Healthier Together is sponsored by Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah
Today we’re taking a closer look at what is known as the “silent killer” – because many people don’t know they have it and if left uncontrolled or untreated it can lead to serious damage to internal organs and even cause heart attacks or strokes.
“About a third of Utahns have high blood pressure, or as we like to call it, hypertension,” said Dr. Mike Woodruff, Executive Medical Director for Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah.
Woodruff said it’s a common problem that many of us don’t realize we have.
“You can’t feel it a lot of times and it can have an impact on your kidneys, on your heart and on your blood vessels and lead to things like stroke or heart attack,” he said.
What’s important is to know your numbers.
Woodruff said, “Ignorance is not bliss and the important numbers to remember are 120/80.”
Anything higher than that and you’re in what’s called an elevated range.
“Once you get over 130, on the top number, then you have true high blood pressure. Now, that’s a change. That change was made in 2017, so you might be accustomed to hearing 140 over 90, but as we have done a lot of research we’ve found if we can control people’s blood pressure to a lower level than we did before, then we actually improve their outcomes and they live a healthier life,” said Woodruff.
So what’s the best way to check your blood pressure?
Did you know you can do it from the comfort of your own home. And it may even be more accurate.
“When you go to the doctor’s office, you’re not always the most relaxed, and it’s important when you get your blood pressure taken that you’re relaxed, you’re seated in a comfortable position, your arm is at heart level, you’re not wearing restrictive clothing, your feet are flat on the floor, and this is the hard part – that you’ve been sitting for five minutes – and that’s hard to do in a busy doctor’s office,” said Woodruff.
The American Heart Association recommends a website called validatebp.org to find the best home monitoring system.
“They’re not that expensive. I did a search on Amazon this morning and they’re anywhere from 35 to a hundred dollars,” said Woodruff.