Introduction

Stress! stress! stress!. Guys, the stress people go through in this very generation is alarming. The truth is that there's so much to do, and so little time. The rate of change is also alarming. In almost every field, things keep on changing, new methods, new approaches, and one has to follow along.

Talk about economic pressure, MONEY! MONEY! MONEY!. Everybody needs money. The unending struggle for money, which is more difficult in this era because of the skills needed. One needs to be computer literate, one needs to learn how to use smart phones, function at high speed. I'm sure you must have noticed how fast everything is getting. So much to learn, not just learn at your pace, but learn quickly, if not the world would leave you behind. So much more than I can say, and the truth is that everything has consequences.

All these things I mentioned above and more, create pressure. I did not even talk about social media, and all the stress people go through to show off to their friends that life is good and rosy. It's a lot, and all these are increasing the rates at which people are becoming hypertensive.

To make matters worse, recent research has connected hypertension to dementia. I know what you're probably thinking, what in this world is dementia?. And for those that know what dementia is already, they'd be thinking, what??. Hypertension was already bad on its own, and now it's leading to dementia, what an unpleasant connection. Oh yes guys, too bad, in fact, too sad, but the reality is that there's a connection and I'd do well to explain everything to you guys, so don't go nowhere!

---

[Source: Wikimedia Commons. Author: BruceBlaus. CC-BY-SA-4.0 Licensed.]

Hypertension

Hypertension which can be simply said to be high blood pressure. This is a very serious health issue that has been found to cause stroke, heart disease and have even resulted to the death of so many people. It has been a health issue globally, affecting millions upon millions of people. It is called high blood pressure simply because the blood in the blood vessels are moving at high pressure.

Just as simple as that sounds. Yes, I intend making this article as simple as possible to read and understand. No need for complications. I hear so many people trying to explain hypertension or high blood pressure using big words. But here, we would explain it as simple as it could get. High, blood, pressure- The pressure of the blood is high. It has been said by the World Health Organisation (W.H.O.) that the major reason for the increase in the number of hypertensive patients, is that people in this generation like eating processed food, and the salt content of these processed foods has been the major cause of hypertension.

Also, another major cause of this slow but deadly condition, is stress. As I mentioned earlier, the stress people of this generation go through is really high and it's a pity. This is because there's so much to do and so little time. Everybody is on the run. We don't take time to have solid rest anymore, always using our phones, computer systems, watching movies, running up and down; the consequence is hypertension. So guys, please create some time to rest, it would really reduce your risk of becoming hypertensive.

A blood pressure of 120 over 80 mmHg is the ideal blood pressure. Usually, an individual is said to be hypertensive, when they read 130 over 80 mmHg (Nobody wants that). Let's not forget, sometimes hypertension happens just like that, naturally, without the individual doing anything to trigger it. In this case, it has to do with genetics, because some people come from families that have a medical background of hypertension.

Research has it that changing your lifestyle is the most appropriate path to take towards handling hypertension. As I mentioned above, stress is bad for our health, it has been known to have a strong connection with hypertension. Hence, if stress is a problem, then simply ensure that you don't stress yourself.

---

Exercise! Exercise! Exercise!

---

Physical exercise really helps to handle this issue, especially aerobic exercise e.g. running, jumping etc. Some people think that by taking psychoactive substances that calm their nerves for some time, they would be able to avoid hypertension. But sorry to those people, because unfortunately, the reverse is the case. Using drugs, smoking and drinking etc. have been found to actually increase hypertension issues.

There are medications for this condition. It has been found that antihypertensive medications have very little side effects and usually hypertensive patients are asked to combine two or more antihypertensive medications. The medical professional usually gives these drugs based on the condition of the hypertensive patient. It's also very important for patients to read the labels of the medications they're given.

Generally speaking, the cause of hypertension is most times not known. While sometimes, Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) causes hypertension as a result of the fact that the kidneys are having a hard time filtering out waste. Also, usually at sixty years of age, or there about, the arteries in general start becoming narrower or we can as well use the word stiffer. It has also been found that people from some ethnic groups are more prone to developing hypertension than people from other ethnic groups.

---

Size! Size! Size!

---

Size matters a lot, as an obese person stands a higher risk of becoming hypertensive. It's also advisable to cut down on your use of tobacco, as well as alcohol intake. At an earlier stage in life, both men and women are equally prone to becoming hypertensive, but in the later stages in life, it has been found that men in general are more prone to developing this condition. Generally, older people are more prone to becoming hypertensive than younger people.

---

SPHYGOMOMANOMETER (WOW!!)
What a funny word. Trust me, I've tried pronouncing this word and it isn't a small task at all. Try it 'Sphyg' hahaha, that's something else. Well guys, that long word is the name of the instrument used in measuring blood pressure. But let's note this, high blood pressure is actually not bad, for a relatively short period of time, such as when you are doing rigorous exercise or when you are going through a very stressful situation; during that period of time, your blood pressure can actually go up a bit, even in a very healthy individual.

