The High End of the Normal Range for Blood Pressure Correlates with Accelerated Brain Aging

Data on hypertension and its effects on health and mortality has in recent years indicated that even modest increases above optimal blood pressure, increases that are not considered hypertension, and even fall within what is thought of as the normal healthy range for blood pressure, nonetheless cause an accelerated pace of damage and dysfunction over the course of later life. Raised blood pressure leads to pressure damage to sensitive tissues in the body and brain, as well as accelerating the progression of atherosclerosis. It appears that there is no sudden threshold above which these problems arise, but it is instead the case that the harms scale by the degree to which blood pressure is raised above the optimal level. People with elevated blood pressure that falls within the normal recommended range are at risk of accelerated brain ageing, according to new research. If we maintain optimal blood pressure our brains will remain younger and healthier as we age. "It's important we introduce lifestyle and diet changes early on in life to prevent our blood pressure from rising too much, rather than waiting for it to become a problem. Compared to a person with a high blood pressure of 135/85, someone with an optimal reading of 110/70 was found to have a brain age that appears more than six months younger by the time they reach middle age." Researchers examined more than 2,000 brain scans of 686 healthy individuals aged 44 to 76. The blood pressure of the participa...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs