SEATTLE, Wash. — For this holiday season, some medical professionals are hoping that you put one more thing on your list: a gift to yourself: check your blood pressure.
That one small check, often a free one at that, may help you learn if you have hypertension, a condition that impacts billions worldwide and kills millions each year.
“It’s definitely very important to do the early checkups, any kind of preventative checkups you can do based on your age. It will definitely make you feel better and potentially save your life,” says Elena Gadyuk.
In a recent story for Healthier Together on KIRO 7, we profiled Gayduk who says a blood pressure check saved her father’s life— it helped him learn he had a bad heart valve. She’s now speaking out for people to get their blood pressure checked. Her father did not have hypertension, but a blood pressure check is all it takes to reveal the so-called ‘silent killer.’
“It still continues to be a condition that isn’t really adequately treated right now in America,” said Dr. Nicole Saint Clair, the Executive Medical Director of Regence BlueShield. She recently sat down with KIRO 7 to discuss the issue of hypertension.
Dr. Saint Clair says hypertension is not adequately treated in the U.S. for a pretty simple reason: many adults have it and have no idea they do. The doctor says nearly half of American adults— that’s millions of people— have hypertension or high blood pressure in their blood vessels.
When it comes to hypertension, the doctor knows that ignorance can be deadly.
“You have to take a moment to say, ‘Hey, what is my blood pressure I am going to go and check it and really understand’ because you may not know if your blood pressure is running high,” Dr. Saint Clair told KIRO 7.
It’s dubbed a ‘silent killer’ because that blood pressure check is the only way to diagnose hypertension. The World Health Organization (WHO) is trying to fight a tsunami of hypertension health problems. It wants to cut the prevalence of it by 33% by 2030. Dr. Saint Clair knows that effort is sorely needed.
“Hypertension when left untreated or not ideally managed significantly increases the risk of stroke, and heart attack. These are really significant problems we’re facing today,” she told KIRO 7.
She says many people know what prompts high blood pressure:
older age
genetic history
being overweight or obese
not being active
high-salt diet
drinking too much alcohol
Any of those factors is reason enough to check your blood pressure now, according to Dr. Saint Clair.
“It starts with really deciding, ‘I’m going to know what my blood pressure is,’” she said.
If you’re searching for excuses, there aren’t many, since it’s never been easier to check your blood pressure. Any doctor will do it. Pharmacies have blood pressure cuffs, and they’re also at many public health events.
Your insurance may cover the purchase of a blood pressure cuff for you to keep at home, and if it doesn’t, they’re relatively inexpensive— often costing less than $200. The simple gift to yourself, checking your blood pressure, could save your life.
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