Blood Pressure Basics

What is blood pressure?

As blood flows through your body, it pushes against the walls of your blood vessels. Your blood pressure measures how hard the blood pushes.

Blood pressure is measured using a blood pressure cuff. Every blood pressure measurement (or reading) has two numbers, a top number and a bottom number. For example, if your blood pressure is 125/75 (“125 over 75”), then 125 is the top number and 75 is the bottom number.

What is a healthy blood pressure?

For most people, it’s healthiest to have a top number in the 120s and a bottom number in the 70s. But that goal can vary from person to person. Your care team will let you know the right blood pressure goal for you.

What is high blood pressure?

High blood pressure (also known as hypertension) means that your blood is pushing with too much force. Over time, it can lead to problems like heart attack and stroke. High blood pressure is especially dangerous because there are often no symptoms.

You have high blood pressure if the top number is over 129 or the bottom number is over 79. For example, the following are all high blood pressure readings:

• 125/85 — the bottom number is over 79
• 140/75 — the top number is over 129
• 135/85 — both numbers are high

What happens if high blood pressure goes untreated?

High blood pressure is one of the top risk factors for heart attacks and stroke. It can cause damage to the heart, brain, kidneys, arteries, and eyes, and can also lead to problems that affect your sex life.

How do you lower high blood pressure?

Even if your blood pressure is high right now, there’s a lot we can do to lower it. Your Firefly care team will help figure out the right treatment for you.

For most people, a combo of medication and lifestyle changes is most effective. Lifestyle changes include things like eating nutrient-dense foods, staying active, managing stress, treating sleep apnea, limiting alcohol, and quitting tobacco.

We’ll also ask you to check your blood pressure regularly, because your blood pressure numbers tell us if the treatment is working. (If you don’t have a blood pressure cuff, we’ll send you one for free.)

Reach out to your care team.

Whatever’s going on, we’re here for you! Just send us a chat in the app.