Minority Women's Health

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High Blood Pressure

Minority Women's Health > African Americans > Health Topics > High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure happens when blood can't flow easily through your blood vessels. This puts pressure on your vessels, which damages the vessels and strains your heart. As a result, blood doesn't flow as well to your organs, and you can have a heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure.

High blood pressure has no symptoms. See your doctor once a year to have your blood pressure checked.

One out of three Americans has high blood pressure. African American women of all ages develop high blood pressure more often than non-Hispanic white women. Some things increase your chances of having high blood pressure: increasing age (middle aged or older), diabetes, obesity (or being overweight), alcohol use, eating too much salt, a family history of high blood pressure, and not exercising.

Making some lifestyle changes can help prevent or control high blood pressure.

• If you are overweight, lose weight. Losing just 10 pounds can lower your blood pressure.
• Get moving. Aim for 30 minutes of exercise a day, most days of the week. Try taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Or, walk during breaks at work.
• Eat right. Eat lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Choose low-fat dairy products. Eat less salt.
• Don't smoke. If you smoke, try to quit. For help along the way, check out our Quitting Smoking section.
• If you drink alcohol, have no more than one drink per day.

Publications

1.     DASH* to the Diet: Prevent and Control High Blood Pressure Following the DASH Eating Plan — This updated booklet contains a week's worth of sample menus and recipes recalculated using 2005 nutrient content data. The "Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension" eating plan features plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other foods that are heart healthy and lower in salt/sodium. It also provides additional information on weight loss and physical activity.

   http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/mission/partner/healthy_eating.pdf

2.   For People with Diabetes or High Blood Pressure: Get Checked for Kidney Disease — This fact sheet informs African-Americans about how diabetes and high blood pressure can damage the kidneys and lead to kidney failure

   http://www.nkdep.nih.gov/resources/make_the_kidney_connection.htm

3.   Heart Healthy Home Cooking African American Style — Prepare your favorite African-American dishes in ways that protect you and your family from heart disease and stroke. These 20 tested recipes will show you how to cut back on saturated fat, cholesterol, and salt, and still have great-tasting food. Delicious foods from spicy southern barbecued chicken to sweet potato pie are included.

   http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/chdblack/cooking.htm

4.     Prevent and Control High Blood Pressure: Mission Possible — This fact sheet for people with high blood pressure provides information on risks associated with high blood pressure and tips for preventing and controlling it. It is designed for clinicians to give to patients.

   http://hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/mission/partner/should_know.pdf

5.     Prevent and Control High Blood Pressure: Mission Possible. What Every African American Should Know — This fact sheet provides information about the special risks associated with high blood pressure for African-Americans and includes tips for preventing and controlling high blood pressure.

   http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/mission/partner/african_americans.pdf

6.     The Heart Truth for African American Women: An Action Plan — This fact sheet provides heart disease facts and figures specific to African-American women. It provides statistics on heart-related issues, as well as a checklist of questions to ask your doctor to begin your action plan for a healthy heart.

   http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/hearttruth/material/factsheet_aa.pdf

7.     Your Guide to Lowering Blood Pressure With DASH — Get with the plan that is clinically proven to significantly reduce blood pressure! This booklet offers a week's worth of sample menus and recipes created to follow the most recent nutritional guidelines. The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating plan features plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other foods that are heart healthy and lower in salt and sodium. It also provides additional information on weight loss and physical activity.

   http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/dash/new_dash.pdf

8.   Your Guide to Lowering High Blood Pressure — This Web site, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, is an interactive guide that answers common questions about high blood pressure and offers tips and quizzes. It also provides information on medications and suggestions on how to talk to your doctor.

   http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/hbp/index.html

9. High Blood Pressure Increases Your Risk for Stroke (Copyright © American Heart Association) — High blood pressure increases your risk of stroke. Learn more about high blood pressure, its risk factors, and its connection to stroke on this Web page.

   http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=2153

Organizations

1.   CDC's WISEWOMAN — Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation
2.   Heart Truth
3.   National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, NIH, HHS
4. American Heart Association
5. American Stroke Association
6. Sister to Sister: The Women's Heart Health Foundation

= Indicates Federal Resources

Resources reviewed March 2008.