rarely have very high blood pressure but often am around about 130/85. I have a prescription for a low-dose for Norvasc and my blood pressure gets really low when I take it regularly.

With a family history of heart disease, I guess low blood pressure is better than high

meds out there. If one doesn't work, they could always try another class. Of course this is assuming that diet or exercise does not do the job, or a person has trouble committing to a diet and exercise regime.

When you say low dose, are you talking about 5mg or 2.5mg? The maximum daily dose of Norvasc is 10mg/day, which can be taken in divided doses, 5 mg in the morning, and 5 mg in the evening. The usual starting dose of Norvasc is 5 mg. However, many people are started on 2.5mg.

How low does your BP get?

If you are experiencing symptoms of Syncope, lightheadedness, etc. they may be pushing your BP too low, and you may need to lower the dosage, or change to a different BP class. Everyone is different, and reacts differently to medication, so one size doesn't fit all.

A broken hip could put someone in a nursing home for the rest of his or her life. Of course so could a stroke.

No snacks, little cooked food, plenty of vegetables and fruits. All things in moderation. I'm 57 and feeling fine.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]“If you're not committed to anything, you're just taking up space.”
Gregory Peck, Mirage (1965)[/center][/font][hr]

when I was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy caused by A-fib.

Five year survival odds were 50/50 and that was 12 years ago.

Coincidentally, I worked on the launch of Cardizem many years ago, as well as Norvasc, Inderal, Mevacor and many other CV drugs. I'm giving away my age, since Inderal was launched in the early 70s.

I was lucky. Cardizem worked immediately and I've had no adverse effects. If it hadn't worked or wasn't well tolerated, there were, and are, many alternatives.

BTW: I never had high blood pressure. Not overweight. No outward signs except dizzy spells that my doctor ascribed to "stress and anxiety." Finally found a doctor who diagnosed me on the spot. She prescribed the medication and my a-fib was gone the next day. Within six months my cardiomyopathy was improving (very rare) and within 18 months it was undetectable. Was it pure dumb luck or the extreme exercise program I began? I don't care.

My advice (my plea): Get yourself diagnosed and get on a medication that works for you.

However, I really am not comfortable taking any drugs. It takes a lot to get me to take aspirin.

Should be dead? Don't we also have lots of data showing the typical blood pressure falls around 120/80? So evolutionarily, most people are time bombs? Glad the drugs are inexpensive, but they do have side effects. People still need health care to decide what is best.

the millions of people walking around with what used to be normal blood sugar, normal weight, and normal cholesterol. Time bombs all. Get it all just right and you will live forever, doncha know.

smoke and drink excessively, and many of those people will not be affected adversely by those habits. However, it is a fact that they put themselves at a higher risk from cancer, lung damage, liver or kidney disease, etc., by the engaging in such activities.

What this study showed was that those who fit into the category where 140/90 was used as the criteria for the upper limit of BP, they are at 30% increased risk of cardiovascular or end organ damage, than someone whose BP is 120/80.

If people decide to do something about it, it is an individual choice. No one forces anyone to take any drugs they don't want to take, and that not only includes BP meds, but also antibiotics, vaccines, pain killers etc.

As to your last point that people need health care to decide what is best, that is an absolute requirement, and I would say right.

Translation: lowering BP threshhold brings in more customers and sells more pills, enriching corporate drug pushers.

Most are available in inexpensive generic form and many are recognized as Essential Medicintes by the WHO.

It's tempting to condemn pharmaceutical companies for trying to squeeze another buck out of people--especially lately with punk-ass CEOs smiling their shithead smiles all over the internet--but happily in this case it doesn't quite apply.

a lower BP than currently recommended was beneficial than the established criteria. It was a randomized study, and showed a 30% decrease in cardiovascular problems, than the group which adhered to the higher standard.

It was stopped early because there was a 30% less chance of adverse effects and death in those who had lower BP.

Because the study was stopped early, it doesn't answer questions regarding if certain subgroups benefit more than others, or if potential side effects of BP lowering created other issues

Your conclusion is wrong as was explained. Most of the BP drugs that are used today are generic, and very inexpensive, and the major pharmaceutical companies do not benefit financially from this. The generic drug companies do make some profit, but it isn't extreme.

No one is forced to take any BP drug they don't want to take, and people are free discuss the results with their physician or ignore it.

healthcare.

I agree with you

It was 103/68 when I woke up yesterday morning. Once in a while it shoots up into the 120's and 130's for a day or two, maybe a week, then it's back down. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. I can't pin it down to anything I've eaten, or any other lifestyle changes. It went up during the first cold weather we had this year, but the most recent cold snap didn't have the same effect.

My parents both have hypertension controlled by meds. Their old-school doc says focusing on keeping it very low in older folks is not a good idea because it can cause balance problems.

require BP treatment with drugs. Whatever you are doing, you are doing right, for you.

As for your folks, or anyone for that matter, it is a question of risk verses reward. The whole goal is to reduce blood pressure where the side effects do not offset the benefits. Many older adults are started at lower doses. In the example I used, Norvasc, the initial dose is normally 5 mg/day, but 2.5 mg/day is used in a lot of folks because of the side-effects you alluded to.

