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What Is Blood Pressure?
Blood pressure is the force exerted by blood against the walls of the
arteries. Systolic pressure occurs when the heart contracts; diastolic
pressure occurs when the heart expands. Blood pressure is measured in
millimeters of mercury (mmHg).
What Affects Blood Pressure?
Blood pressure is affected by many factors: age, weight, time of day,
activity level, climate, altitude and season. Certain activities can signifi-
cantly alter one’s blood pressure. Walking can raise systolic pressure by
12 mmHg and diastolic pressure by 5.5 mmHg. Sleeping can decrease
systolic blood pressure by as much as 10 mmHg. Taking your blood
pressure repeatedly without waiting an interval of 5 minutes between
readings, or without raising your arm to allow blood to flow back to the
heart, can also affect it.
In addition to these factors, beverages containing caffeine or alcohol,
certain medications, emotional stress and even tight-fitting clothes can
make a difference in the readings.
What Causes variations In Blood Pressure?
An individual’s blood pressure varies greatly from day to day and season
to season. For hypersensitive individuals, these variations are even more
pronounced. Normally, blood pressure rises during work or play and falls
to its lowest levels during sleep.
ABOUT BLOOD PRESSURE
ABOUT BLOOD PRESSURE
Assessing High Blood Pressure for Adults
The following standards for assessing high blood pressure (without
regard to age or gender) have been established as a guideline. Please note
that other risk factors (e.g. diabetes, obesity, smoking, etc.) need to be
taken into consideration and may affect these figures. Consult with your
physician for an accurate assessment.
JNC7 Classification Table – for adults within the U .S
BP Classification
Systolic (mmHg)
Diastolic (mmHg)
Normal
less than 120
and less than 80
Prehypertension
120-139
or
80-89
Stage 1 Hypertension
140-159
or
90-99
Stage 2 Hypertension
160
or
100
SOURCE:
The seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on prevention, evaluation and Treatment
of high Blood pressure for adults. National heart, lung and Blood Institute - May 2003.
WHO Classification Table – for adults outside of the U .S .
(e .g . Canada, Mexico)
BP Classification
Systolic (mmHg)
Diastolic (mmHg)
Optimal
less than
120
and less than 80
Normal
less than 130
or
less than
85
High-Normal
130-139
or
85-89
Stage 1 Hypertension
140-159
or
90-99
Stage 2 Hypertension
160-179
or
100-109
Stage 3 Hypertension
180
or
110
SOURCE:
standards to assess high blood pressure, without regard to age or gender, have been
established by the World health organization (Who).
greater than
or equal to
greater than
or equal to
greater than
or equal to
greater than
or equal to
