High Blood Pressure Bottom Number

Risks of high systolic and low diastolic blood pressure.

High blood pressure bottom number. Stage 2 high blood pressure indicates an even more serious condition. In general we don t like the bottom number to be much above 85. If this number is too high then the top number is usually high too. This is an old saying for blood pressure levels and comes from a time when doctors understood less about the risks of high blood pressure.

The bottom number in your blood pressure reading carries more significance prior to age 50. People with high diastolic blood pressure may be more at risk for developing high systolic blood pressure as well. According to the national heart lung and blood institute nhlbi the diastolic reading is an important hypertension number especially for younger people the higher the diastolic blood pressure the greater the risk for heart attacks strokes and kidney failure reports nhlbi. The first reflects systolic blood pressure the amount of pressure in the arteries as the heart contracts.

If your blood pressure reading shows a top number of 140 or more or a bottom number of 90 or more it s considered stage 2. For example your numbers may be 120 over 80 or written as 120 80. In a blood pressure reading the systolic number always comes first and then the diastolic number. This is the bottom number.

Lowering elevated diastolic pressure will lessen chance of. If you have a diastolic number the bottom number of a blood pressure measurement less than 80 millimeters of mercury mm hg and a systolic number the top number of a blood pressure measurement greater than or equal to 130 mm hg you have a common type of high blood. This lull in the blood pressure is called the diastolic blood pressure. If this number is too high then the top number is usually high too.

When the heart relaxes the blood pressure falls but doesn t go to zero. If only the bottom number is high you may need a very low dose of a blood pressure medication. When blood pressure gets too high health problems can result. In general we don t like the bottom number to be much above 85.

It is not true an optimal blood pressure level is 120 80mmhg or lower and high blood pressure is 140 90 mmhg or higher whatever your age. To help prevent serious illness be aware of the complications that can occur when the bottom number is 100 or higher. This is the bottom number.