17th May is globally celebrated as World Hypertension Day. Its a day dedicated towards understanding this silent killer better. High BP is one of the biggest health risks that faces the global population today. Some would say it’s almost an epidemic. High blood pressure can cause countless problems like diabetes, stroke, heart disease, kidney failure and even death!
Hypertension is an unusual condition which has almost no symptoms. The only way to catch it is to get your blood pressure checked regularly. If studies are to be believed, only one-third of all people know they suffer from high blood pressure. Blood pressure is measured in ‘millimetres of mercury’ (mm Hg) and is written as two separate numbers. The first number or the systolic number measures the pressure inside the arteries when heart muscles contract. The second number measures the pressure in the arteries when the muscle is resting between heartbeats.
Read more at NDTV.com.