Older adults urged to cut risk of ‘silent killer’ with home BP checks

Often referred to as the ‘silent killer’ as it shows few if any symptoms, high blood pressure is responsible for 7.5 million deaths worldwide every year.

Left untreated, it puts people at risk of stroke, heart disease, and heart attack – especially those aged 50-plus.

Yet only 48% of those in this age group who take blood pressure medications or have a health condition that’s affected by hypertension, regularly check their own, according to a team of researchers from the University of Michigan in the US.

Of these, only 55% own a blood pressure monitor.

Some said they don’t use it, and among those who do, only around half shared their readings with a healthcare provider.

But they were 10 times more likely to check their blood pressure outside of a health care setting than those who don’t own a monitor.

Among the 62% who said a healthcare provider encouraged them to check their blood pressure at home, they were three-and-a-half times more likely to do so.

The researchers, who analysed data from 1,247 randomly selected people aged between 50-80 as part of the University of Michigan’s National Healthy Poll on Ageing, argue that their findings suggest patients should be informed about the importance of blood pressure monitoring and making their readings known to clinicians.

It’s a view shared by Blood Pressure UK, which holds a Know Your Numbers! Week every September. The focus of this year’s campaign which runs until September 10, is on home blood pressure monitoring.

The organisation believes it is important for the public to know their blood pressure numbers in the same way most people know their weight and height.

This lack of knowledge isn’t just a problem for older age groups. A new consumer poll conducted by the London-based charity to coincide with this year’s awareness week has revealed that 63% of 30-50 year-olds don’t know their current blood pressure numbers and could be living with undiagnosed hypertension, increasing their chances of stroke, heart attack, and heart failure which, ironically, are amongst their most feared health conditions.

Unhealthy lifestyles and poor diet are contributing to more young people in their 30s, 40s, and 50s being diagnosed with hypertension and around one in three of the UK population is now living with high blood pressure.

Blood Pressure UK estimates around 6.5 million people remain undiagnosed.

Since high blood pressure is largely symptomless and the single biggest preventable cause of death not just in the UK but in many other developed countries, the charity says the more people who test themselves, the more chance there is of controlling it and avoiding unnecessary premature death.

A home blood pressure monitor is the easiest way to do this.

Phil Pyatt, CEO of Blood Pressure UK, commented: “Given high blood pressure does not show any clear symptoms – hence being dubbed the ‘silent killer’ – all adults, regardless of their age, need to take control of their health by checking their blood pressure regularly, either at home, at a pharmacy or at their GP.

“Furthermore, simple improvements in diet and lifestyle such as eating less salt, more fruit and vegetables, and doing more exercise can really help keep blood pressure down.”

Professor Graham MacGregor, chairman of Blood Pressure UK, added: “Half of all strokes and heart disease are due to high blood pressure which can easily be reduced, particularly by reducing your salt intake and if necessary, taking tablets which rarely have side effects.

“This will reduce your risk of developing a heart attack, heart failure, or a stroke, which can either be fatal or cause life-changing disabilities. This is completely avoidable; it is not the time to dither and delay – it could save your life.”

There is now substantial evidence supporting the use of home blood pressure monitoring. It has been shown to give a better reflection of blood pressure, avoiding so-called ‘white coat syndrome’ when a person’s blood pressure is raised due to the stress of being in a medical environment like a GP surgery, or pharmacy.

What’s more, it allows patients to monitor their condition more easily in the long term.

According to NHS England, regular home blood pressure monitoring across a population of 50,000 patients could prevent up to 500 heart attacks and 745 strokes over five years.

Research studies also show that eating too much salt is a major cause of high blood pressure, particularly when associated with age.

Cutting one gram of salt from the average daily salt intake would help reduce blood pressure.

In the UK this would equate to approximately 6,000 fewer deaths from strokes and heart attacks each year.