I am 59 years old, with a BM! of 25.5. I have just been diagnosed with borderline hypertension blood pressure averaging 156/86. The doctor prescribed BP tablets but I am reticent to take them. I had a normal blood pressure reading last year but since then I have put on around 12 pounds and was wondering if it would be safe to delay taking the tablets for a month and making a few lifestyle changes like exercising, cutting out alcohol and aiming to lose the12 pounds and then see if the BP goes down to within normal range or am I setting myself up for a stroke by delaying as the nurse suggested. Any views on this would be welcome. Thank You.
I was around your age when i was told this. I am now 8 years on and still take 2 different bp tabs. It went up to 3 tabs but ive stopped one .Im not over weight.
I had one bout of AF and they put me on a blood thinner but ive stopped that as too restrictive on what you can eat.
There no real side affects from bp meds but can make you tired like if doseage too high.
Hi Daisi,
Of course it would be safe to wait before starting medication! Some doctors wouldn't consider 156/86 to be even borderline high at your age.
When I was in my mid-50s my BP, which had always been a steady 120/80 or so, went up to 150/90 and my then-GP gave me a prescription for BP meds. Like you, I had no intention of taking them and also like you, my BMI was in the overweight range. Further in than yours though - it was around 27!
I thanked my doctor nicely, took the prescription and tore it up once I was outside. Over the next six months I worked on increasing my exercise levels and losing a bit of weight. At the end of that time I'd got my BMI down to 26, and my BP was down to 140/85 at the next visit. My doctor duly upped the dose of BP medication, and I once again thanked her, then tore the prescription up.
Within a year or two I got my BMI down to 24.5 (where it's been ever since) and my BP back to 120/80. My doctor was delighted to see that the meds were working. I never told her I wasn't taking them. She continued to issue prescriptions for a couple of years, then seemed to forget about it, and it was never mentioned again! I also did a bit of research and started taking a Mg supplement. (Site moder8tor doesn't like me mentioning it by name. Google it if you don't recognise the symbol.) I still take it now, and am convinced it helps. You should also think about reducing - though not cutting out - salt and cutting back on carbs, especially the refined kind and sugar. Every little helps. And obviously if you're a smoker you might want to cut back on that too.
20 years on, my BP is creeping up again, which isn't entirely unexpected. These days I have a more relaxed GP. On one occasion it hit 160/95 in his office. He didn't turn a hair, spent the next five minutes discussing Downton Abbey (a famous British TV series from which he claims to be learning English) then took it again. It was 140/85. He's warned me that I'll probably need to start medication some time in the next 10 years, as the general trend is definitely upwards, but he's of the school that feels a slightly higher BP is normal after middle age, and is quite happy to continue with "watchful waiting" for the time being. So am I!
I'm not saying no one should ever take BP medication. A reading of 156/86 in a 20-year-old would be a bit worrying, as would a sustained diastolic (the lower number) of 100+ in an older person. I'm just saying that we older folks don't need to allow ourselves to be bullied or scared by our medical advisors into taking drugs we may not need and which can have side-effects.
156/86 is more than borderline. Why not buy a BP monitor and check your BP at home as surgery readings can be suspect as it is a stressful situation for many of us..
If there are no side affects surely you are better lowering bp with meds if its going to stop you having a heart attack
Many of us will disagree about your no real side effects. I've been on about eight different meds and only two did not give me bad side effects.
Daisi,
1st off, I am NOT a Physician so I am only sharing my experience.
Last year I was 40 pounds over normal Weight based on BMI.
I developed High BP - Systolic and Diastolic.
Put on Lisinopril.
Started walking. Dropped 20 lbs via walking, drinking water only and no Sweets whatsoever.
After 20 lb loss, I had to reduce my Lisinopril by half.
I am still losing weight and anticipate last 20 lbs in next 4 Months. Diastolic is now Normal. Systolic was getting close to normal until I had 3 simultaneous very stressful events. Diastolic still good but Systolic went back up due to all the Stress.
I am comfortable that my last 20 lbs PLUS getting rid of the Stress will get me off the BP Med.
Info at places like Web MD show that weight reduction of as little as 5 - 10 pounds can put BP back to Normal in an otherwise Healthy and relatively Stress Free Person.
My GP and Cardiologist support what I am doing.
I am not a drinker of alcohol but I know it definitely can affect BP.
