What your blood pressure numbers mean

After you have your blood pressure taken, you want to know what those numbers mean. Here is what you should know about what's normal and what's not.

• Normal blood pressure: Systolic reading less than 120 and diastolic pressure less than 80. Give yourself a congratulatory pat on the back — but don't rest on your laurels. Your lifetime risk of developing hypertension is still 90 percent. Follow the DASH-Plus Plan to ensure that your blood pressure remains normal.
• Pre-hypertension: Systolic blood pressure 120 to 139 or diastolic pressure 80 to 89. This category is a warning sign to get your act together before it's too late. You are at increased risk of progressing to full-blown hypertension. So, yes, you should be afraid. Those in the 130/80 to 139/89 range are twice as likely to develop hypertension as those with lower readings.
• Stage 1 hypertension: Systolic blood pressure 140 to 159 or diastolic pressure 90 to 99. In this stage you may require medication, although aggressive lifestyle changes may help you avoid having to take prescription drugs.
• Stage 2 hypertension: Systolic reading 160 or higher or diastolic reading 100 or higher. In this stage you can expect to be placed on medication and counselled to make significant lifestyle adjustments.

Experts say you should maintain a blood pressure below 130/80 for optimal health.

• In other words, their threshold for taking action against high blood pressure is lower than that for people without diabetes or kidney disease.

You may have what's called isolated systolic hypertension (ISH), in which your systolic blood pressure remains high while your diastolic pressure is normal.

• At one time, doctors didn't even treat this condition, believing it was a normal part of aging. Now we know differently.
• Treating ISH with low-dose (inexpensive) diuretic drugs reduces the incidence of stroke and non-fatal heart attack.

A normal pulse pressure (the difference between your systolic and diastolic blood pressure) is 30 to 40 mmHg. More or less than that is considered problematic.

• An important note: If your systolic and diastolic pressures fall into different categories, your doctor will rate your blood pressure by the highest category. For example, 150/85 is classified as stage 1 hypertension, not pre-hypertension.

Some people's pressure increases because they are at the doctor's office. If your doctor believes that better monitoring is important, consider using a blood pressure monitor to take periodic readings, collecting them for your doctor to evaluate.

• People with high blood pressure should consider buying an easy-to-use home blood pressure monitor and use it frequently to monitor their pressure.
• A good time to check your blood pressure is about an hour after you wake up.
• Although blood pressure is typically highest in the morning, one major study found that those with the highest difference between their systolic pressure's lowest value at night and the highest one in the morning were most likely to have a stroke.
• That risk increased three-fold with a "high" morning surge of at least a 55-point difference.
• If you have systolic values in the morning that are much higher than other times in the day, give your doctor a call. Your blood pressure medication may need to be adjusted for better control.

This guide should help you understand what your blood pressure numbers mean. Visit your doctor with any additional questions and further clarification.