1 in 3 Has High Blood Pressure. Is It You?
Mar 22, 2016
1 in 3 adults in the United States has high blood pressure. Are you the ONE?
The Big Squeeze is a community-wide blood pressure initiative to raise awareness among Sioux Falls area residents about knowing their numbers and managing high blood pressure once they know they have it. Preventive services, such as routine disease screenings, are at the forefront to reducing death and disability and improving the nation’s health by detecting medical conditions at earlier, more treatable stages.
Results of the 2015 Big Squeeze community screenings showed that:
- 40 percent had a normal blood pressure reading (less than 120/80).
- 41 percent were in the at-risk category (121–139/81–89).
- 19 percent had a high reading (140–179/90–109).
Of those with high readings, more than one-third had never been told by a health care professional that they had high blood pressure. High blood pressure is called "the silent killer" because it has no symptoms, meaning you can have high blood pressure and not even know it.
By getting your blood pressure checked as part of The Big Squeeze, you have the opportunity to Know Your Numbers to prevent strokes, heart attacks, heart failure and many other complications that come with having uncontrolled high blood pressure.
A group of public and private partners from the Sioux Falls community lead The Big Squeeze effort each year, including the American Heart Association, Avera Health, City of Sioux Falls, DAKOTACARE, Lewis Drug, Novartis, Sanford Health, and Walgreens.
Learn more at www.thebigsqueezesf.org and find screening dates on our calendar of events.
#BigSqueezeSF