[Source: Pixabay. Author: stevepb. CCO Creative Commons. Licensed]

Now let's talk about something that confuses so many people. And that's the systolic and diastolic reading. People usually ask, which one is over which one? Well, let me answer that question for you. The systolic reading is the one on top and the diastolic reading is the one below or under e.g. 140 over 80 mmHg, 140 mmHg is the systolic reading and 80 mmHg is the diastolic. And the systolic reading has to do with the pressure that the heart experiences when it pumps blood to the other parts of the body. While diastolic reading has to do with the pressure experienced by the heart when it relaxes and allows blood to fill it again.

Hypertensive individuals show some signs such as sweating, they suffer sleeping issues and they show anxiety. But in general, there are no signs to indicate hypertension. There are some things that you can do to ensure that you reduce the chances of you ever becoming hypertensive and they include consuming fruits, eating lots of vegetables and ensuring that you consume less fat as possible.

Let's move on to dementia

Dementia is a word that is used to describe several diseases of the brain and disorders of the brain. Dementia causes a reduction in an individual's cognitive ability and generally causes forgetfulness. It has been known to have serious adverse effect on the sufferer's communication, the individual's thinking as well as the memory. The tendency of having this condition gets higher as people get older.

Patients of this condition forget things a lot, as I mentioned above, sometimes, they forget simple activities such as cooking a usual food, sometimes they even forget their own children's names (Wow, that's serious). Just to tell how bad their forgetfulness could get. They show fast changing moods, sometimes you see them laughing and playing, the next minute, for no reason at all, they would be annoyed and angry.

[Source: Pixabay. Author: geralt. CCO Creative Commons. Licensed]

There are some signs that indicate that a person might be having dementia, and they include- repetitiveness, confusion, poor understanding of direction, and a problem adjusting to any sort of change. There are several causes of dementia such as the death of brain cells- usually many types of dementia are associated with the death of brain cells.

Some dementia are also caused by injuries or accidents to the head, sometimes stroke, in other cases, dementia is caused by brain tumor. There is also another cause in which blood flow to the brain is obstructed, as a result, the brain cells do not get enough oxygen. HIV infections (what??), yes guys, you read it right, HIV infection has been connected as well to dementia.

But guys, some cases of dementia are reversible. Well, you see, the reversible cases include the dementia caused by low vitamin intake or depression. In which case, if it's low vitamin intake, the patients can as simply be supplied more of the vitamin needed to tackle the condition. And if it's depression, then any way that such a patient can be helped out of that depression, then the dementia is corrected. That's why both dementia caused by low intake of necessary vitamins and depression are reversible, since by handling the cause, the dementia is handled as well. For dementia that involves the death of brain cell, unfortunately, they are not reversible.

Let's connect the dots...

For a long time now, it has been speculated that hypertension can actually cause dementia. These speculations started as far back as the nineteen sixties. Recent research works are now going on to prove these speculations to be true. Now, using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans, it has been found that hypertensive patients show some damage in the white matter in their brains, which is called white matter disease; which affects their cognitive abilities.Hence, causing dementia.

Guys, this is another connection between hypertension and dementia. As I mentioned above, hypertension sometimes causes sleeping problems, in which case, the patients are unable to get enough sleep; as a result, the patients become restless and his/her cognitive ability is affected adversely. Because as we all know, sleep is a very important part of our lives and anything that causes a sleeping problem would really affect the body and brain severely. Hence, causing dementia.

[Source: Pixabay. Author: geralt. CCO Creative Commons. Licensed]

Another connection is the fact that hypertension causes stroke, this is a very well known fact. But what we might not know is that stroke can also cause a decline in cognitive ability, as a result of the fact that blood vessels carrying blood to the brain might be blocked or even burst as a result of stroke. Thereby causing the brain not to get enough oxygen.

Not so long ago, a research work was carried out involving a large number of hypertensive patients, it was found that individuals who had their systolic reading at 160 mmHg or above, showed serious dementia nine years after. Hence, the research related high systolic reading to dementia.

All these go on to prove that hypertension indeed is a cause of dementia, as it causes stroke, sleeping problems, as well as white matter disease; which all cause dementia. For more information, feel free to check my references.

conclusion

Hello guys, good for us, we've been able to discuss what hypertension is, what dementia is, and how hypertension can cause dementia. Now that we know that there's a connection between hypertension and dementia, it is very much advisable that you do everything to ensure that you check and control your blood pressure, as this would reduce the chances of you ever getting dementia.

Avoid eating foods that are high in cholesterol, as this may increase your chances of getting stroke, which in connection may cause dementia. Also, I mentioned above that eating lots of processed foods, increases your chances of becoming hypertensive, as a result of their salt content.

Hence guys, it's also advisable that you avoid processed foods or reduce your consumption of it. For those who are already hypertensive, make sure you see your doctor regularly to keep your condition under control.

Thanks for reading!

References

1. Dementia can be caused by hypertension

2. Everything you need to know about hypertension

3. Hypertension, cognitive decline, and dementia: an epidemiological perspective

4. Dementia: Symptoms, stages, and types

5. Hypertension and Dementia

6. Vascular dementia and high blood pressure

Image Sources

All images used here are from free sources and liable for commercial use
all licensed under the Creative Commons.