If you have high blood pressure, your partner probably does, too — and it’s your fault

Yes, your partner may literally be making your blood boil.

New research in the Journal of the American Heart Association from Columbia and partnering universities found an uncanny connection between couples and high blood pressure.

“Many people know that high blood pressure is common in middle-aged and older adults, yet we were surprised to find that among many older couples, both husband and wife had high blood pressure in the U.S., England, China and India,” said senior study author Chihua Li.

“For instance, in the U.S., among more than 35% of couples who were ages 50 or older, both had high blood pressure.”

In total, about 38% of U.S. spouses share high blood pressure; an estimated 47% in England do as well.

Chinese married couples saw a 21% connection and Indian ones saw 20%.

In both the U.S. and England, wives whose husbands had high blood pressure were 9% more likely to develop it themselves as opposed to females whose spouses didn’t have HBP. That number staggered to 19% in India and 26% in China.

Similar results were observed vice versa for husbands of women with HBP.

“High blood pressure is more common in the U.S. and England than in China and India, however, the association between couples’ blood pressure status was stronger in China and India than in the U.S and England,” said study co-lead author Peiyi Lu.

“One reason might be cultural. In China and India, there’s a strong belief in sticking together as a family, so couples might influence each other’s health more.”

And now with this connection in mind, experts are calling for family-wide, meaningful life adjustments that would promote longevity.

“Following this idea, making lifestyle changes, such as being more active, reducing stress or eating a healthier diet, can all reduce blood pressure,” said Bethany Barone Gibbs of the American Heart Association.

“However, these changes may be difficult to achieve and, more importantly, sustain if your spouse or partner (and greater family unit) are not making changes with you.”