High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is when the force of blood pushing against your artery walls is consistently too high. In most cases, there is no identifiable cause of high blood pressure, which is called primary hypertension or essential hypertension. However, there are several factors that can increase your risk of developing high blood pressure, including:

• Unhealthy lifestyle choices: Not getting enough regular physical activity, being overweight or obese, eating too much salt and not enough fruits and vegetables, drinking too much alcohol or coffee, smoking, and having a lot of stress.

• Certain health conditions: Kidney disease, diabetes, sleep apnea, lupus, scleroderma, and adrenal gland disorders.

• Certain medications: Contraceptive pills, steroids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), some pharmacy cough and cold remedies, and some herbal remedies.

• Age and genetics: Simply getting older raises the risk for increased blood pressure, and having a family history of high blood pressure increases your risk as well.

• Race: Elevated blood pressure is particularly common among Black people and usually develops at an earlier age than it does in white people.

• Pregnancy: Sometimes pregnancy causes high blood pressure.

• Aneurysm and heart failure: Increased blood pressure can cause a blood vessel to weaken and bulge, forming an aneurysm. When you have high blood pressure, the heart has to work harder to pump blood, which can lead to heart failure.

Its important to note that in about 1 in 10 cases, high blood pressure happens as the result of an underlying health condition or taking a certain medicine. If you have high blood pressure, its important to work with your healthcare provider to identify the cause and develop a treatment plan. Making healthy lifestyle changes, such as exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, and managing stress, can help reduce your chances of getting high blood pressure and help lower your blood pressure if its already high.