What Is the Significance of a High Diastolic Blood Pressure?

Diastolic blood pressure is defined as the minimum level of blood pressure that the heart exerts between periods of rest. In other words, it is the unit rating of the force that blood exerts on the arterial walls. This is measured in mLs of mercury, and is the second number of a two-part blood-pressure reading (i.e., when you are told your blood pressure is 120/80, 80 represents your diastolic pressure).

• High blood pressure can be frightening.

How "High" is too High?

• Although a reading of 120/80 is considered the accepted standard for a blood-pressure reading, it is impossible for anyone to have this result at all times of the day, in all states of mind. Your heart beat can vary greatly and as a result your blood pressure shifts and changes according to age, mood, physical condition, posture, diet, medication and other factors. High blood pressure doesn't occur just because you have a high reading one day; high blood pressure occurs when you have a consistently high reading at various times of the day.

Variations in Readings

• Your diastolic and systolic (the upper/first number on the blood-pressure reading) are prone to high volatility and can change when the heart receives any kind of message from the brain. Happy or sad news can change the reading to high or low levels. Similarly, some exercises keep the blood-pressure numbers high for a while. All these variations do not necessarily mean that you have high pressure, or what is called hypertension.

  Hypertension occurs when your blood pressure reading is above 120/80 while you are at rest. This resting blood pressure is the foundation for judging if you have hypertension. The level and degree of variation is also taken into consideration when determining if you exhibit borderline or significant hypertension.

Significance

• A healthy heart is one that functions at 120/80 during normal times, and can go up to as much as 180/120 when reacting to a stimulus, such as an emergency. This elevated count can last for anywhere between a minute and one hour, after which the reading returns to normal. A normal reading that rises under stress is an indication of a healthy heart, because it means that the heart is well-equipped to supply blood to the vital organs no matter what the situation.

  Consistently high blood pressure without any stimulus means that the heart is exerting itself too much at all times. A high diastolic blood pressure is the result of increased cardiac activity and can also be a result of the action of a hormone called angiotensin that the brain secretes in response to a tense situation. Angiotensin initially gets secreted with stimulation, and when this hormone is released without stimulation, you are considered hypertensive.

Problems

• When left untreated for years, high diastolic blood pressure can cause damage to your tissues and nerves, resulting in conditions such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, heart attacks, renal complications, neurological disorders and other complications.

Treatments

• The main focus of treatment for a high diastolic pressure is to reduce the secretion of angiotensin. Various drugs, such as ACE inhibitors; angiotensin receptor blockers; calcium blockers or diuretics work in different ways to reduce this high diastolic pressure. Another method of treating hypertension is to soothe the mind with yoga or other stress-relieving techniques.