Question 19 of 24
Do you ever check your numbers (blood pressure, cholesterol)?
The short answer
In the most recent US national survey, nearly half of adults have hypertension, only about one in five have it controlled to target, and roughly two in five people with it do not know they have it. High prevalence plus low awareness plus low control is a large amount of preventable cardiovascular risk sitting undetected.
Pick one to continue — the dead don't get to skip homework.
Meet the silent killer
💀 A grim little fact
High blood pressure earned the nickname 'the silent killer' honestly. About 1 in 3 adults has it, and nearly half of them have no idea — because it usually causes zero symptoms right up until the stroke or heart attack it's been quietly setting up. It contributes to over 10 million deaths a year.
Cholesterol plays the same trick. Neither one sends a calendar invite. The only way to catch them is to actually check the numbers.
~1 in 3 adults have hypertension; nearly half don't know it.
🔮 Myth vs. Morty
Myth: "I'd feel it if my blood pressure were dangerously high." That's the villain's entire strategy. There's no headache, no warning light, no dramatic clutch of the chest — that's precisely why it's so effective. A 30-second cuff reading at a pharmacy is the plot twist that ruins its whole arc.
Sources: WHO Global Report on Hypertension · Entertainment only — not medical advice.
Blood pressure and cholesterol checks: what the evidence shows
Last reviewed · compiled by the ExpireOnDate editorial team · not medically reviewed
What the research shows
47.7% of US adults had hypertension in the August 2021–August 2023 NHANES cycle.
US adults · United States · cross-sectional national health examination survey · 2024 (2021–2023 data) · CDC National Center for Health Statistics
40.8% of US adults with hypertension were unaware they had it.
US adults with hypertension · United States · NHANES cross-sectional survey · 2024 (2021–2023 data) · CDC National Center for Health Statistics
Only 20.7% of US adults with hypertension had their blood pressure controlled to target.
US adults with hypertension · United States · NHANES cross-sectional survey · 2024 (2021–2023 data) · CDC National Center for Health Statistics
In absolute terms
Nearly one in two US adults has hypertension; two in five of those do not know.
What it does not show
Awareness and control figures rest on blood pressure measured at a single survey visit plus self-reported prior diagnosis, so they may not reflect longer-term control. Diagnostic thresholds have also changed over time — the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline lowered the cutoff — which makes prevalence figures awkward to compare across years and countries.
Every figure on this page describes a population, not a person. Associations measured across thousands of people cannot tell any individual how long they will live, and nothing here is medical advice. If something on this page concerns you, talk to a doctor rather than a comedy website.
References
- Hypertension Prevalence, Treatment and Control Among Adults: United States, August 2021–August 2023 (Data Brief 511). CDC National Center for Health Statistics (2024-10). primary source; accessed 2026-08-15.
- Estimated Hypertension Prevalence, Treatment, and Control Among U.S. Adults. Million Hearts, US Department of Health and Human Services (2024). secondary reporting; accessed 2026-08-15.
Spotted an error or a better source? Tell us — corrections are logged and the review date updated.