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Low blood pressure is medically known as hypotension. Technically, you are said to have low blood pressure when your systolic pressure (upper reading) falls below 120 mmHg and the diastolic pressure (lower reading) is less than 80 mmHg. But doctors consider it to be low blood pressure if your systolic pressure is 90 mmHg or lower and diastolic pressure is 60 mmHg or lower. Very low blood pressure can restrict blood flow to the brain and other vital organs. However, as long as you are not experiencing any symptoms of low blood pressure, you don’t have to worry.
Causes
In many cases medical conditions occur along with low blood pressure. Some of these medical conditions that occur with or cause low BP are –
- Heart problems such as low heart rate, heart valve problems, heart attack and heart failure prevent sufficient circulation of blood in your body and trigger low blood pressure.
- Thyroid problems such as hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) or hyperthyroidism (over active thyroid).
- Addison’s disease where your adrenal glands produce too little cortisol and aldosterone hormones.
- Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and diabetes.
- Dehydration because of fever, diarrhea, vomiting, strenuous exercise or overuse of diuretics may lead to sudden drop in blood pressure. And because of low blood volume, sufficient oxygen can not reach the tissues. This is known as hypovolemic shock and it is a very serious condition that could lead to death.
- Severe allergic reaction may result in breathing problems, hives, itching and drop in blood pressure.
- Severe infections (called sepsis) that spread via the bloodstream can cause low blood pressure leading to poor circulation and lack of perfusion of vital tissues and organs. This is called septic shock and can be life threatening.
- Anaemia caused by lack of vitamin B12 and folate leading to insufficient production of red blood cells, which in turn causes low blood pressure.
- Pregnancy (you read it right!) can sometimes cause low blood pressure. This is because the hormone progesterone dilates the walls of the blood vessels. This drops the blood pressure and is a common feature during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy.
- Blood loss through external bleeding or internal bleeding could lead to low blood pressure as there is lesser amount of blood in your body.
- Medications such as diuretics, alpha blockers, beta blockers, antidepressants, and even Viagra may cause low blood pressure.
