In Nigeria’s megacity of Lagos, lifestyles resemble those of developed countries and hypertension is increasingly becoming a problem. Motunrayo Bello reports.
Joseph Otu (not his real name) found out about his blood pressure problem the hard way. Woken up in the middle of the night with a headache, he had difficulty speaking and felt weak on one side of his body. The 54-year-old Nigerian professional driver had no idea what was happening to him, but feared the worst.
His family took him to a clinic near his home in Ibafo in the sprawling megacity of Lagos, where a nurse checked his blood pressure.
Blood pressure readings are comprised of two values: one for systolic and one for diastolic pressure; anything equal to or above 140 over 90 is considered high. Otu’s stood at 175 over 110, a level at which he faced an increased risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney failure. “We started praying,” says Otu.
The fact that Otu had no idea about his blood pressure status before clinical diagnosis is not unusual. High blood pressure requires the heart to work harder than normal to circulate blood through the blood vessels. The symptoms of high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, are not always obvious, which makes regular check-ups essential.
Speaking on the issue, Emeritus Professor of Medicine at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Oladipo Akinkugbe, noted that unmanaged and undetected hypertension or high blood pressure was the major reason why more Nigerians were suffering and dying of stroke, heart disease and chronic kidney failure.
“The lifestyle and diet of the average Nigerian has changed. We eat more processed foods than ever, yet we are the ones suffering from the diseases they cause because of our genes,” Akinkugbe lamented.
In the views of Associate Professor of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Dr. Amam Mbakwem, Nigerians suffer from the effects of high blood pressure due to ignorance.
Ignorance:
Mbakwem, a cardiologist, argued that more than 60 per cent of Nigerians, who are hypertensive, do not know they have high blood pressure. Her words: “Many Nigerians with heart diseases do not know that they have high blood pressure till their hearts start failing. They wait for symptoms before they go for check up,which is deadly. If you have high blood pressure and you don’t know, by the time you are feeling dizzy or weak or breathless in the morning, some organs, such as the kidney and the liver, may have been damaged.
“We are not just worried that the number of hypertensive patients is going up. We are more worried that Nigerians do not know how to manage it. The statistics has been going up in the last 15 years, yet there is no special plan to check it.
High blood pressure is fatal to the heart, kidney and brain when left unmanaged.” Recent surveys show that heart and cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death in the world. Findings show that death rates are higher generally in developing countries, including Nigeria due to the late detection of cases and other risk factors such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and smoking; diabetes, obesity and sedentary living
What Causes High Blood Pressure?
Around 90 percent of people who are diagnosed with high blood pressure have 'essential hypertension', which means the body's small blood vessels have narrowed with no definite cause. For a few people, kidney or hormone problems may be the cause of their high blood pressure.
What Does the Systolic Blood Pressure Number Mean?
When your heart beats, it contracts and pushes blood through the arteries to the rest of the body. This force creates pressure on the arteries. This is called systolic blood pressure.
A normal systolic blood pressure is below 120.
A systolic blood pressure of 120 to 139 means you have prehypertension, or borderline high blood pressure. Even people with prehypertension are at a higher risk of developing heart disease.
A systolic blood pressure number of 140 or higher is considered to be hypertension, or high blood pressure.
What Does the Diastolic Blood Pressure Number Mean?
The diastolic blood pressure number or the bottom number indicates the pressure in the arteries when the heart rests between beats.
A normal diastolic blood pressure number is less than 80.
A diastolic blood pressure between 80 and 89 indicates prehypertension.
A diastolic blood pressure number of 90 or higher is considered to be hypertension or high blood pressure
Get Started With Exercise to Lower Blood Pressure.
No comments:
Post a Comment