• UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine
CORE Kidney

CORE Kidney Program

CORE Kidney
  • About Us
    • Director's Welcome
    • In the News
    • Photo Gallery
  • Clinical Programs
    • About the Clinical Research Program
    • Alport Syndrome
    • Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
    • Diabetic Kidney Disease
    • ESRD | Dialysis
    • Fabry's Disease
    • Glomerulonephritis Program
    • Hypertension
    • Kidney Stone Program
    • Living Kidney Donor
    • Music Program
    • OncoNephrology (Kidney Disease in Cancer Patients)
    • PKD Center
    • Peritoneal Dialysis (PD)
    • Transplant Research and Education Center
    • Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)
  • Educational Presentations
  • Outreach
    • Green Ribbon Spotlights
    • Upcoming Events
    • UCLA Health CORE Virtual Kidney Patient Conference
    • UKEEP
  • Our Expert Team
    • Nephrology
    • Bruin Beans
    • Cardiology
    • Circle of CORE Ambassadors
    • Clinical Fellows
    • Endocrinology
    • Gastroenterology
    • General Surgeon
    • Genetics
    • Hematology
    • Hepatology
    • Pediatrics
    • Post-Doc Fellows
    • Primary Care Physicians/Internal Medicine
    • Psychologist
    • Radiology (Interventional)
    • Transplant
    • Urology
  • COVID-19
    • General Information
    • How COVID-19 Affects CKD Patients
    • What You Can Do
  • Make a Gift
    • Monetary Donations and Philanthropy
    • Volunteer Your Time
    • Register to be an Organ Donor
    • Become a Living Organ Donor
  • Patient Resources
    • Conditions Treated
    • Our Locations
    • Make an Appointment
    • Education
    • Patient Stories
    • Ask the Experts
    • Support Groups
    • Other Resources
  • UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine

CORE Kidney Program

Patient Resources

Patient Resources

Patient Resources

  • Conditions Treated
  • Our Locations
  • Make an Appointment
  • Education
    • Kidney Acronyms & Medical Terms
    • Kidney Physiology
    • Kidney Preventative Care
    • Tests for Kidney Disease
    • The Kidneys & Aging
    • Acidosis
    • Acute Kidney Injury (AKI)
    • Alport Syndrome
    • Anemia & Kidney Disease
    • Bone Disease
    • Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
    • Complement Disorders
    • Diabetes and Kidney Disease
    • Dialysis- Modalities
    • Electrolytes
      • Disorders of Sodium Balance
      • Disorders of Potassium Balance
      • Disorders of Calcium Balance
      • Disorders of Phosphate Balance
    • End Stage Kidney Disease
    • Exercise
    • Fabry's Disease
    • Glomerulonephritis
    • Heart Disease
    • Hematuria
    • Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS)
    • High Blood Pressure
    • Home Hemodialysis (HHD)
    • Hyponatremia and Cancer
    • IgA Nephropathy
    • Kidney Stones
    • Living Kidney Donors
    • Lupus and Kidney Disease
    • Medications
    • Meditation
    • Minimal Change Disease
    • Multiple Myeloma & Kidney Disease
    • Music
      • HealthTunes
    • Nephrotic Syndrome
    • Nutrition
    • Paraneoplastic Glomerular Disease
    • Peritoneal Dialysis (PD)
    • Pet Therapy
    • Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD)
    • Proteins In Kidney Disease
    • Proteinuria
    • Transplant
    • Urinary Tract Infection
    • Vaccines
    • VEGF Inhibitors & Kidney Disease
    • What are the Roles of a Nephrologist in the Care of Kidney Cancer Patients?
  • Patient Stories
  • Ask the Experts
  • Support Groups
    • Kidney Transplant
    • Polycystic Kidney Disease
  • Other Resources
  • Conditions Treated
  • Our Locations
  • Make an Appointment
  • Education
  • Patient Stories
  • Ask the Experts
  • Support Groups
  • Other Resources
  • Kidney Acronyms & Medical Terms
  • Kidney Physiology
  • Kidney Preventative Care
  • Tests for Kidney Disease
  • The Kidneys & Aging
  • Acidosis
  • Acute Kidney Injury (AKI)
  • Alport Syndrome
  • Anemia & Kidney Disease
  • Bone Disease
  • Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
  • Complement Disorders
  • Diabetes and Kidney Disease
  • Dialysis- Modalities
  • Electrolytes
  • End Stage Kidney Disease
  • Exercise
  • Fabry's Disease
  • Glomerulonephritis
  • Heart Disease
  • Hematuria
  • Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS)
  • High Blood Pressure
  • Home Hemodialysis (HHD)
  • Hyponatremia and Cancer
  • IgA Nephropathy
  • Kidney Stones
  • Living Kidney Donors
  • Lupus and Kidney Disease
  • Medications
  • Meditation
  • Minimal Change Disease
  • Multiple Myeloma & Kidney Disease
  • Music
  • Nephrotic Syndrome
  • Nutrition
  • Paraneoplastic Glomerular Disease
  • Peritoneal Dialysis (PD)
  • Pet Therapy
  • Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD)
  • Proteins In Kidney Disease
  • Proteinuria
  • Transplant
  • Urinary Tract Infection
  • Vaccines
  • VEGF Inhibitors & Kidney Disease
  • What are the Roles of a Nephrologist in the Care of Kidney Cancer Patients?
  1. Home
  2. Patient Resources
  3. Education
  4. High Blood Pressure

