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# May is High Blood Pressure Education Month
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/may_is_high_blood_pressure_education_0513110645/
- Published: 2011-05-13T07:44:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-15T10:29:05.000Z
- Description: CDC figures for High Blood Pressure Education Month: nearly 68 million Americans have hypertension and about 28% of adults have prehypertension. One in three adults with high blood pressure gets no treatment and half do not have it controlled; about 44% of black women are affected.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Miscellaneous, Health News, #vivvo-import

Nearly 68 million people have high blood pressure, which is also called hypertension, in the U.S. Hypertension increases the risk for heart disease and stroke, the first and third leading causes of death.

prehypertension—28% of American adults have prehypertension (Internal analysis from NHANES 2005–2008). People with prehypertension are more likely to develop high blood pressure than are people with normal blood pressure levels.

Blood pressure is written as two numbers. The first (systolic) number represents the pressure when the heart beats. The second (diastolic) number represents the pressure when the heart rests between beats. The following is a classification system for blood pressure—

| **Normal blood pressure** | *systolic:* less than 120 mmHg and*diastolic:* less than 80 mmHg                                     |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Prehypertension**       | *systolic:* 120–139 mmHg or*diastolic:* 80–89 mmHg                                                   |
| **High blood pressure**   | *systolic:* 140 mmHg or higher or*diastolic:* 90 mmHg or higheror taking antihypertensive medication |

**By the Numbers: 1 of 3**

| **1 of 3** | Adults have high blood pressure.                              |
| ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **1 of 3** | Adults with high blood pressure do not get treatment.         |
| **1 of 2** | Adults with high blood pressure do not have it under control. |

## Quick Facts

#### Who Has High Blood Pressure

- Women are about as likely as men to develop high blood pressure during their lifetimes. However, for people younger than 45 years, the condition affects more men than women. For people aged 65 years and older, it affects more women than men.
- About 28% of American adults aged 18 years or older have prehypertension.
- In the United States, high blood pressure is more common among blacks than whites. About 44% of black women have high blood pressure.
- Mexican-Americans have the lowest level of hypertension compared to non-Hispanic whites and blacks.

#### Health Impact of High Blood Pressure

- High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, and kidney disease.
- High blood pressure was a primary or contributing cause of death for 336,353 Americans in 2007.
- There were more than 46 million visits to doctor's offices for hypertension in 2007.

#### High Blood Pressure and Salt

- A diet high in sodium (salt) increases the risk for higher blood pressure.
- Most people eat more than double the amount of salt than they should.
- Current dietary guidelines for Americans recommend that adults in general should consume no more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. At the same time, consume potassium-rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables. However, if you are in the following population groups, you should consume no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day, and meet the potassium recommendation (4,700 mg/day) with food.  
http://www.cdc.gov/CDCTV/Salt\_Matters to learn more about how salt affects your health  
## Preventing and Controlling High Blood Pressure  
You can maintain healthy blood pressure by changing your lifestyle or combining lifestyle changes with prescribed medications.  
Key lifestyle changes include the following—

  - Have your blood pressure checked regularly.
  - Maintain a normal body weight (body mass index (BMI) of 18.5–24.9; BMI is kilograms divided by height in meters squared). [Click here to calculate your BMI](http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult%5Fbmi/english%5Fbmi%5Fcalculator/bmi%5Fcalculator.html?ref=foodconsumer.org).
  - Take at least 1 brisk 10-minute walk, 3 times a day, 5 days a week. Follow a healthy eating plan of a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and low in sodium.
  - Quit smoking.
  - If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation (no more than 2 drinks per day for men and no more than 1 drink per day for women).
  - If you have high blood pressure and are prescribed medication(s), take as directed.  
The most recent recommendations for detecting and treating high blood pressure are available from the *Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure* of the National Heart and Lung Institutes, National Institutes of Health, available at [http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/hypertension/.](http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/hypertension/?ref=foodconsumer.org)  
Send an electronic [Health-e-Card](http://www2c.cdc.gov/ecards/index.asp?category=173&ref=foodconsumer.org) to someone to remind them to stay healthy.

BY CDC