What Do My Blood Pressure Numbers Say About My Heart?

Look at your blood pressure numbers to learn about your heart's health. Blood pressure numbers can also indicate other health problems.

What is Blood Pressure

• According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, blood pressure measures the force of blood in the arteries's walls. The top number in your reading is systolic, which measures the pressure on the walls of the arteries when the heart contracts. The bottom number, diastolic, shows the pressure between beats.

High Blood Pressure

• High blood pressure makes the heart work harder than is healthy and can ever cause the artery walls to harden.

Dangers of High Blood Pressure

• A person with high blood pressure has a higher risk for heart attack, stroke, heart failure, kidney disease and blindness.

Causes of High Blood Pressure

• Causes range from the heart beating faster or more forcefully than normal, an increase in blood volume and a narrowing of the arteries.

Blood Pressure Range

• A normal blood pressure should be around or under 120/80 mm Hg. When it's between 120/80 mm Hg and 139 mm Hg, the condition is called prehypertension. Blood pressure over 140/90 mm Hg is called hypertension.