High Blood Pressure

Share this

What is Hypertension?

Hypertension is the medical term for high blood pressure. Blood pressure refers to the pressure that blood applies to the inner walls of the arteries. Arteries carry blood from the heart to other organs and parts of the body. Untreated high blood pressure increases the strain on the heart and arteries, eventually causing organ damage. High blood pressure increases the risk of heart failure, heart attack (myocardial infarction), stroke, and kidney failure.Most adults with hypertension have primary hypertension (formerly called "essential" hypertension), which means that the cause of the high blood pressure is not known. A small subset of adults has secondary hypertension, which means that there is an underlying and potentially correctable cause, usually a kidney or hormonal disorder.

High Blood Pressure Diagnosis:

  • Persistently high at two office visits at least one week apart.
  • If you have damage from high blood pressure, such as heart\eye, or kidney injury.

Treatment of hypertension usually begins with lifestyle changes.

Making these lifestyle changes involves little or no risk. Recommended changes often include:

  • Reduce the amount of salt in your diet
  • Lose weight if you are overweight or obese
  • Avoid drinking too much alcohol
  • Stop smoking
  • Exercise at least 30 minutes per day most days of the week

See your doctor or nurse right away if you have high blood pressure and get any of the following symptoms:

  • A very bad headache
  • Chest pain
  • Severe pain in your upper back
  • Problems breathing
  • Weakness on one side of your body and not the other
  • Problems speaking
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Confusion
  • Vision changes
  • Nosebleeds
  • Blood in your urine

Hypertension & Nutrition:

Hypertension is a leading cause of kidney failure. A healthy diet is important in assisting with reduction of blood pressure.

The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet is usually recommended for a person with Hypertension. It focusses on reducing sodium, fats and alcohol while increasing fruits, vegetables and healthy proteins. However, the DASH diet does recommend potassium rich foods and in a patient with chronic kidney disease, potassium may need to be limited.

Foods That Improve Blood Pressure:

  • Red bell pepper
  • Avocado
  • Broccoli
  • Sweet Potato
  • Kiwi
  • Banana
  • White Beans
  • Tilapia
  • Almonds & Cashews
  • Garlic

UKEEP High Blood Pressure: What You Should Know

UKEEP: Blood Pressure and U

♦ Hypertension Clinical Program

New Guidelines from AHA/ACC on High Blood Pressure

New 2018 Guidelines from the ACC/AHA have redefined parameters for high blood pressure (130/80 mmHg). With this new guideline, almost half of Americans are considered to have high blood pressure.

Source: CNN News

Contributed by: Anjay Rastogi, MD, PhD


Disclaimer: The UCLA Health System cannot guarantee the accuracy of such information. The information is provided without warranty or guarantee of any kind. Please speak to your Physician before making any changes. 

Like Us on Facebook Follow Us on Twitter Subscribe to Our Videos on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Connect with Us on LinkedIn Follow us on Pinterest
UCLA Health hospitals ranked best hospitals by U.S. News & World Report
  • UCLA Health
  • Find a Doctor
  • School of Medicine
  • School of Nursing
  • UCLA Campus
  • Directory
  • Newsroom
  • Subscribe
  • Patient Stories
  • Giving
  • Careers
  • Volunteer
  • International Services
  • Privacy Practices
  • Nondiscrimination
  • Billing
  • Health Plans
  • Emergency
  • Report Broken Links
  • Terms of Use
  • 1-310-825-2631
  • Maps & Directions
  • Contact Us
  • Your Feedback
  • Report Misconduct
  • Get Social
  • Sitemap
Like Us on Facebook Follow Us on Twitter Subscribe to Our Videos on YouTube Follow us on Instagram Connect with Us on LinkedIn Follow us on Pinterest

Sign in to myUCLAhealth