There are > 70 million adults in the United States currently diagnosed with high blood pressure, with only 52% of them actually having their disease under control, meaning 48% are not adequately controlled. In the US alone, this chronic disease accounted for > 360,000 deaths in 2013 and annual costs of > $46 billion on health care services, medication costs, and missed work days.1
The cause of hypertension is unknown in > 90% of cases. The other 10% include: kidney pathology (eg, renal artery stenosis); endocrine (eg, hyperthyroidism), vascular (eg, atherosclerotic disease), medication-induced (eg, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) origins; and obstructive sleep apnea.2 Current nonpharmacologic treatments include: physical activity (≥ 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity on most days of the week); smoking cessation; dietary modification (lower sodium, increased potassium; mainly plant-based foods; low-fat foods; reduced-fat dairy products; moderate amounts of lean unprocessed meats, poultry, and fish; and moderate amounts of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil); weight reduction; management of stress; and limited alcohol consumption.