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Hypertension: Effects and Prevention

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Life expectancy has grown over the last 100 years. This leads to a variety of health issues and problems that affect these elder generations quality of life. According to the United States CDC, one in three American adults suffers from hypertension. With so many Americans having high blood pressure it is no surprise that hypertension is one of the most dangerous conditions, leading to death, in the elderly. Doctors often skip directly to subscription, medications to help control elevated blood pressures, but other problems can arise from these medications, like dementia. The earlier the hypertension is diagnosed, the faster doctors can help create a treatment plan individually tailored to help the sufferer.
What is hypertension? …show more content…

These are three of the leading causes of death in the United States (United “High” 1). Over 68 million individuals have increased possibilities of suffering from one or more of these perilous causes of death (United “High” 1). There is a large population of Americans that are not even aware that they have hypertension.
Most adults are checked at their annual checkups, while the elderly are checked at each physical. Hypertension even affects children. Often times children three and older will be checked at their appointments similar to adults (Mayo “High” 1).
Yearly checking is important because of the millions who have hypertension, the elderly are the most vulnerable; seventy-eight percent of the population 80 years and older will be diagnosed with hypertension (Sutin). Along with the elderly, adults who have already been diagnosed with high blood pressure, or face other risks for cardiovascular disease, will be checked more frequently (Mayo “High” 1).
There are no real indicators of hypertension. “High blood pressure is called the ‘silent killer’ because it often has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people don’t realize they have it” (United “High” 1). Because the signs of hypertension are silent, tracing the root cause can be very difficult. Doctor will often start at the beginning. They will ask the patient to keep a food log, prescription list, over-the-counter medications list, past treatments (if applicable), and any herbal or alternative choices

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