High Blood Pressure: The Heart Of The Matter (NAPSA)—Getting the facts on high blood pressure can help you reduce your risk of heart attack, heart failure or kidney failure, and stroke. To find out how much you know about high blood pressure, take this quick quiz with questions from the high blood pressure information center on the American Heart Association’s Website. 1. Which of the following is the most desirable blood pressure reading? (a) 180/90 b) 180/110 c) 140/80 d) 120/80. 2. The main cause of high blood pressure is a) stress b) obesity c) unknown d) aging. 3. Which of the following is morelikely to contribute to your high blood pressure? a) physical activity b) salt/sodium intake c) high cholesterol level d) ice cream. 4. Which may be dangerous for people with high blood pressure? a) physical activity b) eggs c) cold and flu medicines d) microwaves. Answers 1. d) Below 120/80 is considered “normal,” but 140/90 is getting in the hypertensive range. 2. ) In 90 to 95 percent of high blood pressure cases, the cause is unknown. You can have high blood pressure for years without knowing it. That’s whyit’s called the silent killer. 3). b) Some people are “salt sensitive,” so eating a lot of salt adds to their blood pressure. Sodium is everywhere—in canned foods, baking soda, cheese, dried fruits and even tap water. 4. c) Decongestants have been reported to increase blood pres- dt High blood pressure directly increases the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. Fortunately, there are ways to control it. sure and may interfere with blood pressure medications. The American Heart Association High Blood Pressure information center on the Web offers tools people can use to help them reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke. The site is sponsored by Schering-Plough Health Care Products and Omron Health, Ine. The site includes the latest blood pressure news; information about medications to lower high blood pressure; guidelines, statistics and recommendations from healthcare professionals and helpful checklists to help people manage their high blood pressure and improve their health. For a more customized approach to controlling high blood pressure, visit the American Heart Association’s Heart Profilers program also found on the Web site. For an interactive version of this quiz visit www.americanheart.org/hbp.
