Your Doctor’s Advice
Could Save Your Life
lf You Follow It
Following
instructions

If your doctor ever told you your blood pressure is too high he
probably also gave you some instructions. Maybe he told you to
come back so he could check it again. Maybe he started you on
treatment. Either way, unless you continue to follow his advice,
you are running a serious and needless risk of disabling illness
and early death.

Whether you’re young or old, white or black, male or female,

high blood pressure dramatically increases your risk of heart
disease (the nation’s leading cause of death), stroke, kidney
disease and other life-threatening disorders. To put it bluntly,

as a general rule people with high blood pressure die younger,

in many cases a lot younger, than people with normal blood.
pressure. When the blood pressure is controlled through treatment,
however, the risks are decreased right along with the blood
pressure. So be sure to follow your doctor’s advice.
“But I’ve been
cured...”

No you haven’t. Not unless yours is one of the rare cases where

a specific cause for the high blood pressure was found and
eliminated. In the overwhelming majority of cases, treatment
must continue for a long time, usually for life. High blood
pressure can almost always be contro/fed, but it can rarely be
cured, Unless you accept the long-term treatment that can control
your blood pressure, every day is a gamble, and your life is the
stake.

“My blood pressure
is fine...”

Great, But are you sure? When was the last time you had it
checked? High blood pressure usually doesn’t cause symptoms,
so unless you’ve been to the doctor lately you have no way of
knowing whether it’s too high. About 23 million Americans have
high blood pressure—that’s about 15 percent of the adult
population—and half of them don’t know they have it. Think
about that for a moment. Any time you’re in a group of a
hundred people—at a store, at church, at a PTA meeting, at
work—the chances are that 15 of them have high blood pressure
and 8 of them don’t know it. Make sure you’re not one of them.
Have regular checkups.

Hypertension =
High blood pressure

Hypertension means high blood pressure. Nothing more. People
often think it involves anxiety or emotional tension and that it
afflicts only certain types of people, such as big-city business.
executives. Such notions have no basis in fact. Hypertension—
high blood pressure—is common in housewives, laborers,
executives and clerks, and is prevalent in suburban and rural
areas as well as in cities. An easy-going way of life and a
relaxed manner are not guarantees against high blood pressure.
What you
should do

Have Regular Checkups

An annual physical examination is good protection against high
blood pressure. The condition usually doesn’t cause symptoms,
so only the doctor can tell if you have it.

Follow Your Doctor’s Advice

If you have high blood pressure, team up with your doctor and
stick with your treatment. Remember that treatment usually
must continue in order to protect you against disabling illness
and early death. If you have any problems with treatment discuss
them with your doctor, but don’t give up. Many lives have been
lost because people abandoned their treatment for high blood
pressure.

High blood pressure can almost always be
lowered and kept under control. Don’t let it
steal years from yout life.