How a quick and easy blood pressure check could save your life

Raised blood pressure, or hypertension, is the number one cause of pain and disability in Greater Manchester (GM).

NHS GM is supporting World Hypertension Day (17 May) by raising awareness and by urging people to get their blood pressure checked and making simple life changes.

Your blood pressure is the strength with which your blood pushes on the sides of your arteries (which are just like pipes) as it is pumped around your body.

High blood pressure causes stress on your blood vessels and increases the risk of problems such as a heart attack, stroke or dementia. High blood pressure can affect any part of your body.

High blood pressure does not usually have any symptoms, which means the only way to find out is to get your blood pressure checked with a quick and easy test.

Healthy adults over 40 years-old are encouraged to have their blood pressure checked every five years. If you're at an increased risk of high blood pressure, you should have your blood pressure checked more often, ideally once a year.

Dr Aseem Mishra, Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Lead for NHS GM, said: “Unfortunately, many people may not know they have high blood pressure as there are usually no symptoms, so it’s important that people do get checked if they haven’t recently.

“If you do find out you have high blood pressure, it doesn’t mean you have done anything wrong. There are many reasons why you may have high blood pressure and it could be genetic, but the important thing is that there are also lots of things we can now do to bring it under control and help us stay well for longer.

“Simple lifestyle changes can have a massive impact on reducing blood pressure and helping you feel better. These include moving, eating a balanced diet and drinking responsibly. If needed, your GP can prescribe you medication which also work well alongside these changes.

“I would encourage the public to take World Hypertension Day as a reminder to contact their GP or local pharmacy and get a quick and easy blood pressure check – it really could improve your life.”

You can get your blood pressure tested at a number of places, including:

• your local GP surgery
• some pharmacies
• some workplaces

Blood pressure machines vary, but they're all a type of measuring device, which often have an arm cuff attached to it. The cuff is usually wrapped around your upper arm and filled with air until it feels tight. This can feel uncomfortable, but it only lasts a few seconds.

An automatic device usually picks up the measurements from sensors in the arm cuff, which are sent to a digital display.

It's not always clear what causes high blood pressure, but there are things that can increase your risk.

You might be more at risk if you:

• are overweight
• smoke
• are over 65
• have a relative with high blood pressure or who has had a heart attack or stroke
• are of black African or black Caribbean descent

Find a full list of tips for healthy blood pressure here.