TOLEDO, Ohio — According to new data from Google, the most-searched health-related question in 2019 was "how to lower blood pressure."
ProMedica family and sports Medicine doctor, Erica Martin said that she's not surprised.
"High blood pressure is really common. Many of my patients suffer from this issue and they want to know how they can lower their blood pressure," she said.
Dr. Martin said that unfortunately there's a trend of more and more people with high blood pressure, which impacts all of our organs.
"Severely high blood pressure can lead to cardiovascular disease, including heart attack. Really high blood pressure, acutely, can cause stroke as well and damage to the brain over time, even with low level of hypertension or high blood pressure, and it really causes a lot of damage on your kidneys as well," Martin said.
She said that for some, lowering blood pressure can be as simple as losing 5-10% of their weight.
"Dietary modifications and also physically activity as well within reason, as long as their blood pressure isn't too high," Martin suggested.
In some cases, patients might need medication to control high blood pressure.
The second-most searched question by Americans was "What is keto?" Dr. Martin said that there's still a lot of unknowns about the diet that is high in fats, moderate in proteins and very low in carbs.
"There may be some risks associated with it as well. But, I think overarching too, most people aren't able to sustain the keto diet because it's very restrictive," Martin said.
She said that she's in the camp of moderation.
Rounding out the top three health-related questions was "How to get rid of hiccups."
Martin said that some of those old wives tales like eating a spoonful of sugar or holding your breath, can work. If hiccups persist after 48 hours, see your doctor.
Here's a look at the rest of the top ten health-related questions search via Google in 2019:
4. How long does the flu last?
5. What causes hiccups?
6. What causes kidney stones?
7. What is HPV?
8. How to lower cholesterol
9. How many calories should I eat a day?
10. How long does alcohol stay in your system?