Are you conflicted about whether to adopt a major lifestyle change or let your medications handle your blood
pressure? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered. Find here all the different types of medications available to you
and the side effects for each. We are here to help you choose what’s in your best interest by providing precise
information based on unbiased sources and expertise. Read on to learn more.
What Is High Blood Pressure?
Hypertension or high blood pressure is a situation where the pressure of the blood flowing in your blood
vessels is too high. It can cause a range of immediate or prolonged consequences for your health and must be
treated immediately.
Risk factors like smoking, alcohol consumption, not maintaining a healthy weight, and family history have been
credited as being the causes of developing high blood pressure.
Measuring Blood Pressure
Regularly monitoring your blood pressure levels can save you from various health problems. Hence, you should
conduct a blood pressure test
after regular intervals.
A blood pressure reading can also be taken at home. It is very easy to learn how to measure and record high
blood pressure to monitor and study any patterns that might emerge in your measurements over time. The process
is a simple one:
Ensure you haven’t taken caffeine, smoked, or conducted any form of significant physical exertion, like heavy
exercise, before at least thirty minutes of carrying out the test to prevent erroneous high blood pressure
readings.
It is important to be seated in the correct position to ensure maximum accuracy of the measurements. A correct
position is when you are sitting with the legs touching the ground and the elbow being supported is kept at
level with your heart. Use the blood pressure monitor to take measurements and record them.
You must conduct these regular blood pressure checks at the same time each day and preferably daily. Record
these measurements in a chart for some time. This will help your doctor see any patterns to devise a suitable
plan.
Different Medications Are Available to Help You Manage High Blood Pressure
A range of
different options are available to treat primary hypertension and secondary hypertension
among patients:
- Diuretics: They help the body to get rid of any extra water or even salt (sodium) and thus regulate
the pressure in the blood. - Beta Blockers: They work to decrease the rate of the blood being pumped in the heart and help
reduce the heart muscle’s workload. - ARBs: ARBs curtail the effect brought on by Angiotensin, a chemical that causes blood vessels to
become narrower. - Alpha-blockers: Reduce the resistance offered to blood inside blood vessels, particularly the
arteries. - Central agonists: These drugs engage with your nervous system and reduce the production of
adrenaline, which consequently causes decreased blood pressure. - ACE inhibitors: They, too, bring down the effect of Angiotensin and lower the blood
pressure. - Calcium channel blockers: These medications essentially limit and control our body’s
use of the element calcium. The circulatory system and the heart muscles need calcium to
function. Thus, these medicines indirectly affect the pressure of blood flowing through this system. - Vasodilators: Vasodilators directly impact the diameter of blood vessels through which the blood
flows. They make it wider, reducing the blood pressure.
People with blood pressure diagnosed may also be given a combination of the medicines mentioned above.
Some Side Effects of the Medications
When deciding which meds to prescribe to you, your doctor will look at the side effects that each type of
medicine has:
- Diuretics: These drugs tend to reduce the amount of potassium in your body, and hence, you may
experience symptoms like weakness and cramps, for example, in your legs. - Beta Blockers: There may be signs like dizziness, insomnia, and constipation. However, more
dangerous effects include diminishing heart health that may even result in heart attacks. - ARBs: There may be dizziness, low potassium levels, and a possibility of kidney damage. More
importantly, it should not be given to a pregnant person. - Alpha-blockers: Your heart may start beating faster, along with dizziness, weakness, and
experiencing trembling. - Central agonists: They can cause drowsiness, dry mouth, fatigue, and headaches.
- ACE inhibitors: Side effects signs including dizziness, fainting, and dry cough may appear. There
may be a sudden increase in your potassium levels and a possibility of a kidney malfunction. - Vasodilators: Some vasodilators may cause headaches and swelling around the eyes, which are
particularly milder symptoms that may go away.
Combining High Blood Pressure Medicines
Combining different medications is sometimes needed to control your high blood pressure. It allows different
aspects of blood pressure management to be targeted simultaneously. Different types of medicines impact
different areas of the system, like decreasing the heart rate, causing blood vessels to relax, or decreasing
water retention in blood. Using a combination of these medicines can target the desired areas more
efficiently.
Each person has their own medical needs and risks. By using different combinations of medicines, doctors can
cater to the personal needs of each patient by providing tailor-made solutions specifically for them. Moreover,
combining different medicines means taking a lesser dosage of each individual drug, and hence fewer side effects
for users.
However, you should make sure that the process of combining medications is done at your doctor’s discretion and
approval. This makes sure that the medicine combination is balanced in a way that provides the desired effect
without making it dangerous for your health.
Finding the Right Balance Between Lifestyle Changes and Medications
Lifestyle changes and medication are important when treating high blood pressure. Both must be instilled in
your routine in a balanced way, as the utility of each cannot be underestimated.
Lifestyle changes aim to bring a change in your daily habits that are putting you at a much greater risk of
getting high blood pressure. Essentially, these changes aim at prevention and minimizing the effect of the
condition. Some examples of these changes are: having a better diet, introducing exercise to your routine, and
avoiding the intake of alcohol and smoking.
