Lower threshold, increase drug sales

Of course they recommend changing lifestyles (not so much diets), but they know it means more drug sales in the end.

Tens of millions more Americans will qualify for a diagnosis of high blood pressure and will need to change their lifestyles or take medicines for the condition, under new medical guidelines released Monday. The guidelines, formulated by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology, sharply lower the threshold for normal blood pressure, in effect moving the goalposts for patients nationwid

Source: Criteria for high blood pressure revised under new guidelines | Toronto Star

This happened a few years ago for cholesterol, again the result was many more were going to be getting drugged.

The lower threshold for statin prescriptions is certainly welcome news for their manufacturers; the drugs have been among the most prescribed class in the U.S. in recent years, and in 2013, rosuvastatin (Crestor) topped the list, earning AstraZeneca $5.4 billion in sales, according to IMS Health.