Treating High Blood Pressure

Since uncontrolled high blood pressure, or hypertension, leads to a multitude of health problems, it’s REALLY important to follow your doctor’s INSTRUCTIONS and, if needed, to TAKE all medications as prescribed. Before your doctor puts you on meds, he or she will help you take charge of your lifestyle and diet. You may need to drink less alcohol, EAT more nutritiously, EXERCISE more, LOSE weight, QUIT smoking, and DE-stress. If such changes don’t reduce your blood pressure, your doctor will likely prescribe a DIURETIC, commonly known as a water pill. This pill flushes your body of excess salt and water, relieving pressure on your blood vessels.  Taking diuretics, particularly thiazides, may decrease your potassium levels—but they are usually the first choice because they have few other side effects. There are 2 other classes of diuretics—those that DON’T affect your potassium levels, and those that COMBINE the first 2 types.  You and your doctor can decide which is best for you. If your blood pressure remains elevated, your doctor may prescribe a second, or alternate, medication that reduces your blood pressure in different ways. The options include: Beta blockers, which slow down your heartbeat. ACE or ARB inhibitors—THEY relax your blood vessels, which lowers pressure. CALCIUM CHANNEL blockers also relax blood vessels, but through a different process. There are still OTHER hypertension medications that doctors prescribe only when everything else doesn’t work. They’re stronger, and may come with additional side effects. They include: alpha blockers, vasodilators and renin inhibitors. They use different means toward the same end—blood vessel relaxation. ALL medications come with their own side effects. Your doctor will know what medication is best for you. Check out other videos in this series to learn more about high blood pressure.