My wife and I were watching a program on television one night when a commercial came on touting a new prescription medication and its great benefits. I admit I was barely paying attention to the commercial when my wife muttered, “With those side effects, the cure truly is worse than the disease.” Huh? Thanks to digital recording technology I was able to rewind the commercial and listen to possible side effects. They did seem bad indeed, especially when “possible stroke or heart attack” was mentioned.
As often happens, one idea leads to many and soon I was relating that commercial to the numerous email correspondence I’ve received from clients relating to my natural High Blood Pressure Program. The two most consistent messages I’ve received from clients are: My program has helped them dramatically lower their blood pressure without medication and that those who were previously on prescription medication sought out my natural remedy because they just couldn’t bear the negative side effects of the medicine.
Many of my clients even went so far as to name their medications. This led me to research the many high blood pressure medications and their side effects. Even though I’d received first hand information from clients, my research findings were eye opening.
Let’s first discuss high blood pressure and why intervention is even considered necessary. High blood pressure or hypertension is a consistently elevated blood pressure exceeding 140 over 90. While many treat this as a disorder, it is in fact, a symptom of a larger disease or ailment. Most of the time doctors do not know what the larger issue is so they treat the symptom – high blood pressure.
Why is high blood pressure a bad thing? High blood pressure can lead to weakening of arteries, heart disease, heart attack and stroke. High blood pressure can affect not only the heart but the brain, eyes and kidneys.
Even the non life threatening dangers of high blood pressure are disturbing – blindness, erectile dysfunction, loss of sleep and the list continues. An added negative trait about high blood pressure is that often times; there are no symptoms, hence, the label – “silent killer.”
For others though, symptoms of high blood pressure include: blurred vision, headaches, dizziness and nausea. The only way to know if your blood pressure is high is to have it measured.
One high blood pressure reading does not always indicate chronic high blood pressure so it’s important to schedule regular physicals and keep your doctor informed about your family history, medical history, medications you are taking (even over the counter medications can cause high blood pressure).
If your doctor prescribes high blood pressure medication, you should know what possible side effects are. While there are several different types of high blood pressure medication, I am going to focus on four of them: ACE inhibitors, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers and diuretics.
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibitors – These drugs help blood vessels relax by blocking the production angiotensin II, a hormone that causes blood vessels to narrow. Commonly prescribed ACE inhibitors include: benazepril (Lotensin), captopril (Capoten), enalapril (Vasotec), lisinopril (Prinivil, Zestril) ,quinapril (Accupril, Mavik) and ramipril (Altace).
Side effects include: Increased potassium levels, lingering cough, headache, dizziness, nausea, joint pain, weakness, chest pain, fever and in rare cases, kidney disease.
Beta Blockers – These drugs reduce nerve signals to the heart and blood vessels which causes the heart to beat slower and use less force, thus reducing blood pressure. Commonly prescribed beta blockers include: acebutolol (Sectral), atenolol (Tenormin), carvedilol (Coreg), metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL), nadolol (Corgard), penbutolol (Levatol), propranolol (Inderal) and timolol (Blocadren).
Side effects include: fatigue, dizziness, shortness of breath, impotence, depression, memory loss and even hallucenations.
Calcium Channel Blockers – These drugs block calcium from entering heart and blood vessel muscle cells, thus preventing the blood vessels from constricting and lowering blood pressure. Commonly prescribed beta blockers include: amlodipine (Norvasc), diltiazem (Cardizem, Dilacor XR) felodipine (Plendil), nicardipine (Cardene), nifedipine (Adalat, Procardia), and verapamil (Calan, Covera, Isoptin, Verelan).
Side effects include: nausea, heartburn, shortness of breath, trouble swallowing, dizziness, sexual dysfunction, and in some cases, stroke and heart attack – one of the very things the drug is designed to prevent.
Diuretics (water pills) – These drugs flush the body of fluid and sodium so that the blood vessels do not hold as much fluid, and in turn lower blood pressure. Common diuretics include: chlorthalidone (Thalitone), furosemide (Lasix), hydrochlorothiazide (Esidrix) and indapamide (Lozol).
Side effects include: electrolyte imbalances, impotence, breast enlargement in men (gynecomastia), gout, menstrual irregularities, increased blood sugar, blurred vision, and fever.
If you are currently taking high blood pressure medication and are experiencing any of the above symptoms (the above list is by no means complete), DO NOT stop taking your medication without talking to your doctor. Discuss your valid concerns with your doctor and discuss reducing and eventually removing medicine from your system.
I recommend my all natural High Blood Pressure Program because it works. Don’t be concerned if your doctor is hesitant to natural remedies, as most traditional doctors are.
Start out using my program in conjunction with the medicine and as your blood pressure lowers, and that will be your proof that the program works. Keep seeing your doctor and reducing the medication and using my High Blood Pressure Program until you eventually no longer need medication.
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