High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a serious public health threat globally. If uncontrolled it substantially increases the risk of disability and death from stroke, heart attacks and other cardiovascular conditions.
It’s also a huge problem in South Africa – an estimated 35% of people in the country older than 15 have high blood pressure. This is expected to increase as the country’s population rapidly ages over the coming decades.
It is therefore not surprising that the South African government has made blood pressure control a health policy priority.
But improving blood pressure control first requires figuring out what an ideal blood pressure should be. Blood pressure has two components: systolic - the amount of pressure in your arteries during the contraction of your heart muscle – and diastolic blood pressure – blood pressure when your heart muscle is between beats.
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is a serious public health threat globally. If uncontrolled it substantially increases the risk of disability and death from stroke, heart attacks and other cardiovascular conditions. It’s also a huge problem in South Africa – an estimated 35% of people in the country older than 15 have high blood pressure. This is expected to increase as the country’s population rapidly ages over the coming decades.
It is therefore not surprising that the South African government has made blood pressure control a health policy priority.
But improving blood pressure control first requires figuring out what an ideal blood pressure should be. Blood pressure has two components: systolic – the amount of pressure in your arteries during the contraction of your heart muscle – and diastolic blood pressure – blood pressure when your heart muscle is between beats. These two components are written and spoken together as systolic “over” diastol