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Hypertension affects one in six Mumbaikars
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Mumbai: A silent killer stalks every sixth Mumbaikar. Known as hypertension, the
almost-no-symptom disease is, in fact, among the most common condition that most
40-yearolds visit their doctor with, say city doctors.
The Indian affinity for salt is a major trigger for the disease, says the
Hypertension Society of India.
Hypertension, basically a racing blood pressure condition, has the potential to
affect people’s heart, the nervous system, kidneys and retina. “What is
worse is that people are not likely to realise that they have hypertension for
at least a decade until it manifests itself as a reason for an organ
failure,’’ says heart specialist Dr Sudhir Vaishnav who is attached to Asian
Heart Hospital, Bandra Kurla Complex.
While he sees 15 new patients with hypertension every week, general physician Dr
Suhas Pingle has discovered that at least a fifth of his patients have
hypertension. “People never come to me saying that they have hypertension. It
is only when I do a blood pressure check that I discover they have
hypertension,’’ he says.
According to Hypertension Society of India’s vice president Dr Shashank Joshi,
“Our studies have revealed that every sixth Mumbaikar suffers from
hypertension.’’ Moreover, Indians suffer from salt-sensitive blood pressure.
“The Indian gene reveals an affinity for salt,’’ he adds.
In fact, the Western India Diabetes Survey has also found that 66% of the
diabetes patients who responded to the survey also had hypertension. “When
diabetes and hypertension occur together, we call it the deadly duo,’’ says
a doctor.
Is stress a reason for the galloping rise in hypertension cases in the city?
Stress apparently is only a trigger as only people with a genetic predisposition
can develop the condition. Dr S Menon of S L Raheja Hospital, Mahim, says that
as cardiovascular problems are more in men who are over 50 years and in
post-menopausal women, urban metros with their inadequate resources for food,
training and exercise incidence at earlier ages and progression to severe stage
come more early than anticipated. So, while the American guidelines suggest that
90% of the people over 55 years of age are likely to suffer from high blood
pressure at some stage of their life, the age could be lower in Indian metros
like Mumbai.
However, what doctors highlight is that hypertension is an easily preventable
stage. “There is poor consciousness of what are good health practices,’’
says Dr Menon. “People don’t give priority to their cardio-vascular health,
they lead sedentary lives with no concept of proper nutrition or fitness
regimen.’’
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