Did you know hypertension is the number one risk factor for death globally? Prevalent in 1 billion people, this silent killer reportedly has genetic roots and can run in families.
Genes Affect The Risk Of Various Chronic Conditions Like Diabetes, Hypertension, and Heart Diseases.
What Is High Blood Pressure?
In our bodies, blood flows through pipes called blood vessels, during which they exert a certain force on the inner walls of the vessels.
This force is called blood pressure.
Due to certain factors, blood can sometimes exert additional stress on the blood vessels and heart muscles, increasing the risk for stroke, kidney failure, and heart disease.
Is High Blood Pressure Genetic?
Genetics does play a role in high blood pressure.
In fact, studies have identified over 100 genetic changes associated with high blood pressure.
This means that carrying a certain set of genetic variants can increase your risk for this condition.
Family history also plays a role in influencing this risk.
If either or both of your parents (or other first-degree family members) have high blood pressure, you are more likely to develop the condition.
This risk further increases if the age of onset in your parents is before 55 years.
There Are Other Risk Factors Too
Other than genetics, certain lifestyle and environmental factors can influence the risk of high blood pressure.
Some of them are:
- Age
- Body weight
- Physical activity
- Diet
- Ethnicity
- Other health conditions
Lowering Your Blood Pressure
There are simple yet effective tips that can be followed to lower blood pressure.
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Following a low-sodium diet
- Controlling/quitting smoking
- Exercising regularly
- Monitoring your blood cholesterol levels
- Adopting meditation
Did You Know?
High blood pressure is more common among African Americans than most other ethnicities.
Explore Your DNA Raw Data
Curious about your high blood pressure genes? Here’s how you can learn about it in 3 simple steps:
- Download your raw data file from 23andMe, Ancestry DNA, or any other ancestry company. If you don’t have one, you can get a 23andMe kit from here.
- Buy the Gene Health Report (or Xcode Life Premium Pack for a 70% discount)
- Upload your raw data and get your results in 24 hours.
