Sweating & High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can lead to stroke, heart attack, damage to your blood vessels and congestive heart failure.
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can lead to stroke, heart attack, damage to your blood vessels and congestive heart failure. According to the Mayo Clinic, high blood pressure can be hereditary, but other risk factors include the elderly, tobacco users, heavy alcohol use, stress, and being overweight or obese. These risk factors may lead to conditions that cause sweating, but a direct link between sweating and hypertension has not been established.
Sweating
Sweat, or perspiration, comes from your sweat glands and is an important body function that keeps your body at a safe temperature. The University of Maryland Medical Center states that alcohol use, stress, menopause, warm temperatures and exercise are all causes of sweating. If you have excessive sweating, you should talk with a physician. Also drink plenty of fluids when you are sweating to replace the water loss and avoid dehydration.
High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure is when the force of blood against your blood vessels is higher than normal. The normal blood pressure range is 120 over 80. This is the systolic blood pressure, or pressure during the heart beat, over diastolic pressure, pressure while the heart is relaxed. A systolic pressure over 140 or a diastolic pressure over 90 is considered high, according to Medline Plus. The only way to confirm high blood pressure is to have a blood pressure check done.
Misconceptions
It is often misconceived that certain symptoms such as sweating are indicative of high blood pressure. The American Heart Association claims this is false and establishes the fact that there are no symptoms for high blood pressure. In fact, a third of the US population has hypertension and only a third of that population know about it. Another misconception of high blood pressure is that only older people experience the problem. The American Heart Association busts this myth as well by claiming children as young as 6 can have hypertension.
Significance
Understand that high blood pressure does not make you sweat, nor does sweating or other symptoms mean that you have high blood pressure. Other diseases may cause excessive sweating, so if you experience this problem, talk with a doctor. The importance of checking your blood pressure regularly, exercising and eating a heart-healthy diet cannot be overstated. The American Heart Association states that lowering your blood pressure is the No. 1 changeable risk factor for stroke.
Considerations
If you have known hypertension and experience an episode of sweating along with chest pain or pressure, see a health care professional immediately. This may be a sign of a heart attack, and the American Heart Association says that 69 percent of first-time heart attack victims will have high blood pressure.