Funmurphys: the Blog

Hypertension Risk Determined At Birth?

A German study finds that hypertension is linked to the number of nephrons in your kydneys. Nephrons are the physical structure of capillary and tubes that filter your blood to make urine. The researches examined 20 cadaver kidneys, 10 from people with hypertension, 10 from people without, and discovered that those with hypertension averaged less than half the nephrons of those without. And they couldn't find any evidence that the low count was due to loss of existing nephrons. It would seem that you are born with a certain number of nephrons, and if the number is low, you get hypertension. So get your blood pressure tested -- even if your diet and overall health are perfect, you can still have high blood pressure.