The culprit is not genetics, it’s your lifestyle

At the Public Health Meetings initiated by Antalya Konyaaltı Municipality on May 17th Hypertension Day, Cardiology Specialist Dr. Tunca Pişkin informed the citizens, stating ‘Do not blame your parents when you have hypertension. The culprit is not genetics, but your lifestyle.’ The ‘Public Health Meetings’ organized by Konyaaltı Municipality to raise the quality of life of the district’s residents and to prevent diseases attracted attention. The first meeting was held on May 17th, Hypertension Day, at Siteler and Gürsu Sahil Retirement Café in Konyaaltı district. During the event, expert doctors provided information to the citizens, while the municipality’s healthcare staff measured the blood pressure of the attendees. Hypertension is preventable. Cardiology Specialist Dr. Tunca Pişkin, who provided information about hypertension to the citizens at Gürsu Sahil Retirement Café, stated, ‘Hypertension is the increase in blood pressure. Hypertension is a preventable or delayable disease. Therefore, we need to prioritize preventive medicine.’ Dr. Pişkin emphasized that 95% of the causes of hypertension are unknown, and the disease is mostly known genetically. He said, ‘I don’t think we should blame our parents. Because what activates this gene is completely our lifestyle. Our eating habits, drinking habits, movements, and stress. Physical, spiritual fatigue, and tobacco products are also among the most important causes. The culprit is not genetics, but our lifestyle, our actions.’ Dr. Pişkin also stressed the importance of hypertensive patients being active, stating, ‘Hypertensive patients should walk at a moderate pace for 1 hour every day, consume more than 2 liters of water per day, and stay away from salty foods such as paste, pickles, and white bread. Unless the sodium content is low, I do not recommend consuming mineral water. They also need to stay away from stress.’