If you already have high blood pressure, doctors may need to prescribe medication to bring it under control. There are four main classes of drugs. Diuretics, which help the body excrete extra fluids to lower blood pressure, are usually tried first. Betablockers are designed to slow the heart rate and reduce the amount of blood the heart pumps. AC’E inhibitors help reduce the chemicals that cause your blood vessels to constrict. And calcium channel blockers also help to relax and widen blood vessels.
However, although they are often prescribed by doctors, drugs should be your last option. They all have side effects, ranging from fatigue to headaches to depression. Besides, there’s a lot you can do to help lower blood pressure on your own. And keep in mind that every little bit helps. For each point you drop in the diastolic measure, for example, Dr. Goldberg says you cut your risk of heart attack by 2 to 3 percent. And a massive study of approximately 350,000 Americans found that life expectancy in the United States would jump by 1.5 years if the average systolic blood pressure reading fell just 10 points, from 130 to 120.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 23rd, 2007 at 6:59 am and is filed under Natural treatement. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.