Renal: Get Your Blood Pressure Checked to Protect Your Health

What’s your blood pressure? If you don’t know, you’re not alone.

About half of all adults in the United States have high blood pressure, according to the American Heart Association, and many don’t even realize it.

There are no symptoms, no warning signs of high blood pressure. But left unchecked it can slowly and silently increase your risk for a heart attack, stroke and other complications, especially if you have renal disease.

So what’s normal and high blood pressure look like? Here’s the guidelines from the AHA:

Normal: Less than 120/80
Elevated: 120-129 /80

High: 130-139 /80-89
High Stage: 140/90 or higher

Hypertensive Crisis: 180/120 or higher

There’s a reason you get your blood pressure checked every time you go to the doctor’s office.

“Controlling blood pressure remains the most important intervention nephrologists or any care giver can provide to reduce kidney disease progression and prevent strokes and heart attacks,” says Dr. Holly Kramer, co-author of a guide to blood pressure management published in the American Journal of Kidney Disease.

Lots of factors contribute to blood pressure. And it’s possible to get a different blood pressure reading based on a long list of variables like, the position of the feet, last visit to the bathroom to urinate, stress, last exercise activity, and more. 

If you don’t know your blood pressure, ask your health care team to check it on your next office visit. Visit a pharmacy with a blood pressure station, or check it yourself at home with a blood pressure monitor.

Keeping blood pressure in check when you have Renal Disease is important. It’s also important to limit the amount of sodium, potassium, and phosphorus you consume. But that doesn’t have to be hard. Just check out the selection of Renal-Friendly meals made from fresh ingredients, pick your favorites, and let us handle the rest.