HTA

High blood pressure is a public health problem, affecting around 45% of the population and this percentage is increasing.

Only about half of hypertensives know they have the disease, and of these only 1 in 5 have their blood pressure properly controlled.

Hypertension with no known cause, that is, essential hypertension (also called primary or idiopathic hypertension) accounts for about 90-95% of all cases of hypertension.

The remaining 5-10% are forms of secondary hypertension, i.e. caused by an identifiable cause (e.g. kidney disease, endocrine diseases, coarctation of the aorta, medications, sleep apnea, etc.).

High blood pressure (hypertension) is frequently overdiagnosed (i.e. people are diagnosed with hypertension who do not actually have the disease), mainly due to measurement errors and inappropriate context in which blood pressure is taken.

Main situations leading to overdiagnosis

  1. White coat hypertension (patient gets nervous in the presence of the doctor):
    - affects 15% to 25% of those labeled hypertensive.
    - blood pressure is elevated only in the doctor's office, but normal at home or on 24h monitoring
  2. Incorrect measurements
    - if the patient is not at rest, if the cuff is too small or if only one arm is measured, differences of 10-20 mmHg can occur.
    - In some studies, more than 40% of in-office measurements do not meet standards.
  3. Pseudo-resistant hypertension
    - Patients treated for apparently "resistant" hypertension, but high values are due to measurement errors, non-adherence to treatment or "white coat effect".
    - may account for up to 30% of cases labeled as resistant HTA.

In addition to the treatment prescribed by your doctor, here are two measures that can help:

  1. weight loss. It's an essential measure and certainly recommended by your doctor. The problem is that it is difficult to put into practice. That's why I recommend intermittent fasting, because I find it the most convenient way to lose weight.  

    Weight loss is one of the most effective non-pharmacological measures for reducing blood pressure, sometimes with an effect comparable to that of an antihypertensive drug. 

    Data from meta-analyses show an almost linear relationship: for each kilogram lost, systolic blood pressure decreases on average by 1 mmHg
    (and diastolic by ~0.5 mmHg).

    For example, a person who loses 10 kg can have a 10/5 mmHg drop without further intervention.

    For details on intermittent fasting, see the book "Lose weight without counting calories".
  2. taking maslin leaf extract, 70 ml/day. Maslin leaf extract contains substances that reduce blood pressure. If antihypertensive drugs are taken, it is necessary to carefully monitor the blood pressure so that it does not drop too much.