High Blood Pressure Stalks Many Americans

“It's one of medicine's mantras: If you have high blood pressure, taking steps to lower it will have a dramatic impact on your risk of stroke, heart disease and more. But 70 percent of people with high blood pressure still aren't doing a good enough job controlling it, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study. ‘High blood pressure is clearly associated with stroke, and it's a very preventable and treatable condition, but a lot of people still aren't doing what they should,’ said Dr. Keith Siller, medical director of the Comprehensive Stroke Care Center at New York University Langone Medical Center in New York City. Almost one in three American adults have high blood pressure, which is also known as hypertension. Diet, exercise, and blood-pressure lowering medications are all mainstays of blood pressure management. Many people have to take a combination of medications to properly control their blood pressure. To assess what measures those who've been diagnosed with hypertension are taking to control their high blood pressure, government researchers interviewed almost 25,000 Americans with high blood pressure. Almost all -- 98 percent -- said they were doing at least one thing to try to lower their blood pressure. Most also said they were taking some or all of the commonly recommended measures to control blood pressure. ‘The single most important thing people can do to prevent stroke is to manage their modifiable risk factors," said Dr. Bruce Silverman, a neurologist at Providence Hospital and Medical Centers in Southfield, Mich. ‘That means controlling blood pressure, quitting smoking, controlling blood sugar if you're diabetic, managing stress, exercising regularly, and watching your diet.’”

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