High Blood Pressure And Dementia Relationship

The relationship between high blood pressure and dementia seems to be such a mystery.  Could it be the discovery of elevated systolic blood pressure in midlife as a significant predictor of diminished mental function in later life?  The discussion is continuing as to why these two diseases that seems to be different  are sometimes spoken simultaneously in medical sciences.

Further, why are they being researched and asked about by the medical field as well as individuals on how to outsmart these diseases?

High blood pressure is related to the pressure exerted by the blood against your blood vessels while on the other hand dementia is related to the brain functioning.  Be aware that you are at an increased risk of dementia if you have high blood pressure.

But, then how do these two different diseases are known to have a relation with each other?

What Is Dementia

The adverse effects of high blood pressure on our mental functioning have been verified in several medical studies.

Vascular dementia is primarily caused by hypertension, along with high cholesterol, and high levels of homocysteine in the blood can also contribute to this disease.

It is said that the brains of an individual with high blood pressure actually shrinks by as much as 20%.  Any minute changes to the structures of your brain, researchers has pointed out, may have serious consequences. 

On an MRI scanner the brain shows a white matter which is really the death of brain tissue due to atherosclerosis, and other problems with the brain's small arteries.

Actually the latest research has revealed the fact that uncontrolled high blood pressure as one of the main causes of dementia in senior citizens, especially among women.

As times passes the signs of dementia are unavoidable and you are unable to perform your daily every day tasks.

Adverse Effects Of High Blood Pressure And Dementia

The adverse effects of hypertension on your brain is believed to be caused by the relentless pounding on the small vessels in your brain.  Researchers states that the brain shrink as much as 20% due to this pounding, and other studies estimate the shrinkage to be much smaller.

A thirty year study done by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute states that men in their seventies who had hypertension, starting in their forties, not only had smaller brains than their healthy peers, but also had other changes associates with premature aging of the brain.

Another reason for the mental deterioration is that hypertension dramatically increases the risk of a stroke.

As there is no cure for dementia as yet, the only alternative is to manage your high blood pressure and dementia might be avoidable.  So now you know and realize the extent of damage associated with this silent killer - high blood pressure.

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