健康英语新闻:Half of Brazilians aged over 55 have hypertension

BRASILIA, April 26 (Xinhua) -- A survey conducted by Brazil's Ministry of Health showed Tuesday that half of Brazilians aged over 55 have hypertension.

According to the research, which has been carried out annually since 2006, the proportion of Brazilians diagnosed with hypertension increased over the past five years, from 21.6 percent in 2006 to 23.3 percent in 2010.

Besides, the diagnosis of hypertension is higher among women (25.5 percent) than men (20.7 percent). But in both sexes, the older people are, the more common the disease becomes, the ministry reported.

The ministry also said that, to address the problem, the Brazilian government distributes free medicines to control blood pressure, since 80 percent of Brazilians who suffer from hypertension depend on the public health system.

The Ministry of Health signed on April 7 an agreement with the food industry, aiming to reduce salt in processed food.

If hypertension is left untreated, some complications including clogged arteries, stroke and myocardial infarction will bring patients more troubles.