7 ways high blood pressure affects your health

There’s stroke, sleep apnea, eye problems and sexual dysfunction—all linked to high blood pressure. But there are a few more pressures your blood pressure could put your health under.

Artery. Your artery should be sturdy, springy and smooth to move oxygen in blood easily from your lungs and heart to your organs and other tissues.

High blood pressure, or HBP, pushes too hard on your artery walls. This damages the inside and causes fat, or “plaque,” to collect. That plaque makes your arteries more stiff and narrow, so they can’t do their job as well.

Aneurysm. Sometimes pressure pushes out a section of an artery wall and weakens it. If it breaks, it can bleed into your body. This can happen anywhere but is more common in the blood vessel that runs down the middle of your body.

Bone loss. HBP may cause your body to try to get rid of too much calcium. It goes through the urine. But the loss of the mineral that’s important to strong bones leads to breaks or fractures.

Heart attack. When plaque builds up, clumps of it can come loose. When clumps completely block an artery to the heart, starving the heart of nutrients and oxygen. This attack on the heart can hurt or destroy it.

You usually feel pressure or pain in your chest, but sometimes in your arm, neck, or jaw too. It might be hard to breathe, and you could be dizzy or nauseated.

Heart failure. High blood pressure can cause your arteries to narrow. Over time, that can make your heart work harder and get weaker. Eventually, it gets so weak that it can’t supply enough blood to the rest of the body. This is heart failure.

Enlarged heart. This is not the same as having a “big heart”. As the heart works harder, the muscle thickens and the entire organ gets larger. The bigger it gets, the less able it is to perform. Your tissues might not get the oxygen and nutrients they need.

Kidney failure. HBP is the second-leading cause of kidney failure. It narrows and hardens the blood vessels your kidneys use to help get rid of waste and extra fluid. That keeps special filters, called nephrons, from getting enough blood and nutrients. That can eventually shut down your kidneys for good.