High blood pressure (hypertension) is a major health problem that affects many Americans. This health problem can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke. Normal blood pressure is systolic blood pressure divided by diastolic blood pressure, or 120/80 mmHg (millimeters of mercury). High blood pressure is defined as a systolic pressure greater than 140 mm Hg and a diastolic pressure greater than 90 mm Hg. Hypertension influences the health of Black Americans more than that of other races in the United States. Racial discrimination and socioeconomic status are two major factors that influence the rate of high blood pressure in the Black American population. Hypertension is a developing problem worldwide, associated with increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. In 2020, the world population will number approximately 7.8 billion people, and 1 billion people could be affected by hypertension (Tomson & Lip, 2005). One in three adults in the United States has high blood pressure. According to the report "Health, United States, 2010 with Special Feature on Death and Dying", the prevalence of hypertension among adults aged 20 or older increased from 24% to 32% between 1988-1994 and 2005-2008. The African American population has a higher prevalence of this health problem than the White American population. From 2005 to 2008, the prevalence of hypertension among black men (41.4%) was greater than 10%, compared with 31.5% among white men. The rate of hypertension among black women was more than twice that of white women. The mortality rate from hypertension among black men was 51.8 per 100,000 and among black women it was 40.4 per 100,000; however, morta...... middle of paper ......de, TW, Kiefe, CI, & Liu, K. (2007). Relationships between skin color, income, and blood pressure among African Americans in the CARDIA study. American Journal of Public Health, 97(12), 2253-2259. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hch&AN=28073645&site=ehost-liveTomson, J. and Lip, GYH (2005). Blood Pressure Demographics: Nature or Nurture… …Genes or Environment? BMC Medicine, 3, 3-4. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-3-3 Williams, DR & Collins, C. (1995). We, socioeconomic and racial differences in health: Patterns and explanations. Annual Review of Sociology, 21(1), 349. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=9509242616&site=ehost-liveWilliams, DR and Jackson, P.B. (2005). Social sources of racial health disparities. Health Affairs, 24(2), 325-334. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.24.2.325