Hypertension is very common, and I believe many people have heard of it. Once you find out that your blood pressure is elevated one day, you will inevitably worry and wonder whether you have hypertension, and once your blood pressure is confirmed to be elevated after several tests, you will worry about whether you need to take medication for life, and whether there is dependence on antihypertensive drugs and side effects. This article provides brief answers to the most important questions for patients with hypertension who are first diagnosed. 1.Knowing blood pressure People’s blood pressure is changing all the time, it may be high for a while and normal for a while, how to define it? First of all, let’s look at the definition and concept of hypertension: blood pressure ≥ 140/90 mmHg on three different days is diagnosed as hypertension. In other words, the blood pressure must be measured several times to be high before the doctor will give the diagnosis of hypertension. Second, one should also understand the definition and concept of healthy blood pressure: an office blood pressure reading of <120/80 mmHg is defined as healthy blood pressure. What is the range between normal blood pressure and hypertension? Our country is called "normal high value", some countries are simply called "pre-hypertension". 2.Do I need to use hypertension medication for life once I start taking it? When hypertension is detected, some people are hesitant and even worried about whether to start taking antihypertensive medication. Generally speaking, for mild hypertension found for the first time, if you are not too old (less than 60 years old) and do not have risk factors such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, atherosclerosis, etc., you can first see if there is any room for lifestyle adjustments (e.g. low salt diet, regular exercise, weight control, etc.). Of course, for taking antihypertensive drugs, there is no need to worry too much. Most of the blood pressure can be controlled within the ideal range during the medication period, and will slowly return to the basal level after stopping the medication. There is no such thing as "dependence" on antihypertensive drugs. However, because blood pressure levels tend to increase with age and are associated with weight and mood, sometimes after several years of taking the medication, the basal blood pressure may already be higher than the original level. Moreover, hypertension is a lifelong disease, and the ultimate goal of blood pressure control is to reduce the complications caused by long-term elevated blood pressure. Long-term treatment is also a matter of course. 3, dietary habits and hypertension Many studies have shown that a high salt diet is closely related to hypertension. In general, an average increase in dietary sodium intake of 2 grams per day is associated with an increase in systolic and diastolic blood pressure of 2.0 mmHg and 1.2 mmHg, respectively, and the opposite effect of a high-salt diet is that a diet containing sufficient potassium is beneficial to blood pressure, while a low-potassium diet is detrimental to blood pressure, and eating foods rich in potassium such as bananas can help lower blood pressure. For people above middle age, some experience shows that moderate alcohol consumption helps prevent atherosclerosis, while heavy alcohol consumption is one of the causes of hypertension. If you drink an average of >3 standard glasses of alcohol per day (1 standard glass is equivalent to 12 grams of alcohol, about 360 grams of beer, or 100 grams of wine, or 30 grams of liquor), your systolic and diastolic blood pressure will increase by an average of 3.5 mmHg and 2.1 mmHg respectively. 4.What are the methods of blood pressure measurement? At present, there are three main methods: (1) In-office blood pressure is measured by health care professionals in the office according to a uniform standard, and is currently the standard method for assessing blood pressure levels and clinically diagnosing hypertension. (2) Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, on the other hand, is usually done by an automated blood pressure measurement instrument, which measures more often, has no measurer error, avoids the white coat effect, and can measure blood pressure during sleep at night. Thus, both more accurate blood pressure measurements and assessment of short term blood pressure variability and circadian rhythms are possible. (3) Home blood pressure monitoring is usually done by the person being measured, which is then also referred to as self-testing blood pressure or home-based self-testing blood pressure. However, it can also be done with the assistance of family members. The white coat effect can also be avoided because the measurement is performed in a familiar home environment. Home blood pressure monitoring can also be used to assess the long-term variability of blood pressure or the effect of antihypertensive therapy over days, weeks or even months or years. 5, the goal of antihypertensive treatment It is best to gradually lower the blood pressure to the target as long as it can be tolerated. In general, blood pressure control at less than 140/90 mmHg is ideal. For elderly people with low diastolic blood pressure and particularly large pulse pressure difference, a blood pressure of less than 150/90mmHg is sufficient. If tolerated, it is advisable to lower it even more. However, if you have severe coronary artery disease, it is best to avoid diastolic blood pressure below 70mmHg. When hypertension is combined with heart failure, chronic renal insufficiency and diabetes, it is most appropriate to control blood pressure below 130/80mmHg.