Hypertension

Published: Tuesday | May 19, 2009


Recently, Jamaica joined the rest of the world to celebrate World Hypertension Day. Nearly one billion people worldwide have high blood pressure and many others do not know that they are affected. The condition has developed into a global epidemic and the major cause of stroke, heart and kidney failure.

THE RULE OF HALVES

Consider what researchers call The Hypertension Rule of Halves: Although one billion persons around the world have been diagnosed with hypertension, half (another billion) are yet undiagnosed. Half of those diagnosed are untreated and half of those treated are not controlled by their blood-pressure medication.

This means that, on average, only one out of eight people with hypertension is successfully managed by conventional medicine. What makes things even more distressing for us in Jamaica is that black men and women (the majority of Jamaicans) have more high blood pressure and more complications from the condition than any other racial group on Earth. We need to make a fundamental shift in our approach to this problem.

ELEVATED BLOOD PRESSURE IS A SYMPTOM

The table below lists the blood pressure levels that are used to diagnose various degrees of hypertension.

Blood Pressure SystolicDiastolic
Normalless than120less than 80
Mild Hypertension120-13980-89
Moderate Hypertension140-15990-99
Severe Hypertension160+100+

An elevated blood-pressure reading is a symptom not a disease.

Similarly, an elevated blood-pressure reading is a sign of some underlying disorder. A careful search should be made for the cause of the disturbance and that is what should be treated.

WHAT CAUSES HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE?

In over 90 per cent of cases, the cause of high blood pressure is lifestyle related. Poor nutrition, obesity or lack of exercise are common well-known examples of this. But there are other lifestyle factors that deserve our attention.

SUNSHINE

Vitamin D is an important nutrient produced in the skin from exposure to sunlight. Research shows that cases of high blood pressure increase during the winter and in locations farther from the equator - situations where a decrease in available sunlight leads to lower vitamin D production.

The darker your skin, the more sunshine you need to make vitamin D.

SALT

People with high blood pressure are commonly advised to avoid salt. But is salt the real culprit? Studies show that only about 20 per cent of hypertensive individuals are salt sensitive (salt makes their blood pressure go up) and that too little salt in the diet may be also unhealthy.

Yes, all of us should avoid excessive salt intake, but the real problem is the kind of salt we use.

SUGAR

What does sugar have to do with high blood pressure? Everything. Consuming too much sugar (and starch) causes the levels of insulin in the blood to rise. High blood levels of insulin raise the blood pressure. No wonder diabetes and hypertension seem to go hand in hand. After all, most people with diabetes have elevated levels of insulin in their blood! This also makes them fat and raises their cholesterol levels.

Instead of putting all the emphasis on reducing fats and salt, I recommend a diet low in sugars and starches.

STRESS

I consider poorly managed stress to be a major causative factor in many people with high blood pressure. It is a special kind of stress that is responsible. It is usually stress from trauma that has been suppressed or locked away deep in our subconscious mind. The trauma may go all the way back to early childhood or before.

Special forms of therapy are necessary to deal with these traumas, not just more blood-pressure medicines.

High blood pressure can be cured if we look for and treat the cause.

You may email Dr Vendryes at vendryes@mac.com, or listen to 'An Ounce of Prevention' on POWER 106FM on Fridays at 8 p.m. The programme streams live on the Net.