Hi, I am 53 years old. My blood pressure last year in December was 145/96 mmHg. This year it is 130/82. My doctor says there's nothing to worry about but I am worried. Is my BP in the normal range? I have read that normal BP is 120/80 mmHg.
Firstly, you should be happy that you have successfully managed to lower your blood pressure from what it was last year. As you mentioned, 120/80 mmHg is the known normal range of blood pressure, but there is a slight difference between what is normal and what is optimal.
According to the special issue on Indian guidelines for hypertension that was published in the Journal of the Association of Physicians of India in February 2013, systolic BP of less than 120 and diastolic BP less than 80 forms the optimal (or desirable) blood pressure with respect to heart disease risk. Blood pressure less than 130/85 mmHg is normal while BP between 130-139/ 85-89 is the high-normal range, which is the prehypertension range.
Doctors mainly focus on what range is too high for BP rather than what is normal. As per the standards, hypertension is defined as systolic BP of 140 mm Hg or higher and/or diastolic BP of 90 mm Hg or higher (or at any level) in patients who are on antihypertensive medicines. Also, in the new set of guidelines, people in the age group 30-59 years, who are taking medicines for hypertension, should target reaching 140/90 mmHg and not 120/80 mmHg. For those above 60, the benchmark has been raised to 150/90 mmHg. Since your blood pressure is not in the prehypertension or hypertension range, you need not worry. But make sure it does not exceed the range.
Reference:
Hypertension-Disease and classification. Indian Guidelines On Hypertension (I.G.H.)-III February 2013. The Journal the Association of Physicians of India.
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