Low blood pressure: values, symptoms and treatment

What is low blood pressure?

Low blood pressure (hypotension) refers to blood pressure values ​​below 100/110 to 60 mmHg (millimeters of mercury). Many people in Germany are affected, especially young, slim women. The phenomenon can cause discomfort, but it doesn't have to. Typical symptoms are fatigue, dizziness and headache. Unlike high blood pressure, low blood pressure is not considered a disease.

What blood pressure is normal?

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines a blood pressure of 120 to 80 mmHg than normal. In addition to the low blood pressure as a deviation, there is also the too high blood pressure. This so-called hypertension is referred to as persistent values ​​of over 140 to 90 mmHg.

How does low blood pressure develop?

The blood pressure refers to the pressure inside the large arteries that lead away from the heart. Whether it is high or low essentially depends on three factors:

  • Elasticity and resistance of the vessel walls
  • Heart rate
  • Power of the heart

Normally, the body regulates the blood pressure itself: there are tiny pressure measuring bodies in the carotid arteries that check the blood pressure and send appropriate signals to the brain. If the pressure is too low, the brain orders the vessels to narrow in order to increase it again.

There are these causes of low blood pressure

Have the complaints different causes, which go back to the respective form:

  • Primary hypotension: This form usually occurs without a recognizable cause, but experts assume that the tendency to it can be inherited. Primary hypotension is the most common form.
  • Secondary hypotension: Here the low blood pressure occurs as a result of a disease, including, for example, an underactive thyroid, heart diseases such as heart failure, salt deficiency and venous insufficiency. Blood pressure can also drop due to a lack of fluids or special medication.
  • Orthostatic hypotension: Here, you get low blood pressure if you get up too quickly – this causes the blood in your legs to sink, which the body cannot balance quickly enough. The causes can be, for example, secondary hypotension or a disorder of the autonomic nervous system that is triggered by diabetes.

Symptoms: What are the symptoms of low blood pressure?

Some sufferers feel no symptoms from low blood pressure. Those who have symptoms usually suffer from:

Treating low blood pressure: what helps?

Especially When getting up in the morning, those affected often have to deal with complaints. These home remedies help against low blood pressure:

  • Exercise, for example endurance sports like swimming
  • Alternating showers
  • Coffee, but also black and green tea
  • Compression stockings
  • Rather, several small meals a day rather than three large ones
  • Medications (are prescribed by the doctor, but only in a few cases because of side effects)

You don't know if your blood pressure is normal? Here we tell you how to measure your blood pressure.

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