One in four have high blood pressure, most don’t know

By Evie Andreou

One in four adults in Cyprus suffers from hypertension, while one in three of them are not aware of their condition health minister Philippos Patsalis said on Tuesday, in a message to address World Hypertension Day.

Patsalis stressed the importance of prevention and of timely diagnosis since high blood pressure – hypertension – is “a silent killer” due to lack of symptoms.

“It is very important to know how high our blood pressure is since due to no symptoms it is more dangerous when not monitored,” said Dr Petros Agathangelou, head of the Cyprus Medical Association.

According to the World Health Organisation, Agathangelou said, around one billion people worldwide, meaning 20 per cent of the world’s adult population, suffer from hypertension, and it is responsible for six per cent of deaths worldwide.

“It was proven to be responsible for 60 per cent of vascular episodes and for 40 per cent of myocardial infarctions (heart attacks),” he said.

The biggest threats to personal health are not germs and viruses but ignorance, complacency and indifference, Agathangelou said, adding that many diseases, including hypertension, are created due to bad diet choices, lack of exercise and bad social behaviours.

The head of the Cardiology Association Dr Loizos Antoniades said hypertension, especially in tandem with obesity, diabetes and hyperglycaemia leads to heart episodes.

He added that in many cases, high blood pressure can be treated without any medication but with a change in lifestyle to include healthy eating habits, cutting out salt, reducing alcohol consumption and exercising.

Specialised treatment is offered to inpatients at hypertension clinics where they are monitored round the clock to assess the possibility of heart conditions, Patsalis said.

On Friday, members of the public can have their blood pressure taken and be informed by cardiologists on the consequences of high blood pressure at the Mall of Cyprus in Nicosia, My Mall in Limassol, and Kings Avenue Mall in Paphos between 4pm and 6pm.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.