Blood pressure is the force of blood against the artery walls. Blood pressure keeps changing, going up and down through the day.

Blood pressure is always given as two numbers. The top number is taken when your heart pumps or contracts and is called systolic pressure. The bottom number is taken when your heart is resting between beats and is called diastolic pressure. Blood pressure is written in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg).

• Normal: a reading of less than 120 mm Hg over less than 80 mm Hg, as long as it does not get too low (a condition called hypotension).
• Prehypertension: a reading of between 120 mm Hg and 139 mm Hg (top) or between 80 mm Hg and 89 mm Hg (bottom).
• Stage 1 Hypertension: a reading of between 140 mm Hg and 159 mm Hg (top) or between 90 mm Hg and 99 mm Hg (bottom).
• Stage 2 Hypertension: a reading of 160 mm Hg or more (top) or 100 mm Hg or more (bottom).

High blood pressure is often called the "silent killer" because it usually has no symptoms. High blood pressure can cause permanent changes to your blood vessels and heart that may cause serious problems elsewhere in your body:

• Changes in your blood vessels: Over time, the increased force of blood pumping against your vessels causes them to become harder and narrower.
• Excess stress on the heart: High blood pressure makes the heart work harder than it should.
• Lowering blood pressure may help avoid permanent changes to your blood vessels and heart.

You and your doctor will probably decide upon a goal number for your systolic and diastolic pressure. You can also make some lifestyle changes to help keep your blood pressure under control. If you are prescribed blood pressure medicines, making these lifestyle changes can help lower your blood pressure even more.

We know that changing habits can be difficult, but there are ways to make change a little easier. Work on changing just one habit at a time. Once you get used to it, add on another healthy habit. Another idea is to get a friend or family member to make some of the changes with you.

Ask your doctor or healthcare provider questions about your treatment and what you need to do to take care of yourself and lower your high blood pressure. Stick with the treatment plan you and your doctor have agreed on. In addition to taking your medicine exactly as the doctor tells you, ask for help with any or all of the following:

• Maintaining a healthy weight
• Doing physical activity for 30 minutes most days of the week
• Eating a diet high in fresh fruits and low-fat dairy products with reduced saturated and total fats
• Choosing foods that are lower in salt and other forms of sodium
• If you drink alcohol, having no more than one drink a day for women, two drinks a day for men
• Remembering to take your blood pressure medicine

Important Note: Consult your doctor before starting an exercise program.

Benicar, a medicine for treating high blood pressure, is an ARB, or angiotensin II receptor blocker. Angiotensin II is a natural substance in the blood that narrows or constricts blood vessel walls, making the arteries narrower. Benicar blocks the action of angiotensin II so your arteries can relax, allowing blood to flow more easily, hence helping to lower blood pressure.

Benicar HCT is a medicine for treating high blood pressure that has two different medicines in one tablet. The first medicine is Benicar. The other medicine is hydrochlorothiazide, which lowers blood pressure by removing water from the bloodstream. The two medicines together help to provide additional blood pressure reductions in comparison to the individual medicines by themselves.

The most common side effect with Benicar is dizziness. In clinical studies, dizziness occurred in more than 1% of patients treated with Benicar and more frequently than placebo (3% with Benicar and 1% with placebo). A placebo is an inactive, nondrug substance, such as a sugar pill, that is given in a drug study to compare the effect of a treatment including the drug being studied with the effect of the same treatment without the drug.

In clinical trials, side effects that occurred in more than 2% of patients treated with Benicar HCT and more frequently than placebo (“sugar pill”) were nausea (3% with Benicar HCT and 0% with placebo), higher levels of uric acid in the blood (4% with Benicar HCT and 2% with placebo), dizziness (9% with Benicar HCT and 2% with placebo), and upper respiratory tract infection (7% with Benicar HCT and 0% with placebo).

In these studies, treatment with Benicar or Benicar HCT was well tolerated and the incidence of adverse events was similar to placebo. Call your health care provider if you experience any unpleasant effects when taking Benicar or Benicar HCT.

Please see full product information for Benicar and Benicar HCT, including boxed WARNING regarding use in Pregnancy.

It is particularly important to tell your health care provider if you are currently taking diuretics (water pills), because starting Benicar therapy in some patients taking diuretics or who may have low salt or fluid levels may increase the possibility of hypotension (low blood pressure) that may require treatment.

If you are taking any other prescription or nonprescription medicines, including vitamins and herbal supplements, tell your health care provider. This information can help your health care provider avoid possible interactions with Benicar or Benicar HCT. If you decide to stop Benicar or Benicar HCT for any reason, you should notify your health care provider as soon as possible.

Please see full product information for Benicar and Benicar HCT, including boxed WARNING regarding use in Pregnancy.

Take Benicar or Benicar HCT every day, exactly the way your doctor tells you, with or without food. Try to set up an easy-to-remember schedule by taking it at the same time each day.