{"id":59894,"date":"2023-02-16T22:06:02","date_gmt":"2023-02-16T14:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/?post_type=health-article&#038;p=59894"},"modified":"2026-01-07T22:14:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T14:14:30","slug":"the-basics-of-high-blood-pressure","status":"publish","type":"health-article","link":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/health-articles\/the-basics-of-high-blood-pressure\/","title":{"rendered":"The Basics of High Blood Pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"59894\" class=\"elementor elementor-59894\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2ebebf4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"2ebebf4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-037773e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"037773e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.23.0 - 15-07-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>In healthcare, we talk about Primary and Secondary Prevention. Secondary Prevention is the proverbial \u201cclosing the stable door after the horse has bolted\u201d. If someone has a heart attack, they are at a high risk of another within a year. Secondary Prevention measures applied correctly can greatly improve the situation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-09e00bd elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"09e00bd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"subtopic01\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.23.0 - 15-07-2024 *\/\n.elementor-heading-title{padding:0;margin:0;line-height:1}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title[class*=elementor-size-]>a{color:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-small{font-size:15px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-medium{font-size:19px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-large{font-size:29px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xl{font-size:39px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xxl{font-size:59px}<\/style><h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The three pillars of primary prevention<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1a3f0b9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1a3f0b9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Primary Prevention is about stopping the initial event from happening in the first place. As this involves targeting a much larger section of the populace, it is a much bigger potential earner for the pharmaceutical industry. Advertising efforts reflect this. The three biggest pillars of primary prevention are smoking cessation and management of hypertension and cholesterol.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d5ababf elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"d5ababf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.23.0 - 15-07-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"834\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_1.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-59903\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_1.png 834w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_1-300x144.png 300w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_1-768x368.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 834px) 100vw, 834px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bb9b5e8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"bb9b5e8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.23.0 - 15-07-2024 *\/\n.elementor-column .elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--spacer-size)}.e-con{--container-widget-width:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer{width:var(--container-widget-width,var(--spacer-size));--align-self:var(--container-widget-align-self,initial);--flex-shrink:0}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container{height:100%;width:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer{height:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--container-widget-height,var(--spacer-size))}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty{position:relative;min-height:22px;min-width:22px}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty .elementor-widget-empty-icon,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty .elementor-widget-empty-icon{position:absolute;top:0;bottom:0;left:0;right:0;margin:auto;padding:0;width:22px;height:22px}<\/style>\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-435e8bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"435e8bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Smoking cessation is by far the most important, with benefits across almost every single organ in the body. Cholesterol treatment is a huge business, but the actual benefits are somewhat controversial in a general population. Cardiologists think everyone should be on a statin even before birth! Doctors who are aware that the heart is surrounded by a whole human being are less convinced \u2013 pointing out data that shows no overall benefits to general mortality or morbidity.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-80753c8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"80753c8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"836\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_3.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-59899\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_3.jpg 836w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_3-300x144.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_3-768x367.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 836px) 100vw, 836px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-060f703 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"060f703\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b691368 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b691368\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"subtopic02\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Blood pressure readings can fluctuate<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0f140e2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0f140e2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>When it comes to blood pressure, however, the consensus is a genuine consensus (this is surprisingly rare, even amongst real doctors!). High blood pressure is bad, and low blood pressure is good as long as it is not too low, as this can lead to fainting. The actual goal posts move around slightly as drug companies try to find studies to push the targets down, after which independent research relaxes them again. A sensible line can be drawn at &lt;150\/&lt;90 in a clinic (whitecoat) setting, and &lt;130\/&lt;80 for home readings. It is important to remember that blood pressure is a dynamic value that fluctuates according to time of day and circumstances. As a general rule, if you have different readings, use the lowest one to judge whether you have high blood pressure or not. For example, if you get readings of 150\/95, 110\/70, and 130\/100 throughout the day \u2013 your blood pressure is 110\/70. Nevertheless, a one-off reading of &gt;180\/&gt;120 is going to need attention. Otherwise, I would expect three consecutive elevated readings, spaced at least two weeks apart, before initiating treatment.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d110900 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"d110900\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-71e87e2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"71e87e2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"subtopic03\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Ironing out misconceptions about blood pressure<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6f7bc15 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"6f7bc15\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4-1024x512.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-59902\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4-1536x768.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_4.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b73a650 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"b73a650\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-37f3225 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"37f3225\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>There are a few misconceptions about blood pressure. Firstly, it does not have any direct symptoms. People especially associate it with headaches, but it is the pain and stress of the headache that is elevating the blood pressure. It is not the high blood pressure that is causing the headache. It doesn\u2019t exactly help to clarify the issue that a lot of blood pressure pills cause headaches as a side effect.