General Causes of Hypertension

The causes of high blood pressure vary. According to National Institutes of Health, the causes for high blood pressure may include narrowing of the arteries, a greater than normal volume of blood, or the heart beating faster or more forcefully than it should.

Any of these conditions will cause increased pressure against the artery walls. High blood pressure might also be caused by another medical problem. Most of the time, the cause is not known. Diet, definitely, plays a crucial role in the development of hypertension along with stress.

"Although behavior patterns and stress play an important part, hypertension is most closely related to dietary factors. Hypertension is another of the many diseases associated with the western diet, and is found almost entirely in developed countries. People living in remote areas of China, New Guinea, Panama, Brazil and Africa show virtually no evidence of essential hypertension, nor do they experience a rise in blood pressure with advancing age. Furthermore, when members of these societies migrate to less remote areas and adopt a more 'civilized' diet the incidence of hypertension increases dramatically.
Michel Murray: Encyclopedia of Natural Medicin

Diet

Hypertension is most closely related to dietary factors, especially the "diet of the civilized society." Many dietary factors have been shown to correlate with blood pressure, including sodium to potassium ratio, percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids, fiber and magnesium content, and levels of simple carbohydrates, total fats and cholesterol.

Weight

Many clinical studies have repeatedly shown that obesity is a major factor in hypertension.

Lifestyle

Lifestyle factors like coffee consumption, alcohol intake, lack of exercise and smoking are all things that are very significant causes of hypertension.

Alcohol

Chronic alcohol consumption is one of the strongest predictors of hypertension.

Smoking

Smoking is very much a contributing factor in hypertension. Smoking is also associated with increased sugar, alcohol and caffeine consumption. Nicotine stimulates the adrenaline secretion.

Stress

Stress can be a cause of hypertension for many people. Relaxation techniques such as biofeedback, autogenics, transcendental meditation, yoga, progressive muscle relaxation and stress relief hypnosis have all been shown to have some value in lowering blood pressure.

Exercise

Exercise reduces both stress levels and blood pressure.

Heavy metals

Chronic exposure to lead from environmental sources, including drinking water, is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality. Elevated blood lead levels have been found in a significant number of people with high blood pressure.

Cadmium has also been shown to induce hypertension. Persons suffering from high blood pressure are found to have blood cadmium levels three to four times of those in people with normal blood pressure. Cigarette smokers typically have much higher body cadmium levels due to cadmium's presence in cigarette smoke.