From The Washington Post, Nov 2017
"Leading heart health experts tightened the guidelines for high blood pressure, a change that will sharply increase the number of U.S. adults considered hypertensive in the hope that they, and their doctors, will address the deadly condition sooner.
The American Heart Association, the American College of Cardiology and nine other groups redefined high blood pressure as a reading of 130 over 80, down from 140 over 90. The change, the first in 14 years, means that 46 percent of U.S. adults, many of them under the age of 45, now will be considered hypertensive ...
The guidelines suggest that doctors recommend lifestyle changes for people found to have elevated blood pressure."
Yeah, sure. Excuse me if I'm a bit skeptical. Doctors in America don't usually prescribe lifestyle changes, they prescribe drugs. Drugs made by Big Pharma. The new guidelines will no doubt have lots more patients taking lots more blood pressure medications. Medications made, and supplied, by Big Pharma.
In the medical profession's interest in your health and your heart, the new much lower blood pressure guidelines are also a golden opportunity for drug companies to sell more drugs. Coincidence?