Heart Health
The race to high blood pressure
People with prehypertension (systolic blood pressure from 120 to 139 or diastolic pressure from 80 to 89) go on to develop full-blown high blood pressure more often than people with normal blood pressure. Race seems to influence the pace of that progression.
In a study of nearly 19,000 people — about 30% black and 70% white — blacks progressed from prehypertension to truly high blood pressure a full year sooner than whites who followed that same path (Hypertension, published online Sept. 12, 2011).
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