Hypertension, which is also called high blood pressure, is a silent killer because it can exist without you knowing about it.
This illness makes the heart work harder to pump blood to the body and contributes to hardening of the arteries, or atherosclerosis, and to the development of heart failure.
“In Gauteng, it is estimated that around 15.5 per cent of adults are hypertensive. Between April 2013 to December 2013, 51 859 patients were placed on anti-hypertension medications in the provinces public health facilities,” adds the MEC.
Hypertension is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in both developing and developed countries.
“Because the treatment does not include medication alone, I am appealing to the communities to eat healthy food, lose weight, reduce salt in meals, avoid fatty meals; lower alcohol intake, smoking; control blood sugar; exercise regularly and avoid stress,” says Mahlangu.
She reminds residents that winter is upon us and the chilly weather drives many people to laziness, which means at this time many hardly exercise and the kilograms pile up. One resorts to bad eating habits, which expose one to the risks of various diseases.
“High blood pressure, unlike other diseases, does not make its presence felt. It does not impinge on how you feel on a day to day basis. It shows no symptoms in the early stages, until complications develop.
“When it finally announces its presence, its impact is usually fatal,” says Mahlangu.
Some of the known symptoms may include headache, dizziness, visual problems, palpitations and feelings of extreme anxiety.
Any person can develop hypertension but some people carry a greater risk. These include people who are overweight; have a family history of hypertension; do not do any exercise; drink too much alcohol; smoke; lead stressful lives; eat unhealthy diets or have diabetes.
If people do not take medication as prescribed and do not live a healthy life post diagnosis, they put themselves at a risk of developing complications of hypertension that include blindness, stroke, heart attack, heart failure and kidney complications.
“Time is now to take charge of your life and that begins with testing for hypertension and whether your blood pressure is raised or not, live a healthy life. There is no cure but the illness can be controlled.” – @CarmenBoksburg
