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The risk of having a baby with a congenital heart defect is influenced by family history and genetics, the mother’s health, sex, and exposure during pregnancy to environmental factors, such as smoke or certain medicines. Other medical conditions can also raise your risk for having a baby with a congenital heart defect.

Congenital heart defects happen because the heart does not develop normally while the baby is growing in the womb. Doctors often do not know why congenital heart defects occur. Researchers do know that genetics can sometimes play a role.

There are many types of congenital heart defects. They range from simple to complex and critical.

For most people with high blood pressure, a doctor will develop a treatment plan that may include heart-healthy lifestyle changes alone or with medicines. Heart-healthy lifestyle changes, such as heart-healthy eating, can be highly effective in treating high blood pressure.

Your doctor may diagnose you with high blood pressure based on your medical history and if your blood pressure readings are consistently at high levels. Diagnoses for children younger than 13 are based on typical readings for their sex, height, and age.

It is important to have regular blood pressure readings taken and to know your numbers, because high blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms until serious complications occur. Undiagnosed or uncontrolled high blood pressure can cause complications such as chronic kidney disease, heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and possibly vascular dementia.

Everyone age 3 or older should have their blood pressure checked by a healthcare provider at least once a year. Healthy lifestyle changes can help prevent high blood pressure from developing.

Factors that increase your risk for high blood pressure include unhealthy lifestyle habits such as eating too much sodium, drinking too much alcohol, and being physically inactive. Other risk factors include age, family history and genetics, race and ethnicity, and sex.

Learn how irregular, painful, or heavy periods, can affect your health or make it harder to get pregnant.

Irregular, heavy, or painful periods are not normal. Learn more about period problems and what you can do.