World Health Organization Issues Call to Action on High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is often called a silent killer because you may not feel anything is wrong, but inside your arteries, damage may already be happening that could lead to serious health problems including:

• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Kidney disease

The best prevention is knowing your blood pressure numbers and working with your doctor to keep them under control.

Blood pressure is shown as two numbers – an upper systolic (when your heart pumps) number and a lower diastolic (when your heart is at rest) number.

Normal blood pressure is when your systolic number is less than 120 and your diastolic number is less than 80, or less than 120/80.

Keeping your blood pressure in check is easier when you do the following:

• Eat a low-salt, well-balanced diet
• Limit alcohol
• Get regular physical activity
• Manage stress
• Maintain a healthy weight
• Quit smoking
• Take prescribed medication