Blood pressure: norm by age

Blood pressure in representatives of different age groups naturally differs, since over the years, certain physiological changes occur in the body associated with wear and tear of blood vessels, hormonal changes and other factors. To understand what indicators should be in people of different age categories, you can immediately refer to the materials contained in the table "Blood pressure: norm by age", presented below.

However, the indicator itself is not very informative, therefore, for a better understanding of the data, they deal with the causes of pressure deviations and preventive measures that will help in old age feel like at 50 years old.

Blood pressure: norm and extremes

Each age has its own characteristics of the indicator, but there are generally accepted norms that reflect normal blood pressure data in a healthy person.

This indicator with two values:

systolic, which is measured during the contraction of the heart muscle and the release of blood into the artery;
diastolic - measured in the intervals between contractions.

The first is often called the top, the second - the bottom. What is normal and what is not is indicated in the table below:

Blood pressure category	Systolic (upper) blood pressure mm Hg Art.	Diastolic (lower) blood pressure mm Hg. Art.
Optimal	Less than 120	Less than 80
Normal	Less than 130	Less than 85
Increased normal	130-139	85-89
Hypertension I degree (mild)	140-159	90-99
Hypertension II degree (moderate)	160-179	100-109
Hypertension III degree (moderate)	Over 180	Over 110
Border	140-149	Less than 90
Isolated systolic hypertension	Over 140	Less than 90

* Note 1: if a person's upper pressure is in one category, and the lower pressure is in another, then the upper category is selected.

** Note 2: optimal is understood as the indicator at which the risk of developing heart disease and mortality from it are minimal.

This diagram shows the limits of the norm, and not the specific values of the indicator. It follows from the table that:

When a person's blood pressure is above 140/90, this is an increase in the indicator (arterial hypertension).
If in adults or children it is in the range of 110-130 / 80-90, these are normal blood pressure values.
The lower blood pressure limits are determined by values of 60-70. When an adult has an indicator of 90/60, this is an example of arterial hypotension.

At the same time, almost always, blood pressure in the norm is not stably the same - it changes by 5-10 units both in one direction and in the other.

Such phenomena are explained by:

physical activity;
stressful situations;
the use of certain foods or drinks (alcohol, coffee);
the use of certain drugs that cause a spasmodic or vasodilator effect.

NOTE! Often, the question of what the normal blood pressure should be is decided on an individual basis, since in addition to general factors (age, gender), it is also influenced by personal ones (lifestyle, chronic diseases, weight).

Therefore, in order to understand the individual standard, to find out if you have arterial hypertension (hypertension), if your blood pressure is normal, they consult a doctor for advice.

Blood pressure norms by age

Age-related changes in the body, which affect the level of pressure, are associated with the following processes:

A gradual deterioration in the work of the heart due to the aging of its muscle (myocardium) and increasing loads due to the restructuring of the vessels.
Changes in blood vessels - a decrease in the elasticity of the walls, narrowing of the lumen of the bloodstream due to overgrowth of atherosclerotic (cholesterol) plaques, which develops arterial hypertension.
Hormonal changes in the body (in women after menopause, there is a significant decrease in the level of the sex hormone estrogen, which increases the strength of the blood vessels).

In addition to objective circumstances, the harmful influence of individual factors associated with an improper lifestyle (smoking, alcohol, unbalanced diet, lack of systematic moderate physical exertion, constant stay in a state of emotional stress) often affects.

Blood pressure table by age below:

Age	Men		Women
Age	Upper	Lower	Upper	Lower
20-30	124	77	117	73
31-40	127	80	121	76
41-50	130	82	128	81
51-60	136	84	138	85
61-70	143	86	145	86
71-80	146	83	160	86
Over 80	145	83	158	83

Age norms of blood pressure in adults gradually increase, and only in old age do they slightly decrease in terms of indicator compared to the previous stage.

Acceptable data have their own dynamics in children - from the table below it can be seen that the norm for childhood ages (from the first birthday to ten years) changes much faster.

Normal blood pressure readings:

Age	Upper blood pressure mm Hg. Art.	Lower blood pressure mm Hg. Art.
Up to 14 days	65-95
Up to 28 days	85-115	41-75
From 2 months to a year	95-115	50-75
2-3 years	100-115	60-75
3-5 years	100-118	60-77
6-10 years old	100-122	60-79

For children, the answer to the question of what blood pressure should be is less accurate, since the norm and deviations in this case are characterized by wider ranges.

In addition, normal blood pressure indicators in children are not closely related to gender, since until puberty and hormonal changes in the body, the permissible data in boys and girls differ insignificantly.

Boundary indicators

Since the answer to the question of what blood pressure is considered normal is a certain range of values that depends on each individual person, then deviations from the norm lie in a certain interval.

Because of this, there is the concept of prehypertension - a borderline state, which, if no measures are taken, easily reaches arterial hypertension. When asked what blood pressure is considered normal at a given age, some people believe that the numbers 130-135 / 90-95 are the optimum value.

In fact, such results indicate a borderline state, which is dangerous because it often does not manifest itself in anything - a person feels as usual. Often it is associated not with deviations of the heart and blood vessels, but with other organs:

kidneys;
the adrenal gland;
thyroid gland.

To understand what blood pressure is considered normal in your particular case, try keeping a monitoring diary for a month. If there are consistently high numbers (above 130/80) and there are jumps throughout the day, then even without any deviations, they turn to a doctor for advice. A constant overestimation of the indicator is the first signal of the onset of hypertension.

How does a hypertensive crisis develop?

With the development of hypertension, some pressure indicators (180/100 and higher) are borderline. Because of their violation, there is a high risk of a serious malfunction - a hypertensive crisis.

This complication is accompanied by the following symptoms:

partial or complete visual impairment (sharp darkening, "fireflies" in the eyes);
nausea and vomiting;
severe headaches, dizziness, noise in the head;
dyspnea;
compressive pain in the left side;
less often - convulsions.

A crisis is an emergency: the victim suddenly becomes ill, he even loses consciousness. Calling doctors in this case is vital.

How to properly monitor health at different ages

Pressure is one of those indicators that all people need to monitor - both healthy and suffering from diseases, young people and adults.

Particular attention is paid to it:

Suffering from various pathologies of the heart and blood vessels.
Having a tendency to high or low blood pressure due to hereditary factors.
Persons over 45-50 years old.
Suffering from diseases that provoke the risk of increased blood pressure (diabetes mellitus, kidney dysfunction).
Underwent surgical interventions on the heart, blood vessels and other important organs.

If for people who do not fall into any of these risk groups, control consists in a periodic scheduled examination in the doctor's office (during medical examinations), then for these categories it is necessary to observe him systematically - daily.

To do this, they consult with a doctor - about the rate of their specific indicator, the characteristics of the course of treatment to stabilize it and about when it is better for you to measure it. After that, they begin to keep a data control diary, where everyday measurements are recorded.

Measures to stabilize the indicator

To bring the pressure back to normal and successfully prevent complications from the cardiovascular system, follow a few simple rules:

Watch your diet - do not abuse excessively salty foods, foods with animal fats, fried foods.
Give up bad habits or keep them to a reasonable minimum - smoking, alcohol, overeating.
Try to do simple sports exercises every day to keep your body in good shape.
Watch your work and rest, always try to get enough sleep.
Walking in the fresh air every day is a great way to invigorate the body and fill the blood with oxygen.

Before taking up prevention or starting treatment of pathology, be sure to get advice from a doctor - load norms, diet and other factors are always individual, depending on the characteristics of a particular organism. Watch yourself and remember: prevention is easier than cure!