Often, lifestyle changes are not enough for the treatment of high blood pressure, and a doctor may prescribe
some medicines for you. Although they can be very efficient in controlling your blood pressure, they still are
not a substitute for good exercise and diet. Nevertheless, a doctor must be consulted to help make you a plan
that includes a balance of both these remedies.
What to Expect When Starting Hypertension Medication
All discussions regarding your condition, family history, and dietary habits should be done with your doctor
before coming up with a medication plan. They will choose from a wide range of medications available. Different
factors, like your age, family history, past medical history, and more, will affect the decision.
Once the doctor has selected the specific medicines, they will decide on the dosage and the timings with which
each drug has to be taken by you. This schedule must be followed strictly.
A series of follow-up checkups by the doctor will also be necessary. This is done to ensure that there are no
negative reactions in your body to these medications. If any side effects are observed, necessary changes to
your medicine combinations will be made.
Dos and Don’ts of Taking High Blood Pressure Medications
Some basic
guidelines must be followed if you are taking medicines for high blood pressure:
You should take your medicines as prescribed and advised by the doctor, taking special care with the timing and
the amount of dosage you take. Moreover, get your blood pressure checked regularly and report to your doctor in
case there is a discrepancy. It can be beneficial for you to adopt a healthy diet and a good exercise routine
along with your medication for maintaining normal blood pressure. Lastly, make sure that you remain hydrated, as
some medicines, like diuretics, can make your body produce more urine and lose a lot of water.
Conversely, there are some things that you must avoid while taking hypertension medications. You must not miss
your medicine doses or stop taking the meds abruptly without notice and consultation with your doctor. Another
important point to consider is the dangers of self-medicating. You should avoid taking someone else’s medicines
or adjusting the doses yourself.
High Blood Pressure Medications During Pregnancy
When asked to consider what causes high blood pressure in women, the answer is the same as with men. There are
common causes that affect both. However, women have a greater chance of getting high blood pressure during
pregnancy as the newer blood vessels formed for the placenta are not working properly. Hence, special care is
needed with their intake of medications.
Pregnant women with diabetes should avoid taking any diuretic drugs as they can cause considerable hikes in
their blood sugar levels. Similar is the case with beta-blocker drugs.
They should also avoid taking any ACE inhibitors and even ARBs. These drugs are known to have severe negative
impacts on both the fetus and the pregnant person. They can cause low blood pressure, kidney failure, or even
heart disease.
Herbal and Household Remedies and Their Merits
Due to the prevalence of high blood pressure in modern times, people have adopted some herbal remedies to help
overcome its effects. Although people commonly use these, their credibility is still in question.
People have been known to use materials like garlic, hibiscus tea, cinnamon, and fish oil. All these are
naturally occurring substances with zero human input. Hence, their usage has shown minimal side effects to the
users.
Regardless, it must be kept in mind that these remedies are not substitutes for actual medications provided by
doctors and, hence, must be used with consultation. These alternatives are not as efficiently regulated as the
ones provided by doctors, so their efficiency is doubtful.
Tips That Will Help You Stick To Your Medicine Schedule
Here are some tips that will help you stick to your medicine routine and maintain healthy blood
pressure:
- You can set reminders so that all medicines are taken on time.
- By making medicines a part of your daily routine, it is unlikely that you will forget to take them.
- A range of medication reminder apps are available online that can help you manage your routine.
- It is always recommended to involve a family member or a friend who can help you in the process.
You can follow these pointers to help you stay on track with your routine, and you should always contact a medical practitioner if you
need any guidance.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1heexs7RctZH2mF8WKsL_B52qV4nDjIRQ?usp=sharing
Checked with the client for relevance. Approved.
Review from Claude:
Based on reviewing the company information in the CVG – Truth File document and the article CCW-4538_High Blood
Pressure Medications_ An Overview, I do not believe the article aligns well with Cardiovascular Group’s business
and services. Here are a few key reasons:
- Cardiovascular Group specializes in diagnostic testing and treatments related to heart conditions,
including cardiac catheterization, ablation procedures, implantable devices like pacemakers, and surgical
procedures. The article is a general overview of medications used to treat high blood pressure. While high
blood pressure can be a risk factor for heart disease, the article does not seem directly relevant to CVG’s
specialized cardiac services. - The article goes into detail about the different classes of blood pressure medications, their mechanisms
of action, side effects, etc. But CVG appears to be a procedural specialty practice, not a primary care
clinic prescribing medications to manage high blood pressure. The article seems more appropriate for a
primary care physician’s practice. - There is no mention in the CVG materials that they offer medical management of high blood pressure. The
services listed focus on specialized cardiac diagnostics and interventions. The article therefore does not
seem well aligned with the services CVG provides. - The writing style and level of detail in the article do not match the promotional and consumer-focused
materials that CVG has on their website. The article gets deep into the pharmacological aspects whereas
CVG’s website summarizes services at a very high level for patients.
In summary, while the article provides useful information about medications for high blood pressure, it does
not appear well matched to CVG’s specialty cardiac services and procedures based on the information provided
about the company. Let me know if you need any clarification on my reasoning!
