Mayo Clinic on High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is a common and serious disease. Nearly half the adults in the United States have high blood pressure and the condition, also known as hypertension, contributes to more than 670,000 deaths each year. But there’s much to celebrate. Management of high blood pressure is a remarkable success story in modern medicine. Health education efforts spanning several decades to increase public awareness and treatment of high blood pressure have resulted in significant declines in death due to heart disease and stroke. Blood pressure naturally increases with age, and while there’s a good chance that you could develop high blood pressure over your lifetime, the disease doesn’t have to cause you serious harm or death. High blood pressure is highly treatable. It’s also preventable. Mayo Clinic on High Blood Pressure includes information and tools to help keep your blood pressure from rising to dangerous levels. Mayo Clinic specialists explain how high blood pressure develops, how it’s diagnosed and treated, how to prevent conditions associated with it, and what puts you at risk. Healthy, everyday choices and appropriate medications are the keys to successful management. Learn how to reach and maintain a healthy blood pressure so that you can live well for years to come.