Revised blood pressure guidelines mean more Americans have hypertension.
In fact, almost half of the country suffers from high blood pressure, thanks to the new guidelines. According to the American Heart Association: People with readings of 130 as the top number or 80 as the bottom one now are considered to have high blood pressure, according to the guideline released Monday by the American Heart Association. High blood pressure used to be defined as 140/90.
The change means 46 percent of U.S. adults are identified as having high blood pressure, compared with 32 percent under the previous definition. A blood pressure of less than 120/80 still will be considered normal, but levels at or above that, to 129, will be called “elevated.”
Though it may sound worrisome, the new guidelines are actually meant to help patients and providers start addressing hypertension earlier, hopefully leading to healthier outcomes.
High blood pressure redefined for first time in 14 years: 130 is the new high
Know the signs