Every hypertension patient, at the beginning of taking medicine, the doctor will also instruct [pay attention to life, otherwise taking medicine alone is not effective]. Everyone is very obedient, slowly, eat less salt, exercise every day, weight is light, blood pressure drops.
At this time, we are facing a new question: Can I stop taking drugs?
This question cannot be answered across the board. It depends on the level of blood pressure and the time when blood pressure reaches the standard.
- If the blood pressure is controlled within the ideal range (usually below 140/90 mmHg) for more than half a year and can continue to adhere to the current lifestyle, you can try to reduce the dosage of antihypertensive drugs. If the blood pressure does not reach the standard, or when the blood pressure is high and low, you must continue to take the medicine.
Blood pressure control is a protracted war. For the sake of your health for a longer time, the following issues must be paid attention to:
STEP 1 Don’t Eat Stop Eating
If you want to stop taking medicine, you must not be impatient. The more intermittent you take medicine, the more difficult it will be to control your blood pressure. Withdrawal or reduction will be a long way off.
Moreover, the fluctuation of blood pressure caused by irregular medication will also increase the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
STEP 2 Don’t exercise too much
Many patients feel that their blood pressure is still not well controlled after taking medicine. It must be that exercise is not enough. Strengthen the amount of exercise, and some also start dieting and do not eat meat in order to control blood pressure within the ideal range.
A healthy lifestyle is right, but it is not good to overdo it. Heredity also accounts for a part of the risk of hypertension. For some people, insisting on exercise and healthy diet cannot control blood pressure and need medical help.
Excessive [health] often persists for a long time, and one cannot excessively [injure] oneself. One should choose a healthy lifestyle suitable for one’s long-term persistence, and use drugs to adjust one’s blood pressure on this basis.
STEP 3 Don’t be superstitious about natural therapy
Many organizations and businesses will promote various alternative therapies, such as recuperating the body through various ways to achieve a so-called “balance” and [radical] hypertension without taking medicine.
It is true that some patients with mild hypertension can control their blood pressure within the normal range through diet and exercise, but if diet and exercise have no effect, or if blood pressure rises moderately or severely, the most effective and safest method is to control blood pressure with drugs.
Antihypertensive drugs are not addictive. Compared with side effects, their benefits of protecting heart and kidney are more obvious.
Drugs are used to help you, not to [treat] you. Rational drug use definitely has more advantages than disadvantages.