Health Tips for April 16

Health Tip: Having High Blood Pressure

Having high blood pressure puts you at higher-than-normal risk of heart disease and stroke, among other medical problems.

Here are risk factors that may make you more likely to develop high blood pressure, courtesy of the American Heart Association:

* Being significantly overweight or obese.
* Eating a diet that's too high in sodium (salt).
* Drinking alcohol to excess, or too frequently.
* Getting insufficient exercise.
* Feeling too much stress or anxiety.
* Having a family history of high blood pressure.
* Being African-American.
* Being age 35 or older.

Health Tip: Pain in Your Side

The appendix is a tube-like organ, with no known purpose, attached to the large intestine. Appendicitis describes when the appendix becomes inflamed, making it prone to rupturing, which is a serious medical emergency.

You should seek medical attention at once if you have symptoms in the following list, provided by the U.S. National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse.

* Abdominal pain, particularly pain that starts around the belly button and moves to the lower right side.
* Lack of appetite.
* Nausea or vomiting.
* Diarrhea, constipation or difficulty passing gas.
* Low fever that begins after other symptoms start.
* Swelling in the abdomen.