New Blood Pressure Guidelines Mean Yours Might Be Too High Now

New Blood Pressure Guidelines Mean Yours Might Be Too High Now

Blood pressure of 120/80 or above is considered elevated; 130/80 to 139/89 is now considered Stage 1 hypertension and anything 140/90 or above will be considered stage 2 hypertension. If blood pressure reaches 180/120 or higher — and either number in the blood pressure reading counts — people will be classified as in hypertensive crisis with need for immediate treatment or hospitalization.

Previously, people were not considered to have high blood pressure until the top reading hit 140. “Normal hasn’t changed. We are still saying that it is great and it is normal to have a systolic blood pressure reading below 120 and a diastolic reading under 80,” Whelton said.

If you peel back this onion, trust that big pharma bank rolled the studies. They want more people on medicine and/or higher dosages. All about profits, not the health and well-being of John Q. Public.

Exactly right! I'm amazed that we humans have managed to get this far because at least three times each week I see the next, new wonder drug (snake oil) they're promoting on tv. Cures for everything except the stuff that really matters: cancer, common cold, a pill to fix stupid, etc.

FMCSA regulations are usually a little while behind this sort of stuff, in my recollection? But I'm sure there will be new guidelines at some point.

Also, while they're saying lower is better there's also a very real thing such as too low, so what they're doing is effectively narrowing the window of "normal"?

Also, while they're saying lower is better there's also a very real thing such as too low, so what they're doing is effectively narrowing the window of "normal"?

Having a blood pressure reading that's too low means something is definitely wrong with you. In other words, there's no such thing as being so healthy that your blood pressure is now too low. But yeah, I guess you could say they're narrowing the window.

This is one of those circumstances where someone has to decide, "How healthy do you have to be to be considered healthy?" Do you have to be an Olympic athlete? Do you have to be not dead? Someone has to put a number on it.

I had a childhood friend drop dead of a heart attack at 41 years old while mowing his lawn. I think everyone has heard stories like this.

In the new guidelines, Stage 1 is defined as: systolic between 130-139 or diastolic between 80-89.

Medication is recommended only, "if a patient has already had a cardiovascular event such as a heart attack or stroke, or is at high risk of heart attack or stroke based on age, the presence of diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease or calculation of atherosclerotic risk (using the same risk calculator used in evaluating high cholesterol)."

I'd give it 50/50 if the FMCSA were to change their rules based on this change by the ACA/AHA. That is, if your BP does not cross the threshold for management, then you need not have it managed even if it's in elevated (systolic between 120-129 and diastolic less than 80), or Stage 1 above. I'm not saying it's nothing, just saying that it most likely won't change things in the near term.

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