GOOD LUCK!
ErnieSC
Well, the 156 is high enough to treat, the 86 is not. Medical thinking seems to be that a few days or weeks or even months at such levels won't kill you, so yes you could wait. But realistically losing those twelve pounds at your age, if you're anything like me, is much harder than you might like to think. Would likely take a couple of months in any case.
OTOH most BP drugs make it a bit harder to exercise, so they make it even harder to lose the weight. What did they give you? I might suggest just starting with a diuretic, which has minimal side effects, and might just do the trick overnight. That would give you plenty of time to lose the weight and see if the problem goes away and you can stop even the diuretic.
Is she reads the information leaflet with any BP medication it will list the possible side effects. The one that amused me was that it may turn your toes blue.
I have had my throat swell up , erectile dysfunction, constipation and an all over rash to mention but four,
Oh, i suppose we are all different
And not for the better when we get side effects:-)
We need drugs to cure not to to take forever and how many do?
Well, I'm 73 now, I haven't had a heart attack 18 years on from being told I needed to take BP meds, and it's by no means true that BP medications never have side-effects for anyone. You only have to read up on some of these boards (especially amlodipine) to see that that's not true. I'm glad you don't have any side-effects, and many people don't of course. However, you can't just assume that no one will.
Yes, of course you can have a heart attack or a stroke if you have sustained, untreated high BP after a long period. I clearly stated in my post that I wasn't saying no one should take BP meds.
However, I'm being monitored by my doctor every six months and I trust him. Having a borderline-high BP isn't going to suddenly produce a stroke or heart attack overnight unless you have a strong family tendency to these conditions, in which case medication won't make a huge difference anyway.
I was simply stating the case for patients to have more input to their condition rather than being panicked into taking medication by threats from their medical advisors - who aren't always totally independent.
Well said, Ernie!
Thank you for your reply lily it has made me feel much better. I have a bit of time as I am not allowed to take the blood pressure tablets until I have had some blood tests. She issued a prescription and told me not to take them until then so she obviously doesn't think I am going to drop down dead immediately. I have another appointment to get the results back on the 10th January so I have some time to adopt a health lifestyle before then and hopefully I can lower it by a healthier lifestyle I started immediately with the alcohol, salt and exercise and diet changes. I suppose I will have to put Christmas on hold this year and make drastic cut backs to my plans. Well done on controlling your blood pressure and your weight loss and maintenance.
Thank you for your reply Derek. I do have a blood pressure monitor at home but I lost interest in it after I first bought it when my BP was normal and left it in a cupboard, I could kick myself now as I could have spotted it going up earlier. There are different opinions on borderline BP. Here in the UK they say anything over 140/80 but in the USA they say borderline is 150/90 and below 160/100.
Hi Ernie thank you for your reply, and well done on the weight loss and healthier lifestyle. I have some time to try and drop the BP as the doctor wont let me take them until they have done blood test and got the results which will take a few weeks because of holidays, I have already started some major cut backs and started walking twice a day so I am really hoping it will help.
Thank for your reply JX. The tablets she prescribed for me are Lisinopril 5mg, however she told me not to take them until I have my blood tested and she gets the results and because of the holidays that will take a couple of weeks. I don't know why I cant take them before blood works come back as I was on Propranolol for something different a few years ago and had no blood work done then. I also had no side effects of Propranolol so I am wishing I had just asked her if I could take those instead. I don't find it difficult to lose weight I lost a stone two years ago by healthy eating and walking 3 miles a day and kept it off with the walking. But earlier this year I broke my rib and couldn't move never mind walk, it was a lengthy job and has only just righted itself so I have not been walking and quite inactive for around 4 months that is how I managed to put the 12 pounds on. I have a BP monitor at home and will keep a close eye on it and if it doesn't start coming down or goes any higher then I will take the tablets. What sort of diuretic could I take?
I'm surprised at the American figure.
I go to a NHS hypertension centre and there they say to take four readings over a ten minute period three times a day.
There are the usual several kinds of prescription diuretics.
I don't know what to make of a doctor who gives you pills and then waits for results to come back. Lisinopril is certainly one of the most popular ACE/ARBs in the US. I'm just a little surprised at many posters on this list, in the US it seems doctors like to give you several different drugs at once, to block more of the different possible causes of BP.
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