Supplements that help reduce blood pressure
Measuring blood pressure
When blood pressure is checked, two values are recorded. The higher one occurs when the
heart contracts (systole); the lower occurs when the heart relaxes between beats
(diastole). Blood pressure is written as the systolic pressure followed by a slash
followed by the diastolic pressure--for example, 120/80 mm Hg (millimeters of mercury).
This reading would be referred to as "one-twenty over eighty."
High blood pressure is defined as a
systolic pressure at rest that averages 140 mm Hg or more, a diastolic pressure at rest
that averages 90 mm Hg or more, or both. In high blood pressure, usually both the systolic
and the diastolic pressures are elevated. In isolated systolic hypertension,
the systolic pressure is 140 mm Hg or more, but the diastolic pressure is less than 90 mm
Hg--that is, the diastolic pressure is in the normal range. Isolated systolic hypertension
is increasingly common with advancing age. In almost everyone, blood pressure increases
with age, with systolic pressure increasing until at least age 80 and diastolic pressure
increasing until age 55 to 60, then leveling off or even falling.
Significant blood pressure differences between the right and left arms of patients
may indicate an increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Patients sometimes have blood
pressure differences between their arms that are greater than or equal to 20/10 mm Hg. The
prevalence and prognostic value of this finding are unknown. If these differences are due
to peripheral vascular disease, these patients may be at increased risk of cardiovascular
or cerebrovascular events.
Aspirin and
hypertension
Taking aspirin before bedtime -- but not at other times of
the day -- may lower blood pressure in patients with mild hypertension as well as in
pregnant women at risk for a dangerous blood pressure-related complication.
Uric
acid and hypertension
High blood levels of uric acid is correlated with obesity
and hypertension.
Being heavy goes hand-in-hand with having
hypertension, especially for women
NSAIDs and
hypertension
Those who take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
(NSAIDs)--such as ibuprofin (Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve) at least 22 days per month
appear to be much more likely than others to develop high blood pressure. The
investigators also discovered that similarly frequent users of acetaminophen.
Medicines that increase blood pressure
Decongestants, steroids, estrogen and oral contraceptives, and cyclosporine.
Bayer AG and Onyx
Pharmaceutical Inc.'s key cancer drug Nexavar significantly raises the risk of
hypertension. People taking Nexavar drug generically known as sorafenib should
be closely monitored and treated for hypertesnion. Nexavar -- one of Bayer's top
drug hopes -- is already approved in Europe and the United States for kidney
cancer, and is Onyx's only drug on the market.
If you have hypertension, a physician should make sure you don't have the
following:
Primary hyperaldosteronism and Cushing’s syndrome. Hyperthyroidism or
hypothyroidism. Sleep apnea. People who live near airports may have an elevated
risk of hypertension due to noise pollution.
The use of drugs to lower hypertension as well as the associated
costs are reduced when the prescription for hypertension medication is based on
self-measurements of blood pressure at home, rather than office measurements.
Complications of hypertension
Cardiovascular disease, left ventricular hypertrophy which could lead
to congestive heart failure, arrhythmias and myocardial infarction, stroke, and kidney
disease.
People with high blood pressure are at increased risk for
disability and dementia as they age. Hypertension increased the risk of
developing disabilities, such as not being able to lift objects, walk up or down
stairs, or bathe oneself.
Hypertension treatment with
diuretics increase risk for diabetes
In a major study of blood
pressure drugs, patients treated with water pills, or "diuretics," were at
increased risk of developing diabetes, according to research presented at the
annual scientific meeting of the American Society of Hypertension. But Dr.
Joshua Barzilay, from Emory University in Atlanta, said that the increase in
diabetes did not translate into an increased risk of heart attack or stroke. In
the 42,000-patient study, known as ALLHAT, researchers compared four types of
blood pressure drugs: a diuretic, an alpha-blocker, a calcium channel blocker,
and an ACE inhibitor. After two years of treatment, 9.3 percent of patients who
received a diuretic called Hygroton (chlorthalidone) developed diabetes. In
contrast, with the other drugs no more than 7 percent of patients developed
diabetes. By 4 years, the difference was still apparent. Barzilay suggested that
further studies might be able to determine if costs are increased because those
patients who develop diabetes need further treatments.
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