Although some people like to “indulge” in alcoholic beverages to help bring in the New Year, you may want to take it easy if you have high blood pressure.  While it is common knowledge that high blood pressure increases your risk of cardiovascular diseases and that excessive drinking is not beneficial to your body; the combination of the two may be double trouble.

Have you ever caught yourself yelling at the television when your favorite team drops a touchdown pass in the end zone or makes a fielding error late in the game?  We’re all guilty of it.  However, I feel obligated to share some bad news.  First, the coaches and players cannot hear you from the confines of your living room, and second, research shows that there is a direct link between spectator sports and an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) events.  Dr. Franklin Zimmerman, from Phelps Memorial Hospital Center, recently published an article in the Journal of Clinical Hypertension investigating the blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) response of baseball and football fans both before and during games.

A recent Canadian blood pressure study discovered that high blood pressure does not directly correlate with the rising obesity rate in pediatric patient populations.  Contrary to expected research outcomes, while most pediatric patients (ages 6-19) with high blood pressure were obese, not all overweight adolescents (a mere 3%) suffer from high blood pressure.

We’ve already discussed how hypertension is a costly drain on worldwide health care systems and society in general, but this cost is only based on adult hypertension.  A recently published report advocates improving the awareness, identification, and treatment of pediatric hypertension and clearly describes the implications of continuing to neglect this problem in the pediatric population.  The prevalence of hypertension in children is about 3-5% of the population, but as obesity continues to rise in children, high blood pressure will likely increase making it even more important to raise the awareness of pediatric hypertension.

Earlier this year we wrote a blog post about the similarities of current healthcare challenges in both China and the US. Of particular note was the fact that Hypertension is the leading cause of premature deaths in China. We recently had an opportunity to meet and speak with many folks involved with the delivery of healthcare in this rapidly evolving market at the China Medical Equipment Fair (CMEF) held in Shenzhen April 18 - 21, 2010.

An important health issue that expectant mothers may encounter during pregnancy is Preeclampsia, a condition in which the expectant mother is diagnosed with hypertension and has protein present in the urine.  Preeclampsia is the most common medical disorder of pregnancy and affects 10%-12% of all expectant mothers (Pickering et al, 2005).  Since blood pressure plays an important role in the health of mom and baby, accurate blood pressure measurement is extremely critical, because one would never want to be misdiagnosed with hypertension and be prescribed medications/medical interventions that could potentially injure both mom and baby.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a report last week recommending strategies to address the "neglected disease" of hypertension in the US. Many people do not realize that high blood pressure is one of the leading causes of death in the US, and it is a risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure. One in three US adults has hypertension, and less than half of them have it in control, resulting in an estimated cost of $76 billion in 2010.

Blood Pressure is one of the American Heart Association's Life's Simple 7 factors included in the My Life Check to help Americans assess and improve their heart health. Small changes in any of the 7 categories lead to improved heart health. Check out your Heart Score today!

I recently read an article indicating hypertension - or high blood pressure - as the leading preventable cause of premature deaths in China. As I was reading, it made me realize how similar healthcare issues in China and the U.S. truly are.