Blood pressure

Your blood pressure is recorded as two numbers.  The first (top) number is “Systolic Blood Pressure”, which measures how much pressure your blood exerts on the artery walls when the heart beats.  The second (bottom) number is “Diastolic Blood Pressure”, which is the amount of pressure exerted on your artery walls while your heart is resting between beats.  Optimal blood pressure is less than 120/80 mm Hg.