GE258
6/18/11

This is how I would explain hypertension to a 63-year-old man, whom I will call Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith, I hear that you have recently been diagnosed with hypertension and I would like to give you a little information and helpful tips to living with this disease. First off, hypertension is more commonly known as high blood pressure. It affects your cardiovascular system by forcing the blood against your artery walls throwing off your hearts natural homeostasis. More simply put, the smaller your arteries have become, due to fat and plaque buildup, the harder it is for your heart to push the blood through them, and the more tired it becomes. In order to correct your hearts natural homeostasis we need to work together to get your blood pressure back down to normal.
Homeostasis refers to your body’s feedback system, or loop. First a stimulus disrupts your homeostasis, in this case it stimulates your heart and causes your blood pressure rise because of nerves, or exertion. In normal homeostasis, the baroreceptors in the blood vessels would send a message to your brain and your brain would tell your heart to relax. In your case, the high blood pressure isn’t a sudden onset, the plaques in your arteries have been building for years, and at this point your body’s homeostasis can’t not correct the issue on its own. This is where the medication will come into play, it will help fill that gap in the homeostasis process and your body will begin to return to back to normal. Your heart is one of the most important organs in your body, so the tips I will give you may seem like a hassle, but they are very important to maintaining your health. By not making these changes there may be some severe consequences. A few small tips with a lot of impact are, trying to get down to a healthy weight, reducing your salt intake, exercising 30 minutes a few