New research shows that in people with high blood pressure as part of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that increases the risk for heart disease, diuretics offer greater protection against cardiovascular disease, including heart failure, and are at least as effective for lowering blood pressure as newer, more expensive medications.
What are the pros and cons of diuretics for hypertension?
Your doctor may recommend a diuretic if you have:
- Edema. Diuretics lessen swelling that usually happens in the legs.
- High blood pressure. Thiazide diuretics lower blood pressure. ...
- Heart failure. Diuretics ease swelling and congestion in the lungs. ...
- Kidney problems. You’ll keep less water.
- Liver problems. If you have cirrhosis, a diuretic will ease the fluid buildup you’ll get with it.
- Glaucoma. ...
What is the best diuretic for hypertension?
- Microzide (hydrochlorothiazide)
- Lasix (furosemide)
- Aldactone (spironolactone)
- Midamor (amiloride)
What are the side effects of diuretic?
The more common side effects of diuretics include:
- too little potassium in the blood
- too much potassium in the blood (for potassium-sparing diuretics)
- low sodium levels
- headache
- dizziness
- thirst
- increased blood sugar
- muscle cramps
- increased cholesterol
- skin rash
What are the safest blood pressure medications?
- Alpha blockers. Alpha blockers prevent the hormone norepinephrine (noradrenaline) from tightening the muscles in the walls of smaller arteries and veins, which causes the vessels to remain open and relaxed. ...
- Alpha-beta blockers. Alpha-beta blockers work similarly to beta blockers. ...
- Central-acting agents. ...
- Vasodilators. ...
- Aldosterone antagonists. ...
What is a disadvantage of using diuretics to treat high blood pressure?
The more common side effects of diuretics include: too little potassium in the blood. too much potassium in the blood (for potassium-sparing diuretics) low sodium levels.
What are the side effects of diuretic treatment?
The more common side effects of diuretics include:too little potassium in the blood.too much potassium in the blood (for potassium-sparing diuretics)low sodium levels.headache.dizziness.thirst.increased blood sugar.muscle cramps.More items...
Should you drink more water when taking diuretics?
Doctors often recommend drinking less fluid and taking diuretic medications, or water pills, to flush more water and salt out of the body through urine. The goal of treatment is to reduce swelling, which makes it easier to breathe and helps avoid hospitalization.
What should you avoid when taking diuretics?
On the other hand, if you're taking a potassium-sparing diuretic, such as amiloride (Midamar), spironolactone (Aldactone), or triamterene (Dyrenium), they may want you to avoid potassium-rich foods, salt substitutes, low-sodium milk, and other sources of potassium.
What are some examples of diuretics?
Examples of diuretics. There are three types of diuretics: Thiazide. Loop. Potassium sparing. Each type affects a different part of your kidneys. Some pills combine more than one type of diuretic or combine a diuretic with another blood pressure medication.
What is the name of the pill that helps you get rid of salt?
Find out how they work and when you might need them. By Mayo Clinic Staff. Diuretics , sometimes called water pills, help rid your body of salt (sodium) and water. Most of them help your kidneys release more sodium into your urine.
Can thiazide be used for high blood pressure?
When diuretics are used. Thiazide diuretics are recommended as one of the first drug treatments for high blood pressure. If diuretics aren't enough to lower your blood pressure, your doctor might add other blood pressure medications to your treatment plan.
Can thiazide cause low potassium levels?
If you take a thiazide diuretic, your potassium level can drop too low (hypokalemia), which can cause life-threatening problems with your heartbeat. If you're on a potassium-sparing diuretic, you can have too much potassium in your blood. Other possible side effects of diuretics include: Dizziness. Headaches.
What are some examples of potassium diuretics?
Examples of potassium-sparing diuretics include triamterene (Dyrenium), eplerenone (Inspra), and spironolactone (Aldactone).
What foods can help with hypertension?
dark leafy greens, such as kale and spinach. squash. mushrooms. potatoes. yogurt. fish. Potassium-sparing diuretics don’t pose as much as a threat to your potassium levels. However, they aren’t as effective in treating hypertension as the other types of diuretic medications, so they are often prescribed along with other drugs.
Does thiazide lower blood pressure?
The reduction in blood volume slows the rate at which blood flows through your blood vessels , helping to decrease your blood pressure. Thiazide and loop diuretics may also cause you to lose potassium in addition to water and sodium.
Can diuretics help with high blood pressure?
High blood pressure can be a contributing factor in the development of various forms of heart disease. When chosen as a treatment for hypertension, diuretics have proven to be effective in preventing heart attack and stroke in many individuals.
Is it safe to take diuretics?
Risks and Side Effects. Diuretics are generally safe for most people when taken as prescribed. The most common side effect of diuretics is increased urination. Your potassium, glucose, and cholesterol levels may fluctuate depending on the type of diuretic you’re taking.
Can taking a natural diuretic cause dehydration?
Taking a natural diuretic, even unintentionally through your normal diet, along with a pharmaceutical medication could lead to dehydration and other potentially harmful drug interactions. Speak with your doctor to learn more about which natural diuretics are appropriate to use for treating your condition.
Can thiazide be used for hypertension?
However, your doctor will tailor your drug regimen to your specific health concerns . Your specific medication may contain more than one type of diuretic agent in a single pill or dose.
