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More than 90% of the time, the exact cause of hypertension is not known, but risk
factors for the disease include the following:
What you can't control
- Family: a history of hypertension, heart disease, or diabetes
- Race: affects over 40% of African Americans†
- Age: affects a higher number of Americans over 65 years of age
What you can control‡
- Smoking
- Drinking too much alcohol
- Being overweight
- Eating foods that are high in salt
- Inactivity
- Stress that is long-lasting
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†Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics - 2006 Update, A Report from the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee, pgs. 25-26. Found at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/reprint/113/6/e85.
‡U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Diseases and Conditions Index. High Blood Pressure. Who Gets High Blood Pressure? Found at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Hbp/HBP_WhoIsAtRisk.html.
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