Causes of High Blood Pressure in Men

by Richard J. Manager

Cardiovascular diseases continue affecting younger and younger people. Hypertension, which is blood pressure higher than 140/90, is one of such conditions. This pathology is sometimes called the “silent killer”; it’s diagnosed more frequently in man than in women thanks to female sex hormones (estrogens) that to a certain extent protect women from hypertension. But such protection lasts only until menopause, after that sex hormone secretion drops significantly and the incidence of hypertension in both sexes becomes pretty equal.

The mechanism that causes increase in blood pressure starts when the arteries become narrower due to various factors including spasms that provoke vascular wall thickening and arterial lumen narrowing. For the bloodstream to get through narrowed arteries the myocardium is forced to increase its activity causing more blood to be thrown into the vessels and thus provoking hypertension.

However, specific factors are required to launch the pathological process of hypertension and modern men meet this condition. It’s been noticed that in the first place hypertension strikes young and active people, inveterate workaholics and careerists. They perceive any mistake in their work as a personal tragedy resulting in severe stress, the factor fueling the development of hypertension. Besides, the predominant part of men who fling themselves into building their career doesn’t follow a healthy diet and lifestyle in general. They tend to drink too much alcohol and smoke excessively, seldom find time to have a good rest and sleep let alone exercise.

Young hypertensive men often have the so-called “metabolic syndrome” that contributes to the development of cardiovascular disorders and diabetes. It includes a group of risk factors: excessive abdominal fat around the stomach, increased blood cholesterol and insulin resistance.

To summarize, hypertension in men can be caused by: