- Posted June 12, 2025
Misconceptions Abound Regarding High Blood Pressure, Poll Finds
THURSDAY, June 12, 2025 (HealthDay News) — A good number of people don’t know that high blood pressure is a silent killer, increasing a person’s heart risk with no obvious symptoms, a new poll has found.
More than a third of Americans (37%) erroneously think high blood pressure always has noticeable symptoms like dizziness or shortness of breath, according to a survey by the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center.
In truth, high blood pressure usually has no signs or symptoms to indicate its presence, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Likewise, nearly 4 in 10 people (39%) mistakenly believe that “feeling calm and relaxed” is an indication that blood pressure is normal, the poll shows.
And very few people — only 13% — know the correct reading that reflects high blood pressure, 130/80, poll results show.
“Because controlling blood pressure reduces one’s risk of serious health problems, including heart attacks and strokes, correcting misperceptions about ways to identify it should be a public health priority,” Patrick Jamieson, director of the policy center’s Annenberg Health and Risk Communication Institute, said in a news release.
About 25% of respondents thought that high blood pressure starts at 140/90, which was the case before heart health organizations revised their guidelines in 2017. Another 16% chose 140/80, and 18% chose 130/90.
Despite these misconceptions, the survey found that many Americans are familiar with the measures that can help lower high blood pressure:
Maintaining a healthy weight (91%)
Regularly exercising (89%)
Eating a healthy diet (89%)
Taking medication (84%)
Reducing salt intake (82%)
Also, 4 out of 5 people (80%) are aware that it’s false to say nothing can be done to reduce high blood pressure if the condition runs in your family, poll results show.
“The high level of public knowledge about the habits that reduce blood pressure is heartening and a tribute to the health care providers and public health agencies that have centered this health indicator in the national consciousness,” APPC research analyst Laura Gibson said in a news release.
Unfortunately, not everyone has fully embraced those habits.
When asked if they engage in specific healthy habits more than once a week:
72% said they watch what they eat.
61% said they exercise.
57% said they limit their salt intake.
The survey involved a nationally representative panel of 1,653 U.S. adults who were polled April 15-28. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about high blood pressure.
SOURCE: Annenberg Public Policy Center, news release, June 6, 2025
