measured at your doctor's office. Actually, some research shows that it is a better representation of your current health. Having an accurate log of your measurements may affect your treatment, so we encourage that you start a logbook if you have not already. If you are ready to put some of those New Year's resolutions into action, high bred pressure can be affected by smoking, diet, weight and exercise. So quitting smoking, maintaining a diet low in fat and salt and cholesterol, and taking a couple brisk 10 minute walks most days of the week might help you lower your blood pressure, according to the CDC. Statistics show that gray harbor residents have a higher than the national average of heavy drinking. This is relevant as it contributes to high blood pressure as well as other health concerns such as liver health, certain cancers and behavioral changes. With any changes you decide to make. The most important thing is to make sure that you can stick with it and choosing what works for you and your daily routine. You are likely to find that even making small changes will pay off, and you can enjoy the things that life has to offer, including longevity. I mean, who doesn't want to have a long, healthy life? So manage that blood pressure. So what if you're managing your blood pressure and you come across their reading that is very high or it just doesn't seem right. So the answer to this question is that it depends if your blood pressure is more than 1 80/1 20 Wait five minutes and check it again. If your second reading is Justus high, but you do not have any symptoms like a severe head ache. Nosebleed changes in your awareness or consciousness. Then you may be experiencing hypertensive urgency. This requires a phone call to your provider or the nurse on call to evaluate your next step, they will advise you further. It may result in making an appointment to check on your medication or your routine. If your blood pressure is over 1 80/1 20 you are experiencing symptoms such as unexplained shortness of breath, pain in your chest er back numbness, weakness, changes in awareness of consciousness changes and vision or speech. Then this might be hypertensive emergency. Do not wait to check your blood pressure again and instead call 911 immediately. You are not limited to checking your blood pressure's just once a day. You can check it any time you feel funny or experiencing these symptoms. Now let's talk about the causes or things that increase your risk of getting the silent killer or high blood pressure. There is an estimated 80 million US adults over the age of 20 who have high blood pressure. Data also suggests that 17% of US adults are not even aware that they have high blood pressure. In addition, it is estimated that 41% of adults will develop hypertension by 2030. There's an estimated 19,000 people in Grays Harbor with hypertension. That's about one and three of Gray's harbors population, the data is pretty alarming. There are several risk factors that increase a person's chances of developing hyper blood pressure. Some of these factors are modifiable, and some are not. Non modifiable. Ones are age in genetics. Age is a non modifiable risk factor. We cannot change your age, although we all know that we can lie about it. As our age increases, the risk of developing high blood pressure also increases. Do you suggest that there are more men with hypertension than women until the age about 45 then from 45 to 65 ladies? It's pretty similar. But then, when 65 up women are actually more common toe have blood pressure than males. The next non modifiable risk factor is genetics. This includes your family history, your race, your ethnicity. Also note that our environment and lifestyle also plays roles in increasing or decreasing our risk of developing hypertension or the silent killer. But luckily, there are ways that we can decrease this risk. Your diet and your weight actually affect your blood pressure, so eating food that is low in salt, low in total fat and saturated fat and cholesterol and eating more fruits and vegetables may be exercising. Avoiding tobacco problem products, minimizing your alcohol consumption. No more than two drinks for human and ladies. No more than one drink per day can reduce your risk of developing hypertension. There are also conditions that can increase your risk of developing hypertension, for example, if you have high cholesterol or sleep apnea. So if the causes of high protection are correct, hypertension can be cured or improved. So that's good news to reiterate is very important to control. High blood pressure size have shown that hypertension therapy reduces incidence of stroke, averaging about 35 to 45%. Heart attack for about 20 to 25% and heart failure bring more than 50%. Also, lowering your blood pressure number by 12 millimeters of mercury over 10 years will prevent one and 11 debts. That's nearly 10%. That's crazy. My recommendation to anyone is to find the motivation for reducing the high blood pressure. Your motivation could be to live longer and healthier so that you can find the time and energy toe watch and play with your Children or grandchildren. Also when talking to your primary care provider. Ask questions. I noticed that my patients don't follow therapy because of misunderstandings or denial or lack of motivation. So I encourage my patients to ask questions If you don't understand, or if you have concerns, ask questions because managing your blood pressure has many benefits. Stroke is a very devastating complication of hypertension caused by weak and harden vessels in or around your brain. Thes weakened vessels can become narrow, restricting blood flow and causing bleeding in the brain and leading to stroke. Females and Grays Harbor have a greater risk of suffering from stroke than the average risk in Washington state or the U. S. Now that you know, you have the power to reduce your risk. High blood pressure can also cause heart attacks. Your heart is a muscle, and it needs oxygen and nutrients to. But when you're vessels become hard and narrowed, it restricts the blood in all nutrients it needs. If your heart continues to pump against these narrow vessels, it starts to fail, creating a condition called heart failure. All the high blood pressure and your veins can damage the vegetables themselves. A couple of examples are the vessels in your kidney, which cause kidney disease or vessels in your retina, which causes I'd disease and even eventually, blindness. It can even cause or contribute to sexual dysfunction. Luckily, there are things that you can do to lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of developing these complication. So let's talk about those next being told that you have hypertension or high blood pressure can be received in very different ways. You may feel that it's not a big deal or downplay the reasons you need the treatment. You may even deny that you have it or ignore the diagnostic altogether. Or you may feel overwhelmed or deeply concerned that the diagnostic of