Should You Take Medication for High Blood Pressure?

If your blood pressure levels are persistently high, medications are most likely an important part of your hypertension management plan. After measuring your blood pressure, the doctor will look for the right combination of BP medicines that will help in accomplishing goals such as–

• Keeping your blood pressure within the normal range

• Are easy to consume

• Fewer or no side effects

Simply taking medications is not enough. It is important that you take the right dosage at the right time. Many times, labels on prescription drugs direct you to take tablets ‘once in a day’, but do not specify what time of the day you should be taking them. Timing is a crucial factor when taking BP medicines – it depends on the type of medicine and the reason why you are taking them, and if you have any underlying health issues.

How do BP meds work?

A person’s blood pressure varies throughout the day. Normally, it tends to be higher during the morning hours right from the time you wake up and lowers at night while you sleep. However, there are also some people, whose blood pressure levels do not drop at night.

While most BP medicines are meant to be taken only once in a day, not all of them are equally effective over a period of 24 hours during which they are active. The effectiveness of BP drugs reaches its peak 4-15 hours after they are taken. The dosage is prescribed in a manner that the peak concentration coincides with the time of the day when your BP is at its highest.

Therefore, you should take your medications properly, as and when prescribed by your doctor.

• Diuretics or water pills should be taken in the morning or afternoon. These work by filtering excess water out from the kidneys.

• Angiotensin II Receptor Blockers (ARBs), Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors (ACEs), beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers should be taken at night before bedtime. These slowly release the medications so that the effects last until the morning

• when your blood pressure is likely to elevate.

Do not miss your daily dosage of medicine. It is easier to take the medications exactly as prescribed when you make it a part of your everyday routine.

• Link taking your medicines with a routine task, such as brushing and bathing

• Each time you take your medicine, mark it down on a notebook or calendar. That way you can also determine how long you have been taking the medicines and how well they are working for you.

• Keep your medicines organized in a box with proper labels so that you can easily find them

High blood pressure may be a persistent or lifelong condition if left uncontrolled. Furthermore, high BP leads to many health complications. Therefore, it is important that you consult a doctor and make sure you take medications regularly.