One size does not fit all

Some may be more subtle, like what happens when you lower blood flow to the brain? Check if they say "memory loss" for example!!

Live longer as a vegetable?

http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/guide/side-effects-high-blood-pressure-medications

I can't get the page to load in a readable format, so I would be interested to read the part about blood pressure medications turning people into vegetables.

Thanks!

all people. The PDR lists the side-effects associated with all medicines, and the percentages of those effected during the FDA approval process.

No one is forced to take any blood pressure medicine. What this study indicates is that there is a cardiovascular benefit from lower blood pressure than higher blood pressure. Just how low that value should be is a decision between a patient and their doctor, and side-effects of the medicines.

The evidence is vastly overwhelming that high blood pressure is a major risk for strokes, heart disease, and other end organ damage. How low that blood pressure should be is a question of risk verses reward

Switched to physical activity and diet control of BP, feel far better.

Adding those foods high in both of those, along with low doses of supplements of same, cured my 140/90 for good. Since 2011. Losing those extra pounds will help too, but I am/was of normal weight.

agents, they should periodically monitor their electrolytes

But forever I've been told that is too high.

be considered perfectly normal, even with the suggested guidelines in the OP

And I don't have diabetes, but it runs through both sides of my family.

have a happy holiday

Happy holidays.

It's a problem getting discharged when I'm in the hospital - for most people that's shock or internal bleeding, but that's my normal and has been for 40 years.

Last edited Thu Dec 24, 2015, 06:31 PM - Edit history (1)

When I'm relaxed, my systolic is 103. But just now, getting stuck in the kitchen while the useless menfolk in my family sit around talking about drones and ignoring everything that needs to be done to get Christmas Eve dinner on the table, I checked my BP. My systolic's 180.

Maybe instead of a BP pill, I should take a vacation from my family.

And p.s. I'm the breadwinner in the family as well as the cook, cleaner, and bottle washer.

I hate Christmas.

as meditation, or learning just to let go.

While BP fluctuates normally for most people, unless you are running a marathon or weight lifting, a systolic of 180 is too high. If this occurs once in a while, that is one thing, but if you are under constant stress all the time, and the BP shoots up frequently to those levels, I would be consulting with my physician if it was me

I'd like verification. Until the last few years my bp ran around 110/72. I understand my current numbers (140/75) mean my arteries are hardening. Sigh

pressure. That is the difference between the systolic and diastolic value. A pulse pressure greater than 40 mm Hg means your blood vessels have lost some flexibility.

Treating high blood pressure is the usual method to reduce pulse pressure within normal limits.

The most important point you have made is you would like verification. That is what getting a second opinion is about. For some reason a lot of people feel hesitant about getting a second opinion. I suspect some feel their current physician would be "offended", or "insulted" that a second opinion is desired.

No patient should feel that way, and no doctor who is worth anything is offended by second opinions. It is done all the time.

It is your life, and you have every right to a second opinion. Millions of people over 80 are taking blood pressure medicine. For many of those a reduced dosage is given.

The important thing is if you are concerned, you should get a second opinion, and your current doctor should welcome it. If your current doctor has issues with you getting a second opinion, you might want to consider a new doctor. There may be good reasons your current doctor believes that the risk reward for BP meds in your case isn't worth it, but if you are concerned you should definitely get another view point.

Your values are actually borderline. Most everyone's pulse pressure increases somewhat as they get older. Whether your value points to a slightly higher risk, you really need to get a second opinion.

All the best

I have never seen that one yet and scared the shit out of me. Probably sending it back to high 50's low 60's.

As I age,I really do not want a lifetime medicine. Interesting study though. I guess if it was genetically in the family, it would be a consideration.

than your pressure normally is. Assuming you are not experiencing physical symptoms, if you are using one of the "automatic BP monitors", it could be a bad reading, keeping in mind the automatic monitors are not always accurate. Some depend on a microphones, pressure changes heart sounds etc, and they can produce inaccurate results. The most accurate readings are obtained with the manual sphygmomanometers and a stethoscope.

If you are concerned, you should go in and get the reading confirmed, and or see your medical provider. That is what I would do

First - watch what you eat. Seriously. Pay attention to those calories. More vegetables and fruits. Cut way back on meat. And try to limit your daily sodium intake to less than half of the US Daily Recommended amount.

Second - get off your butt and move. Exercise regularly whether you want to or not. If you don't like excising - walk. I walk around 3 miles a day on work days and 8 a day on weekends.

I nearly bit the big one two years ago when I allowed my eating habits and job stress get the better of me. My blood pressure was life threateningly high at 230/185. Medication helped some, but I realized I had to make major life style changes if I was to keep living. Now my blood pressure hovers in the 110/65 range. On days I eat anything over 50% of the recommended daily allowance of sodium my blood pressure can spike to around 140/80, so I have become a control freak over what I ingest.

Medication can help. I take the lowest prescribed dose of baby aspirin, a beta blocker, and blood pressure meds daily. But if I were to rely solely on that I would have already succumbed to a stroke or heart attack.

Blood pressure can be lowered with effort and vigilance - not just medication.