hypertension robs you of some of your dreams. For a healthy future, either extreme needs to be avoided. There are ways to prevent hypertension, even if you're predisposed by genetics or age or other factors. And if you have been diagnosed with hypertension there, several treatment options that give you the a great opportunity to control your blood pressure. In some cases, you might even be able to improve your health to the point that no treatment is necessary. The key is knowledge. Know your numbers. Know what health habits help you to prevent and control hypertension and know what you need to do to treat and manage it so that you can live a full and active life, understanding the disease and knowing how to prevent and control. It gives you the power to make healthy changes to protect you from the risk of hypertension. Prevention of hypertension or high blood pressure and understanding health risk factors that you can control is the first step in treating hypertension. The things to consider include. If your parents or siblings or other blood relatives have hypertension, you may be at higher risk for developing hypertension. Being overweight is a risk that can contribute to hypertension. Having a un active or sedentary lifestyle leads to hypertension. Stress and anxiety also contribute to hypertension, and diets that are high in salt contributes to hypertension. Of the five contributing factors to hypertension, four of these factors are something that you can take control over and potentially prevent type retention or possibly reduce the need for medication or treatment. Controlling and treatments for hypertension include weight loss, improved physical fitness, reducing salt or sodium from your diet. reducing consumption of alcohol, caffeine or recreational drugs, reducing stress and anxiety. So learning ways to relax or reduce your stress. Self monitoring your blood pressure and knowing your numbers, knowing the signs and symptoms that could indicate that your blood pressure is too high. For instance, headache, nausea and vomiting or visual changes and medications. The medications that they might treat you with our anti hypertensive, possibly diuretics, which is also called a water pill. And a combination of these two successful management and treatment of hypertension includes all of the above. So it's not just I'll just take a med. It also includes a lifestyle change. Now that we have addressed the need to know topics related to hypertension or high blood pressure, I would like to introduce our nursing expert. Tyree Tyree is a doctor's of nursing practice student at Peel You with over 34 years of experience as a registered nurse, she will be talking to us about hypertension management with medications and other related safety concerns. Welcome, Tyree. It is a pleasure to have you on the show. Hi, Natalie. I'm really happy to join you in our radio. Listeners from Grays Harbor, Tyree can you tell us about hypertension, medications and concerns associated with their use? I just want to mention a few things about safely taking medications for high blood pressure. Most obvious is you need to know the name of your medication the dose and know why you're taking it. What type of medicine isn't and, of course, take it as prescribed. The goal of most medications for high blood pressure are to lower your blood pressure and also maintain a normal blood pressure. So it's important to know what are your symptoms for high blood pressure and also what might be the symptoms for low prep blood pressure. Also, your health care provider in your pharmacists need to know any medications, vitamins and supplements that you might be taken even over the counter medications, especially cold remedies, can affect your blood pressure or interact with your high anti hypertensive medications. So let your physician or health care provider and your pharmacist know what you're taking having up to date medication list with you, and I recommend you keep it in your pocket or your purse so that your pharmacy or health care provider and even paramedics in an emergency situation will have that list. That's the best for you. Way for you to take control over your own health. As mentioned earlier in the program, it's really important. Have a self monitoring blood pressure cuff and to monitor your own blood pressures. And if you can't afford a self monitoring, I think earlier in the program, they mentioned several places where you can go take your own blood pressures at stores and pharmacies Locally. Theme. 1,000,000 Thing is have some sort of a logger notebook where you can write down what your blood pressures are. I often recommend to patients to when they're taking it in their own home. Try different times of day warning upon waking noon afternoon evening, bedtime. That way you'll have more information about what your blood pressure is doing over a 24 hour period. And that's important for your physician or health care provider to know that gives you power of numbers. Some of the key symptoms you're gonna wanna watch for that may indicate your blood pressure is too low. Is if you're getting dizzy or lightheaded when you stand up or walk. This may be the result of not drinking enough fluid while you're taking anti hypertensive medications, maintaining good hydration is really important for your health and in treating your high blood pressure, especially during times of illness. When you have a flu cold or diarrhea, you're a more risk of dehydration. So when you are sick, monitor your blood pressure and make sure you consult with your health care provider so that you could work with your provider to reduce the risks of anti hypertensive medications and lower blood pressures. Well, that's about it. Natalie Um, I think you've done a great program here, and it was just a real pleasure speaking with you and the listeners in Grays Harbor. Tyree, thank you so much for your time and input. I would also like to think our research team that made this possible Laura, Nicole and Maria we could not have done this would thought you're hypertension is a serious condition that many people ignore until they feel the damage. Now that you have the fax, high blood pressure is a Scient killer and shouldn't be ignored. Don't wait until it's too late. It is time to change your lifestyle. Talk to your health care provider to find ways to stick with your new routine. I hope this information session has been informative and encouraged you to better manage your own blood pressure. Thank you, Tyree, for your expert advice and tips and thank you listeners again for tuning in for more information about hypertension or anything that was talked about during the radio show, please visit the American Heart Association website or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This information is provided to you by Pacific Lutheran University Graduate School of Nursing and under the direction of the School of Nursing Faculty Dr Richard Milton and Dr Loretta Guerrero in January 2018. Thank you again for listening.