High Blood Pressure Headache - Why Headache is not a Reliable Symptom for Hypertension

The role of the heart is to pump blood around the body. In doing this, it needs to apply pressure to accomplish the task. The force needed to push the blood is called blood pressure, translated by the level of blood pumped and the number of pumping, as affected by the obstructions the force has to overcome.

If the heart is prevented from circulating all the blood throughout the body, blood pressure elevates. Headache however, is not an immediate effect because it may or may not occur if such an irregularity in blood circulation takes place.

Accordingly, headache as a symptom of high blood pressure happens if a person is coming from a sedentary position of lying down for a number of hours, usually in the morning. The transition from lack of physical activity to an active stance causes the blood to surge forward thereby aggravating the condition of the sufferer. Often, this will be accompanied by a headache.

However, a number of people do not manifest any symptoms and will seek medical intervention only if the condition is already very severe. This is due to the fact that high blood pressure is slow in its progression but constant in producing damages to the blood vessels, heart and other organs of the body that will lead to a serious medical problem.

In an article published by the American Heart Association in the Internet last June 19, 2008, it cited a certain study, which disclosed that high blood pressure as a disorder does not cause headaches. This pronouncement was based on the findings that during times of having high blood pressure, the blood vessels become stiff causing the nerve endings to function improperly.

The resulting impairment in nerve endings therefore makes it incapable of sending out pain signals to the brain, thus disqualifying headache as an important symptom of high blood pressure.

This is why high blood pressure even in its critical level of 180/110 mmHg is not always accompanied by a headache. It is in itself a symptom of an imminent stroke attack without necessarily bringing forth headache. Moreover, the following are the conditions to watch out for in case a person’s blood pressure continues to rise:

1. One side of the body experiences a swift numbing or weakness on the face, arm or leg.

2. A person experiences difficulty in speaking and feels confused or disoriented.

3. A person’s vision becomes blurred and an eye or both eyes have trouble in focusing at an image.

4. A person loses his sense of balance and coordination unable to walk out of dizziness.

High blood pressure accompanied by one or any more of the above-enumerated symptoms is an indication of a possible stroke attack that requires an emergency medical treatment.

Without waiting for other symptoms to appear, raised blood pressure calls for a diet check and lifestyle change. The underlying causes can be reversed if restrictions in sodium, calories, and fat intakes will be implemented.

In addition, known and effective herbal medicines can provide relief by relaxing the arterial blood vessels and arresting the production of stress hormones that interferes in proper blood circulation.

High blood pressure that is left untreated can lead to a heart attack or stroke along with other probable complications like brain damage, kidney failure, loss of vision and at worst heart failure. Persons with known history of hypertension in the family should always have their blood pressures checked as a preventive measure in aggravating any increases in blood pressure levels.