Preventing High Blood Pressure: Other Medical Conditions

If you have prehypertension or diabetes, you can take steps to lower your risk for high blood pressure.

Control Blood Pressure

Measuring your blood pressure is an important step toward keeping a healthy blood pressure. Because high blood pressure and prehypertension often have no symptoms, checking your blood pressure is the only way to know for sure whether it is too high.

If you learn that you have prehypertension or high blood pressure, you should take steps to control your blood pressure to lower your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Manage Diabetes

Most people with diabetes—about 6 out of 10—also have high blood pressure.¹ If your health care provider thinks you have symptoms of diabetes, he or she may recommend that you get tested.

If you have diabetes, monitor your blood sugar levels carefully. Talk with your health care team about treatment options. Your doctor may recommend certain lifestyle changes to help keep your blood sugar under good control—those actions will help reduce your risk for high blood pressure.

Take Your Medicine

If you take medication to treat high blood pressure or diabetes, follow your doctor’s instructions carefully. Always ask questions if you do not understand something. Never stop taking your medication without talking to your doctor or pharmacist.

Talk with Your Health Care Team

You and your health care team can work together to prevent or treat the medical conditions that lead to high blood pressure. Discuss your treatment plan regularly, and bring a list of questions to your appointments.

Reference

1. National High Blood Pressure Education Program. The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure [PDF-223K]. Bethesda, MD: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; 2003.