{"id":417,"date":"2019-12-03T14:33:20","date_gmt":"2019-12-03T07:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/macallanbroker.wwwssr11.supercp.com\/?p=417"},"modified":"2025-04-27T08:23:49","modified_gmt":"2025-04-27T01:23:49","slug":"is-your-blood-pressure-about-to-blow-the-top-of-your-head-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/macallanbroker.com\/th\/is-your-blood-pressure-about-to-blow-the-top-of-your-head-off\/","title":{"rendered":"Is your blood pressure about to blow the top of your head off?"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the mandatory tests at my hospital, when you make an appointment to see a doctor, is a blood pressure reading, usually denoted as \u201cBP\u201d. \u00a0These days there are numerous medications so your BP doesn\u2019t blow your hat off!<\/strong><\/p>\n

I speak from experience here, as I take blood pressure tablets to keep my BP within the normal range, which they do, (provided I remember take them)!<\/p>\n

For many reasons, including forgetfulness, I had not taken any for over a week. \u00a0(Test for Alzheimers Disease \u2013 it you can remember you\u2019ve forgotten you haven\u2019t got it \u2013 BUT if you\u2019ve forgotten you\u2019ve forgotten, then you\u2019re on the way.)\u00a0 When I remembered I had forgotten my tablets, I popped into one of the Out Patients Clinics and got the nurse to take my BP. \u00a0It was 158\/87. \u00a0Too high. \u00a0I need to remember to take my tablets! \u00a0However, about 30 minutes later I had my BP checked again. \u00a0This time 147\/76. \u00a0Much better, but still marginally up.<\/p>\n

How could this be? \u00a0To complicate the matters even more, I had my BP checked this week.\u00a0 Result 120\/65.\u00a0 Were all the machines wrong?<\/p>\n

No, the machines were not wrong, but what you have to understand is that BP is not a constant number, but fluctuates for many reasons \u2013 rushing, coffee, anxiety, cigarettes, being nearly run over by a baht bus or taxi motorcy and a whole host of others. \u00a0This is why, if your doctor tells you that you have \u201chypertension\u201d (high BP that needs treating) on just one reading \u2013 don\u2019t believe him (or her).<\/p>\n

So how do you find out if your BP is too high? \u00a0Quite simply by repeated measurements. \u00a0Just as one swallow doesn\u2019t make a summer, one elevated reading does not necessarily mean hypertension.\u00a0 And one low reading does not mean your heart is giving up.<\/p>\n

So why is BP important? \u00a0Because if you don\u2019t have BP you are definitely dead! However, if your BP is too high for too long, it can mean you could be claiming early on your life insurance policy \u2013 or your relatives will, on your behalf.<\/p>\n

High BP is otherwise known as the \u201csilent killer\u201d as there are very few symptoms of the increase in blood pressure, until a vessel bursts somewhere, generally catastrophically! \u00a0The good thing is you are dead within minutes, so you won\u2019t linger.<\/p>\n

So what is the correct BP? \u00a0The following information shows the categories of BP measurements.<\/p>\n