High blood pressure warning: Study finds common medications can raise your reading
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Researchers from a Harvard-affiliated teaching hospital were shocked to discover that nearly one fifth of Americans with hypertension were on medication that risked raising their blood pressure. A large number of commonly prescribed medications can cause a rise in blood pressure. This includes some anti-depressants, anti-inflammatories, steroids and oestrogen. In many cases there are replacements that a doctor can prescribe that do risk raising blood pressure as a side effect.
“In some cases, these medications are appropriate, as they are treating an important issue without a better alternative,” said co-author Doctor Timothy Anderson to Medical News Today.
“However, in many cases, I think the risk of raising blood pressure is simply overlooked, particularly for patients using these medications for many years.”
The researchers found that many of the people taking drugs that risked worsening high blood pressure were simultaneously taking drugs intended to treat hypertension.
Doctor Anderson also noted that his research likely underestimated the true number, as many medications are available over the counter (without a prescription) that can increase your blood pressure.
Non-prescription medications that can raise your blood pressure include anti-inflammatory medications and decongestants.
Non-steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) are often used without a prescription to treat inflammation and can be used to reduce pain from conditions such as arthritis.
NSAIDs can also be found in some cough and cold medications to relieve painful flu symptoms.
In some cases these medications can be replaced with alternatives that do not contain NSAIDs.
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The study demonstrates the way that pharmacists and doctors can work together to reduce the risk of hypertension by changing their prescribing habits.
Doctor Dave Dixon told Medical News Today: “Not all antidepressants affect blood pressure the same, so pharmacists can recommend alternatives to the prescriber that have little to no effect on blood pressure to avoid unnecessary worsening of blood pressure control.”
In other cases, doctor Dixon noted that changing, reducing or eliminating a prescription can create new and potentially worse challenges.
He advised that patients with hypertension take steps to monitor their blood pressure at home and report changes to their doctor.
There are many non-medical risk factors for high blood pressure that we can control in our daily lives, according to the CDC.
A diet heavy in salt, typically found in processed and preserved foods, is a common cause of high blood pressure.
Other things that increase your chance of developing hypertension include alcohol consumption, smoking and lack of exercise.
Family history and age can increase your risk, with some aspects of blood pressure being heritable and others worsening over time.
Having a persistently high blood pressure increases your chance of developing a variety of health complications.
It increases the risk of developing blockages in arteries, reducing blood flow to the heart.
This increases your risk of suffering a life threatening heart attack or stroke depending on the severity.
High blood pressure can also cause damage to other organs, such as the kidneys, which can lead to chronic kidney failure.
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