The hidden battle: Some medications might raise your blood pressure

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Do you know that high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can lead to serious health problems like heart disease, strokes, and kidney issues? Lots of people across the globe deal with this condition.

But don’t worry – high blood pressure can be managed! This usually involves making healthy lifestyle choices, like eating balanced meals, doing regular exercise, and taking the correct medicines as your doctor advises.

Unseen Trouble: Medication and High Blood Pressure

Now, let’s talk about an interesting research study done by scientists at Harvard.

They found that some people who have high blood pressure are taking medicines for other health problems that could actually make their blood pressure go up!

The researchers looked at information from a large health survey and found that about 18.5% of adults with high blood pressure were taking such medications.

These medicines included ones for depression, inflammation, hormone conditions, stuffy noses, and weight loss.

The Complex Puzzle of Medication

The study showed that people who were taking these other medicines had a harder time controlling their high blood pressure.

They either didn’t have medicine to lower their blood pressure, or they needed higher doses of their blood pressure medicine.

This tells us that it’s very important for you to talk to your doctor about all the medicines you take. This is even more important if you see more than one doctor, as they may not all know about all your medications.

With this knowledge, you can work with your doctor to come up with a plan that helps manage your high blood pressure while treating your other health conditions too.

Lifestyle: A Key Factor in Controlling High Blood Pressure

Medicine is not the only way to manage high blood pressure. Your daily habits can make a big difference too.

Eating foods that are low in salt and full of fruits, veggies, and whole grains can help. So can regular exercise and activities that reduce stress, like meditation and yoga.

What Medicines Can Increase Blood Pressure?

There are several types of medicines that can make blood pressure go up. Some of these are:

  • Anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen and naproxen
  • Some antidepressants
  • Steroids like prednisone
  • Hormonal medicines like birth control pills
  • Decongestants that clear your nose
  • Weight loss pills

Remember, not all medicines in these groups will increase your blood pressure, and different people might react differently.

Always check with your doctor or pharmacist if you have questions about your medicines and your blood pressure.

Further Reading

If you want to learn more about high blood pressure, you might want to read up on the best time to take high blood pressure drugs and new treatments for high blood pressure.

There’s also information about how beetroot juice could lower high blood pressure and how a certain plant nutrient might help.

If you care about blood pressure, please read studies about cannabis linked to blood pressure reduction in older people, and this common plant nutrient could help reduce high blood pressure.

For more information about blood pressure, please see recent studies that beetroot juice could help lower high blood pressure, and results showing vitamin D could improve blood pressure in people with diabetes.

This study was published in the JAMA Internal Medicine journal. It was carried out by Dr. Timothy Anderson and his team.

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