We are aware of the fact that our bodies consist of tube-like tunnels called blood vessels that carry the oxygen and nutrition-rich blood throughout the journey. To facilitate this journey, our heart plays a vital role by beating and pumping the blood through the arteries which exerts the force on the muscular walls of the blood vessels and this exerted force is called blood pressure.

When the heart squeezes and pushes blood into the blood vessels, blood pressure goes up. This is known as the Systolic blood pressure. When the heart relaxes, the blood pressure goes down, which is known as Diastolic blood pressure. The flow of blood is unstable, and changes from time to time, directly impacting the physical and mental health of an individual, so to keep track of the flow; these pressures are recorded in the form of millimeters of mercury and are symbolized as mmHg.

For a healthy person, the systolic blood pressure is between 90 – 120 mmHg and the diastolic pressure is between 60 – 80 mmHg. The ideal average of both pressures is considered to be a little less than 120/80 mmHg.

High blood pressure
So what is High & Low blood pressure all about? Well, let me explain; if the systolic pressure increases above 120 mmHg and diastolic pressure increases above 80 mmHg, then the person is said to be suffering from High Blood Pressure or Hypertension. There are several reasons that can cause increased pressure in the body. You can get it from your parents, by living an unhealthy lifestyle (unhealthy food, stress, unhealthy sleep pattern, etc.), but one of the leading causes of hypertension is an increase in the level of salt in your body. How? You may ask. Salt works on your kidneys to make your body hold on to more water, this extra amount of liquid increase the blood volume and blood pressure causing hypertension.

Low blood pressure
When the systolic pressure drops below 90 mmHg and diastolic pressure drops below 60 mmHg, the individual suffers from low blood pressure. The causes of low blood pressure could be: thyroid condition such as parathyroid disease, adrenal insufficiency, low blood sugar, and in some cases, diabetes. Losing a lot of blood; such as from a major injury or internal bleeding also reduces the amount of blood in the body. Leading to a severe drop in blood pressure.

This leaves us with a new question: what can we do to maintain the ideal level of blood pressure?

It’s quite simpler than you think. To avoid high blood pressure, you should exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet (reduce the use of sodium content in your food). To overcome the problem of low blood pressure, all you need to do is; drink the right amount of water, reduce the amount of blood that gets caught in the lower legs and feet, maintain the right amount of salt in food, and lastly avoid staying in one position for long periods (move around).