High blood pressure is not just an older person's disease.
Research reveals one in 12 young Australians aged under 30 - that's 311,000 people - have hypertension and very few are treating it.
Analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics figures found among young people with high blood pressure, more than 90 per cent were not changing their lifestyle to help lower it.
This is very damaging for long-term health, warns Professor John Kelly, CEO of the National Heart Foundation.
"Chances are that the blood pressure of these young people will continue to rise as they get older and that's where the damage happens," he said.
While the risk of a heart attack or stroke does increase with age, young adults with untreated high blood pressure are more likely to have a life threatening cardiac event than someone who is 50 and has no other risk factors, said Prof Kelly.
Moving too little, eating too much or too much of the wrong foods and being overweight or obese can all lead to hypertension.
Because the condition rarely has warning signs, it's important to have blood pressure checked by a doctor.
"Know your risk. Don't wait till it leads to trouble," said Prof Kelly.
