A dozen medical groups announced on Monday that new blood pressure guidelines would mean nearly half of all US adults need to make changes in diet and other habits to decrease risk of heart disease.

The new threshold of high blood pressure is 130 over 80 instead of a top level of 140 over 90.

This marks the first time the hypertension threshold has moved since it was set in 1993, and the first change in guidelines overall in 14 years.

The authors said that people close to the threshold who now fall into the new category can reduce risk of heart disease with better diet, weight loss, exercise, reducing consumption of alcohol and salt and managing stress.

The updated guidelines rely on a 2015 study of more than 9,000 people known as the "SPRINT" trial.

The research, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, found that heart risks are much lower in those who have levels around 120.

In Canada and Australia the goal is 120.

140 is still the target in Europe, but health officials are slated to review the guidelines next year.

The new US guidelines were published in two journals, Hypertension and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

The guidelines also say that blood pressure should be checked at least once a year, and diagnosing high pressure requires several readings.

Also this week, a new research review found that blood pressure drugs did not improve survival odds for most people who started out with blood pressure below the 140 threshold.

The research was published online in the JAMA Internal Medicine.

For subjects who had history of heart disease and average blood pressure of 138, using medication was linked with a 10 percent lower risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Read More:

• Blood Pressure Of 130 Is The New ‘High,' According To First Update Of Guidelines In 14 Years (Washington Post)
• Half Of US Adults Have High Blood Pressure In New Guidelines (Associated Press)
• Treating Modestly High Blood Pressure May Not Boost Survival Odds (Reuters)