Hypertension
When your blood is pumping at a higher pressure than normal through your arteries, you are labelled as having Hypertension or High blood pressure. It is a medical condition that can put your heart at risk for coronary heart disease or heart failure.
Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and is recorded as two figures:
Systolic pressure – the pressure of the blood when your heart beats to pump blood out
Diastolic pressure – the pressure of the blood when your heart rests in between beats, which reflects how strongly your arteries are resisting blood flow
High Blood Pressure (Hypertension) is also called the ‘silent killer’ because one can have the condition for years without suffering from any signs or symptoms. You may not realize but damage to your blood vessels and heart continues, even without any symptoms. The hidden disease can be brought out into the open by keeping check of blood pressure regularly.
High blood pressure is when your blood pressure is 140/90 mmHg or above most of the time.
CAUSES OR RISK FACTORS
There isn’t always a clear cause of high blood pressure but you are at increased risk if you are:
- Aged over 65
- Overweight
- Have a relative with high blood pressure
- African or Caribbean descent
- Eating too much salt
- Don’t eat enough fruit and vegetables
- Don’t do enough exercise
- Drink too much alcohol
- Drink too much coffee (or other caffeine-based drinks)
- Too much Smoke
SYMPTOMS OF HYPERTENSION
A dangerous aspect of High Blood Pressure is that there are very few or no early warning signs. If your blood pressure is extremely high, you may have following symptoms, wherein you have to immediately visit a doctor:
- Severe headache
- Vision problems
- Increasing chest pain
- Nausea, vomiting
- Difficulty breathing
- Nosebleeds
- Swelling in legs or whole body
COMPLICATIONS
Uncontrolled and untreated high blood pressure can lead to:
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Heart Failure
- Metabolic Syndrome
- Aneurysm of aorta
- Kidney failure
- Vision loss
PREVENTION
You can take steps to prevent high blood pressure by:
- Losing weight if you need to
- Reducing the amount of salt you eat
- Exercising regularly
- Eating a healthy diet
- Cutting back if you drink too much alcohol
- Cutting down on caffeine
- Stopping smoking
HOMEOPATHIC TREATMENT
Homeopathy can play major role in management of essential or secondary hypertension. Timely administered homeopathy medicines can assist in preventing further complications of condition. Life-style modification with moderate exercise, weight reduction, salt restriction can enhance the benefits of homeopathy. Early cases of hypertension respond to homeopathy much better than late cases. Again, homeopathy is not best suited during the acute hypertensive crisis.
Homeopathic treatment is targeted towards UPROOTING THE DISEASE and ensuring health with no side effects. For prescribing to an individual, a PLAN OF TREATMENT is followed which involves:
- GETTING THOROUGH UNDERSTANDING OF CASE which includes complete case taking (analyzing patient as an individual) along with patient history and family history
- DIAGNOSIS OF PATIENT AND DISEASE
- INDIVIDUAL ASSESSMENT OF THE CASE
- PRESCRIBING THE MOST SUITABLE INDIVIDUAL CONSTITUTIONAL REMEDY