What is the best diuretic for heart failure?
Loop diuretics such as bumetanide (generic only), furosemide (Lasix and generic), and torsemide (Demadex and generic) are often prescribed for heart failure. This occurs when the heart muscle becomes too weak to pump sufficient blood to meet the body’s needs for blood and oxygen.
What is the third type of diuretic?
The third type, potassium-sparing di uretics such as amiloride (Midamor and generic) and triamterene (Dyrenium) are generally used with other diuretics for the prevention or treatment of low potassium levels, or hypokalemia.
What are the different types of diuretics?
Different Types, Different Uses. There are three types of diuretics, and some are available in combination with others. The so-called thiazides, such as hydrochlorothiazide (Hydrodiuril, Microzide, and generic) and chlorthalidone (generic only), are the diuretics most commonly prescribed for high blood pressure.
What does it mean when your heart rate is higher than 100?
This may indicate dangerously low potassium levels.
How many prescriptions are there for high blood pressure?
In fact, doctors in the U.S. write about 49 million prescriptions per year for one—hydrochlorothiazide—alone. Commonly known as water pills, all diuretics have essentially ...
Can diuretics cause arthritis?
Diuretics can also boost the likelihood of a form of arthritis known as gout, so alert your healthcare provider if you notice a sudden painful inflammation of your big toe or knee. In addition, these drugs may increase your risk for type 2 diabetes or make controlling your blood sugar more challenging.
Is it safe to take diuretics long term?
For the most part, diuretics are safe for long-term use, according to Consumer Reports' chief medical adviser Marvin M. Lipman, M.D. But like all medications, they can have side effects.
How do diuretics lower blood pressure?
Diuretics lower blood pressure by increasing urinary output and reducing the body's sodium and water volume. The trial "answers a question that doctors have been asking for years, and that is, which of the available medications are best at preventing complications of blood pressure?".
Why are drugs prescribed for high blood pressure?
Drugs are usually only prescribed for high blood pressure if lifestyle changes, including diet and exercise, fail to solve the problem. The findings could have major implications for the newer drugs and their manufacturers. The new drugs have taken a significant chunk of the high blood pressure drug market.
How much money would it save to stick with diuretics?
They estimate that sticking with diuretics would have saved more than $3 billion.
Is HCTZ a diuretic?
HCTZ is often combined with other diuretics into one pill. The results of the study, called ALLHAT (Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial), appear in the Dec. 18 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association.
Is a diuretic good for high blood pressure?
After five years, researchers found that the diuretic was just as good at prevent ing heart attack or death as the newer drugs. But the medicines had different effects on blood pressure. The diuretic was better at lowering systolic blood ...
Does ACE inhibitor cause heart failure?
Those on the ACE inhibitor had a 15% higher risk of stroke, a 19% higher risk of developing heart failure, and other increased risks compared with people taking a diuretic. Even though the overall death rate was about the same in all groups, strokes and heart attacks seriously reduce quality of life.
Can you take a calcium channel blocker besides a diuretic?
If you are currently taking a calcium channel blocker, an ACE inhibitor, or another high blood pressure drug besides a diuretic, you should certainly continue to take your medication, but you should also talk to your doctor about adding a diuretic or switching to one, says Whelton. Related Links:
Why do diuretics make you pee more?
In turn, diuretics can help lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of complications such as heart attacks or strokes . But these drugs can cause some milder complications of their own.
What happens if you take low potassium?
Low potassium levels can lead to an abnormal heartbeat, confusion, kidney failure, and type 2 diabetes. By looking at 17 years of data on more than 730,000 people with hypertension, researchers found that 6 percent of those treated with chlorthalidone experienced low levels of potassium, known as hypokalemia.
Does chlorthalidone cause high blood pressure?
A new study concludes that the diuretic drug chlorthalidone may cause more side effects than hydrochlorothiazide, another commonly prescribed medication for high blood pressure . Researchers say chlorthalidone can produce dangerously low levels of potassium, a nutrient that’s critical to controlling heart and muscle function.
Does chlorthalidone cause hypertension?
However, a study published this week has concluded that chlorthalidone may cause more side effects than hydroch lorothiazide, another medication commonly prescribed for hypertension. Experts say it’s too soon to revisit recommendations and that people currently using one drug or the other likely don’t need to worry about switching medications.
Can you take diuretics with high blood pressure?
However, experts say the research on diuretics is conflicting, so people shouldn’t switch drugs until more studies are done. Medications such as diuretics can be key for people with high blood pressure. By causing you to urinate more often, the drugs can help remove excess water and salt from your body. In turn, diuretics can help lower blood ...
Is hydrochlorothiazide an observational drug?
But he noted that hydrochlorothiazide is more commonly prescribed in the United States. The new study, he pointed out, is, like the 2013 one, “observational,” meaning it observed outcomes in the real world where other variables beyond the drugs may influence things such as heart health and potassium levels.
Is chlorthalidone effective in lowering blood pressure?
Hripcsak noted that other studies have found no increased significant risk of side effects between the two drugs and that chlorthalidone was more effective in reducing high blood pressure. “So the evidence was conflicting,” he said. “A randomized trial is currently in progress, but we won’t have the results for some time.”.
