Nearly half of Americans suffer from a deadly medical condition that puts them at risk for heart attacks, strokes and dementia.
A new CDC report found that 47.7 percent of adults ages 18 and older had hypertension or high blood pressure between 2020 and 2023, which is about the same prevalence in the 2017-2020 CDC report.
Additionally, about four in 10 adults don’t even know they have the condition, the CDC said, meaning they are not receiving treatment and therefore are at much higher risk for deadly complications.
High blood pressure is a leading or contributing factor in more than 685,000 deaths each year in the US alone.
The findings mean the government is on track to miss its goal of reducing the prevalence of hypertension to 41 percent by 2030.
Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). A healthy blood pressure for most adults is 90 to 120/60 to 80 mm Hg (file image)
Women saw a big increase, going from 40 percent in the previous report to 45 percent in this year’s report.
People ages 18 to 39 had a prevalence of 23 percent. The prevalence was about 53 percent in people ages 40 to 59 and 72 percent in Americans ages 60 and older.
While prevalence decreased slightly in older age groups, younger age groups experienced a slight increase.
This slight increase could be a contributing factor to the increase in strokes and cardiac events among young people.
Strokes in Americans under age 45 have increased nearly 15 percent since 2011, according to a separate CDC report. The agency attributed the increase in part to a rise in high blood pressure, but also to a rise in obesity and drug addiction nationwide.
The Cleveland Clinic lists recreational drug use, an unhealthy diet, and a sedentary lifestyle as risk factors for hypertension.
However, healthy and active people are not immune to hypertension.
Lebron James’ basketball star son Bronny James suffered cardiac arrest while playing basketball in 2023
Hall of Fame Boston Celtics basketball player Reggie Lewis suffered cardiac arrest while playing basketball in 1993 and died at just 27 years old.
The CDC’s most recent report found that among people with hypertension, 59 percent knew they had the condition and about half were taking medications to lower their blood pressure.
However, this varied widely between age groups. Only 27 percent of people ages 18 to 39 were aware that they had hypertension, compared with 74 percent of people ages 60 and older who were aware of their condition.
Because of this, the treatment also varied. Only 14 percent of the youngest were treating their hypertension compared to 69 percent of the oldest.
However, despite the level of treatment, only 21 percent of all people had their blood pressure controlled at a healthy level.
The graph above shows the change in the prevalence of hypertension among all American adults, as well as men and women, from 1999 to 2023.
The map above shows the prevalence of hypertension in US counties.
There were no significant changes in the percentage of people who knew, were being treated for, or managed their hypertension observed in the 2017-2021 survey and the 2021-2023 survey.
Normally, hypertension causes no symptoms, which is why doctors call it a “silent killer,” according to the Cleveland Clinic, but when blood pressure is above 180/120 mmHg, a person may experience headaches, heart palpitations and nosebleeds.
Blood pressure at this level is considered a “hypertensive crisis” and requires immediate medical attention.
According to the CDC, high blood pressure was the leading cause of approximately 685,900 deaths in the US in 2022.
Over time, high blood pressure can weaken the heart and blood vessels, which can cause cardiovascular disease, including sudden cardiac arrest, and increase the risk of stroke and dementia.
To treat hypertension, doctors will recommend lifestyle changes, such as reaching and maintaining a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet, reducing salt intake, limiting alcohol, exercising, and making sure you get enough potassium, a mineral and electrolyte involved in important body processes. .