Blood pressure cases 'to top 1bn'

[SoCalDem]

Source: BBC

Thursday, 16 August 2007, 23:16 GMT 00:16 UK

Blood pressure cases 'to top 1bn'

High blood pressure is generally accepted as a reading above 140/80mmHg

High blood pressure is out of control around the world, with the number of sufferers expected to exceed a billion within 20 years, experts warn. One in four adults already has the condition, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and death.

But unhealthy modern lifestyles mean the toll could hit 1.56 billion by 2025, up from 972 million in 2000, The Lancet medical journal reports. The biggest problem is poor compliance with treatment, an editorial claims.

snip

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/health/6949526.stm

[izzie]

1. Time to change our way with rich foods?

How dull

[acmavm]

2. Rich foods? I think not. When I took my two days ago it was 157/86. And

for me, that's doing pretty good. And I can guarantee that I don't eat 'rich' foods. It runs in both sides of my family.

[izzie]

9. I am sure you are right but I do think rich foods does not help

Mine is so low one has to wonder if I am alive but it has always been like that. I also do not eat rich food but not for that. A diet is easier than buying pills.My doctor tells me I am lucky and it is maybe a family thing it is so low.

[ananda]

21. Mine runs low to normal.

I'm always at around 110-70 to 120-80.. never more.

I do eat a healthy diet, and I exercise and walk as
much as I can... and I see a chiropractor when my
scoliosis causes my back to act up.

That's it for me.

[izzie]

24. Mine is like that. Guess we will have to put up a flag to show we

are still with it.

[Dogmudgeon]

5. How 'bout rich Mercury and Lead?

Both guaranteed to raise blood pressure.

Environmental medicine, though, is not as much fun as Total Personal Responsibility™.

--p!

[izzie]

10. Did not know that. Guess I will have to read around

--

[DBoon]

23. Also other environmental contaminants

I bet a lot IS lifestyle:

- Too much stress
- Working long hours
- Too little sleep

Chronic lack of sleep has been shown associated with adult onset diabetes. I would suspect somethign similar for high blood pressure.

[deminks]

3. As Big Pharma drools.

Actually, anything over 120/70 is treated in Amerika nowadays. That was considered normal 10 years ago. While I have no doubt that our less active and unhealthy diet lifestyles are hurting us worldwide, raising the goalposts with drugs is not the total answer.

Money could be spent on preventative measures - what a novel concept that would be. But that would be bad for biznez. Things like removing the poisons from our overseas food, from our toys, preventing fake drugs made from drywall and street paint, exercise programs, healthy well balanced diet instruction, etc. But no. The sheeple must be poisoned, and then treated. Then all the biznez CEO's win!

see "Suddenly Sick" here:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/health/sickintro.html

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/deminks

[SoCalDem]

4. Also makes insurance pricier too as they edge us into "high risk" underwriting.

:grr:

[Hawaii Hiker]

6. I don't think if BP that is slightly over 120/70

will be treated (w/medication), unless the person is a diabetic...

I still think the guideline for TREATMENT is anything 140/90, unless diabetes and/or strong family history is involved but I may be wrong...

http://www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/medicine/blood-pressure.htm

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Hbp/HBP_WhatIs.html

[deminks]

7. Please take time to read the Seattle Times series I linked

from the article on hypertension:

For years, doctors considered 120/80 to be ideal and anything under 140 to be OK. But a change took place in May 2003, when American doctors got new advice from a government-sanctioned medical panel called the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure.

Systolic pressure as low as 120 could be unsafe, the panel said. It also established a new condition, called "prehypertension," systolic pressure from 120 to 139, and said millions more people should take hypertension drugs to save their lives.

"It used to be your age plus 100 was perfectly OK," Godden said. "Somehow, now, if you're a 140, this is high blood pressure."

After learning about the lower targets, Godden's internist, Dr. Robert Saunders of Seattle, called her. "I said, 'Look, we've got to do something different here. I can't live with this. It's not good for you,' " Saunders recalls.

He told her she needed to get down to 120 over 80 and insisted she add another medicine.

(end snip)

The trouble with the panels is that the majority of them are taking money from the drug companies that make the drugs that they are writing guidelines for.

[DemReadingDU]

11. Seattle Times series is very good

I have read that previously.

Big Pharma is behind the push into getting more folks to take more drugs so that more CEOs make more money.

[Vinca]

8. You know why so many people have high blood pressure?

Because they lowered the "norm." Yep - just like the "norm" for having diabetes, it drops a couple of notches every so often. Now, a cynical person might think big pharma had something to do with it. The more "patients" you've got the more $3.00 a day pills you can push.

[DemReadingDU]

12. The same thing has been done with cholesterol

Big Pharma gotta push those cholesterol lowering drugs. The CEOs gotta have more dollars in their pockets from people spending more dollars for taking more pills.

[Vinca]

13. Exactly. I forgot about cholesterol. That, too.

Now I'm worried about the brouhaha over obese Americans. They'll lower the normal weight until we all look like Nicole Ritchie.

[DemReadingDU]

14. And how about all those bone strengthening drugs

From my reading, walking, lifting light weights, eating yogurt, taking calcium are effective in helping to prevent osteoporosis. Why spend dollars to buy drugs to enrich those CEOs profits?

[acmavm]

15. I don't think so. I'm lucky to be alive after a Sunday of 8 mini

strokes and 2 major strokes. Started at 10:40 a.m. and had the final biggie at around 3:00 a.m.

My blood pressure hovered around 130 - 140 over 80 up to that point. So if you're up there around 120, you need to start worrying and do something about it before you end up like I did.

[DemReadingDU]

16. wow, that's scary

Hopefully, you are recovering and not have any lasting effects from those strokes. Granted, if there are indications that may point to a possible problem, it is better to take medication to bring things back to normal. Then when things are normalized, it's also good to look at alternative things that can be done to alleviate taking so many major drugs.

[acmavm]

17. I hate taking medication everday. Sometimes I skip because

I don't have the money for it at that particular time. But hell, I'm working. And obviously I'm well enough to be a pain in the ass on DU.

[davsand]

25. Ding! Ding! Ding! WE have a winner!

You nailed it.

The standard was lowered by a panel of pharma stooges and now more people get classified as "sick" so they spend more on pills. I honestly think we all would be a lot healthier if we avoided the docs for most stuff. Not all, but many seem like nothing more than whores for the drug companies.

It isn't about your health it is about turning a profit.



Laura

[tranderson98]

18. They've done the same thing with blood sugar levels

The diabetic epidemic is also partly caused by changes in the acceptable blood sugar levels. I was normal for years and then suddenly, with the same blood sugar readings, I was a diabetic. And, as alluded to in a prior post, once you have diabetes, your cholesterol readings are suspect even if they are normal because of higher rates of heart disease. The entire thing is a scam and a way to get people to take expensive drugs for the rest of their lives. I was "diagnosed" and was suddenly on five different medications. I learned to be aware of my health but to be skeptical and do my own research.

[DemReadingDU]

19. Welcome to DU!

It makes me wonder how many drugs are prescribed because of side effects from taking other drugs. Rather than eliminating the suspected drug, the doctor prescribes yet more drugs.

Another scam to get more dollars into Big Pharma.

[Savannah_H]

20. reply

they probably have a NEW drug waiting in the wings...
so that we can all get hooked on it...
and they make tons of money.....

didn't they do this with cholesterol?

[slackmaster]

22. Obesity AND stress are the culprits

People have to work their asses off just to survive.