High Blood Pressure (Hypertension)

Risk factors for high blood pressure include:

• A family history of high blood pressure.
• Aging.
• Eating a lot of sodium (salt).
• Drinking more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for men or more than 1 alcohol drink a day for women.
• Being overweight or obese.
• Lack of exercise or physical activity.
• High cholesterol.
• Race. African Americans are more likely to develop high blood pressure, often have more severe high blood pressure, and are more likely to develop the condition at an earlier age than others. Why they are at greater risk is not known.

Other possible risk factors include:

• Low intake of potassium, magnesium, and calcium.
• Sleep apnea and sleep-disordered breathing.
• Long-term use of pain medicines like NSAIDs—for example, naproxen (such as Aleve) or ibuprofen (such as Motrin or Advil)—or COX-2 inhibitors, such as celecoxib (Celebrex). Aspirin does not increase your risk for developing high blood pressure.

People who have high blood pressure along with any of the following risk factors are at increased risk for developing complications, such as coronary artery disease, heart attack, abnormal heartbeat, stroke, kidney failure, and eye damage (retinopathy). These risk factors are:

• Cigarette smoking.
• High cholesterol or low HDL ("good") cholesterol.
• Diabetes.
• One or more of your close relatives have or had early coronary artery disease.
• Being a male.
• Being an African American.
• Being overweight.
• Lack of exercise.