by 
The Curious Bag
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Your heart transports blood through your body via arteries. The amount of force your heart uses to pump your blood, either while your heart beats or in between beats, is called blood pressure.
Significance
The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends a healthy blood pressure rate for everyone over 20 years old. This rate is given in two numbers and written as a ratio.
Systolic Rate
The top number is called systolic. You'll notice that this number is the higher of the two. It measures your blood pressure while your heart beats.
Diastolic
The bottom number, or number written after the slash, is called diastolic. It measures the rate when your heart is at rest or between beats.
Healthy Rate
According to the AHA, a healthy, or normal, blood pressure rate is less than 120/80.
Considerations
Your doctor may pay more attention to your systolic number as you grow older because of major risk factors like cardiovascular disease, according to the AHA. However, both numbers are still important.
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