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Show May is high blood pressure month May is National High Blood Pressure Month. As part of a nationwide focus on high blood pressure, the Uintah Basin Health District is sponsoring blood pressure screening clinics in several locations throughout the county. "We'd like to invite everyone in Uintah County to attend one of them," said Rand Webb, county health director. "Everyone of us probably knows someone so-meone who has high blood pressure because it is such a common condition. And when we help people who have high blood pressure to keep it under control, we are helping them to reduce risk of early death or disability." Any business or organization desiring blood pressure screening of their employees or members may call the health department at 789-1264 and make an appointment with the county health nurses to do this. Even with local and national attention, atten-tion, three-fourths of the American public do not know some of the important impor-tant facts about high blood pressure and efforts to control it. In order to increase in-crease support of needed high blood pressure control services, the Uintah Basin Health District released these reminders. 1. High blood pressure increases the risk of premature illness or death from coronary heart disease, strokes, and heart and kidney failure. 2. Even people who were ever told that their blood pressure is just "a little higher than normal" should visit their doctor and have their blood pressure checked. The findings of a recent study conducted by the National Institute; of Health showed that even people with "borderline" high blood pressuic received benefits from treatment thai helped to bring their pressures back in to the normal range. 3. There is no cure for high blood pressure, but it can be controlled. 4. To control high blood pressure, doctors doc-tors usually prescribe medication. The medicine must be taken every day. 5. Doctors often tell people who have high blood pressure to make changes i" their diet. They ask them to lose weighl . cut down on salt, and exercise more For some people with high blood pressure, losing weight, cutting down on salt, and exercising more is enough to bring their blood pressure back In normal. Other people have to take thf-medicine thf-medicine every day PLUS make changes in their diet. If you have higl; blood pressure, do everything the doc tor advises so you can keep your bloo-l pressure under control. 6. High blood pressure can affect anyone. Some people think that only tense or anxious people have high blooii pressure, while relaxed and calm people peo-ple have low or normal blood pressure. This isn't true. Anyone can have hig'i blood pressure. 7. The community high blood pressure control program is helping t prevent illness and to save lives in Vei nal. The program staff need your conti nuing support. For more information on high blood pressure, or on how to help support local high blood pressure control con-trol efforts, contact the Uintah ! isi; District Health Department at. 7S"; :. ,. |