I don't put much stock into it either. I suspect it may be a scare tactic of sorts to persuade people to make certain lifestyle changes.

I also take everything that "celebrity doctors" like Dr. Oz say with a grain of salt the size of a boulder. Who knows what they may be exaggerating - or outright inventing - for the sake of ratings? I'm much more inclined to trust a doctor I've actually been seeing for a while and who knows my personal history and the many complexities of my life. Medicine is almost never one size fits all.

Not to mention how un-representative blood pressure taken in the doctor's office can be for people with anxieties related to their health. My resting blood pressure at home is so low, I'm borderline hypotensive. But at the doctor's office, where my PTSD and social anxiety come out in full, it's well over the recommended guideline. I make sure to explain that every time. (Which I'm getting sick of doing, but it's necessary to avoid a misdiagnosis.)