Health and medical news blog

The flow of blood created by the rhythmic pumping of your heart exerts a natural pressure on your artery walls; this is what’s known as blood pressure. If your blood volume is within a normal range, and if the tension within the muscle surrounding the artery wall is normal, your pressure should likewise be safe (in fact, pressure that’s extremely low can be very serious or even life-threatening). But if your blood volume is increased beyond a safe level, as can happen if you consume too much salt, hypertension develops: The additional blood volume puts extra pressure on your arteries, and your blood pressure rises, possibly to a dangerous level.There are actually two types of high blood pressure: primary (or essential) hypertension, and secondary hypertension. The exact cause of the first is not known, but excessive salt – or possibly sodium – intake may be an important factor. Secondary hypertension, on the other hand, has its origins in an underlying disorder such as kidney disease or hyperthyroidism.In the vast majority of cases, hypertension is “primary,” and appears to be influenced largely by eating and life-style habits – especially by a diet high in salt as well as in fat (although obesity, alcohol consumption, and a sedentary life-style may also contribute to increased blood pressure).Other factors have an effect on blood pressure, too: Emotional or physical stress will make your blood pressure rise temporarily; in fact, it’s a normal reaction. However, if the source of the stress goes away and your blood pressure remains high, then you’ve got a problem. For people who fall into this group, salt may be a primary villain.How exactly can too much salt contribute to high blood pressure? While our kidneys are designed to dispose of excess sodium, when we overwork these natural filters with enormous amounts of sodium in the form of salt, they may become less efficient at their cleanup job over time. And because our bodies seek to maintain an unchanged concentration of sodium, if excess sodium is not excreted it will prompt the fluid retention necessary to keep this sodium concentration in balance. Blood volume then increases as one result of this additional fluid.*16/345/5*