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>Secondly, it is also not really an out-of-hours emergency. It usually takes over a decade to start causing problems \u2013 hence it can wait till the next clinic hours.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>Thirdly, it is not a disease per se. It is a regulatory setting in the body, wandering off course. If you have an infection, you take a week\u2019s antibiotics, then stop and the disease is gone. If you take medication for high blood pressure for a week and then stop, you get the blood pressure back! Once treatment is needed, it usually ends up being a life sentence.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1b91be6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"1b91be6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-766a327 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"766a327\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"subtopic04\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">High blood pressure leads to other health issues<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b1f0892 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b1f0892\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Persistent elevated blood pressure causes a multitude of health issues \u2013 mostly simply by putting everything under more strain. For example, the heart has to work 50% harder to pump circulation around a 150\/100 system than around a 100\/70 system one. It stands to reason that it would wear out 50% faster. Blood vessels are also under more strain, with big vessels forming aneurysms, and small vessels leaking, creating issues in the eyes and kidneys.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-debdd82 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"debdd82\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"836\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_5.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-59901\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_5.jpg 836w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_5-300x144.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_5-768x367.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 836px) 100vw, 836px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-25d69b4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"25d69b4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-75e1fff elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"75e1fff\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>As is usually the case, treatment can be both non-pharmacological and pharmacological. Non-pharmacological measures are easy to remember.<\/p><p><strong>1. Don\u2019t add salt to your food<\/strong><\/p><p>Cooking with salt in moderation is fine but pouring a salt cellar\u2019s worth of salt over your smokey bacon is not! This is worth about 10mm Hg. \u00a0<\/p><p><strong>2. Don\u2019t drink heavily!<\/strong><\/p><p>A glass of wine a day is good, but a bottle of wine a day \u2013 not so much! This is worth 10-60mm Hg. \u00a0<\/p><p>Exercising, losing weight, stopping smoking, meditating and the like, are all highly commendable, but will not directly lower blood pressure. They may ameliorate its bad effects, however.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-be244c3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"be244c3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-74e6746 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"74e6746\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"subtopic05\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Drugs and tests for high blood pressure<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57f7b9c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"57f7b9c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Pharmacological treatments abound &#8211; I can think of seven anti-hypertensive drug classes off the top of my head (don\u2019t test me on this!). There are also plenty of contributions from the alternative brigade, though where they have a genuine effect on blood pressure, it is usually because they are herbal versions of older and obsolete diuretics. The market is so crowded that antihypertensives are often marketed more for their side effects, than for lowering blood pressure. Viagra and Regaine are examples of this.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fdead66 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"fdead66\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"836\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_6.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-59900\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_6.jpg 836w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_6-300x144.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/health-article_high-blood_6-768x367.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 836px) 100vw, 836px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-63d860c elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"63d860c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a14b2c2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a14b2c2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>There is also a surprising Placebo contribution. New drugs must undergo a placebo controlled, double blind trial. It is not unusual for the placebo arm to match the real drug for efficacy in the beginning. It is only as the study wears on that the placebo loses its potency and the real drug starts to gain ground.<br \/>*Side note: Never trust a study that ceases after only a month!<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>The old school drugs are prone to causing a lot of side effects. For example, Beta blockers might improve your ability at pool or darts but will also prevent you from enjoying the fruits of victory. The newer classes are much better in this respect. Both efficacy and side-effects can vary widely across individuals, and it is not a case of one size fits all. Starting antihypertensives is best done via a Primary Care Physician and will probably take a few months to get right. Once stabilized, it is still worth reviewing (including blood tests) every six to nine months.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-217b9a4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"217b9a4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-390626b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"390626b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Dr Julian Martin Chadwick &#8211; Internal Medicine Physician<br \/>Columbia Asia Hospital &#8211; Saigon<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-44d4b85 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"44d4b85\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In healthcare, we talk about Primary and Secondary Prevention. Secondary Prevention is the proverbial \u201cclosing the stable door after the horse has bolted\u201d. If someone has a heart attack, they are at a high risk of another within a year. Secondary Prevention measures applied correctly can greatly improve the situation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":59898,"template":"","topic":[156],"language":[137],"class_list":["post-59894","health-article","type-health-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","topic-internal-medicine","language-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/health-article\/59894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/health-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/health-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/health-article\/59894\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59971,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/health-article\/59894\/revisions\/59971"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=59894"},{"taxonomy":"language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stagingsea.columbiaasia.com\/vietnam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/language?post=59894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}