Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States. And hypertension, or high blood pressure, is one of the leading causes of heart attacks. for the most part, careful dieting and regular exercise would help you avoid the risk of contracting a cardiovascular disease (CVD) or a coronary heart disease (CHD) due to hypertension. But in cases where you need a little extra push back into good health, blood pressure medicines like Accupril come in handy.

Hypertension has been proven to be genetic in nature. If either of your parents had it, or any of your grandparents had it, chances are you and any of your brothers and sisters may have it, as well. Look into your family history in order to calculate your risk of getting high blood pressure later in life. This will help you better plan your diet, your exercise regimens, and other aspects of your lifestyle.

This will also help you find out if you stand a chance of needing blood pressure medication such as Accupril, in the future. High blood pressure usually strikes somewhere around one's middle age or old age, although it may still be triggered in younger people, especially those who lead stressful lives and do not eat enough nutritious foods regularly.

Even if you have high blood pressure, you may not experience its symptoms all the time. The only way to find out if you have hypertension is to monitor your blood pressure, to have it taken regularly. If your blood pressure is over 140/90, you have hypertension. Note that 120/80 is the normal blood pressure for humans. Moreover, if your systolic pressure (the number on the left of a blood pressure reading) approaches 200, you are seriously running the risk of a stroke. You may not feel differently because you are used to having high blood pressure, but when your BP spikes this high, you must seek emergency medical help.

People who have no family history of high blood pressure may still have it. Conditions like hyperthyroidism (overactivity of the thyroid glands) have been known to raise blood pressure. But the number one culprit that causes dangerously high blood pressure is living an unhealthy lifestyle. Smoking and drinking have been known to increase one's cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and trigger other health issues that may affect blood pressure. Red wine in moderate amounts, however, has been known to reduce "bad" cholesterol and blood pressure.

One good way to lower "bad" cholesterol and blood pressure is through exercise. It is not enough to exercise without improving one's diet and regulating one's stress levels, however. "Bad" cholesterol and fatty deposits enter one's cardiovascular system through foods that are high in saturated oils and fats, such as fried and baked goods, as well as caffeinated foods and beverages. If you continue to test your heart by exercising without first reducing your regular intake of high-cholestrol foods, you still run the risk of depriving your heart of necessary oxygen, thus contracting CVD.

Medicines like Accupril should help you achieve your goal of lowering your high blood pressure. Accupril (generic name: Quinapril) is an ACE or angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, which works by dilating your blood vessels, reducing pressure in the vessels and making it easier for blood to circulate within your body. This helps oxygen reach your heart, so that it is not strained when you perform strenuous or stressful tasks.