Once hypertension is diagnosed, antihypertensive drugs should be taken for life while changing lifestyle habits, aiming to lower blood pressure as much as possible below 140/90 mmHg to reduce the risk of severe cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and myocardial infarction. However, many patients stop taking their antihypertensive drugs on their own for various reasons.
In general, there are eight main scenarios where patients may stop taking their antihypertensive medication without medical advice. These should be avoided:
1. Busy work schedules leading to frequent forgetfulness in taking medication
Middle-aged hypertensive patients often have stressful lives and little time to focus on their health, causing them to frequently forget to take their medication and stop treatment passively.
Solution: Patients need to recognize the importance of antihypertensive treatment and try to take long-acting antihypertensive drugs (taken once daily) after morning hygiene routines. This way, they don't need to bring medicine to work and won't forget due to being overly focused or busy at work.
2. Stopping medication because of no dizziness or headaches, assuming the condition has improved
Hypertensive patients usually do not feel significant discomfort unless their blood pressure is extremely high, which might cause symptoms like dizziness or headaches. Some patients mistakenly believe that the absence of symptoms means normal blood pressure or improvement, so they stop taking their medication.
Solution: In fact, most risks associated with hypertension occur without any clinical symptoms. Even if there are no obvious symptoms, patients should not stop medication arbitrarily but should regularly measure their blood pressure at home and consult their doctor about whether to adjust the dosage or stop the medication.
3. Believing exercise alone can lower blood pressure, making medication unnecessary
Regular physical exercise indeed helps lower blood pressure, especially activities that induce sweating. Some people think that since they participate in daily exercise, they no longer need to take antihypertensive drugs.
Solution: The blood pressure-lowering effect of exercise is limited and often lacks long-term effectiveness. Even if blood pressure temporarily returns to normal after exercising, medication should not be stopped without professional evaluation by a doctor who will decide if it's necessary to adjust the dose or stop the medication.
4. Thinking "all medicines are toxic" and trying to avoid taking antihypertensive drugs
Some people believe that "all medicines are toxic," so they try not to take medications when possible or minimize their intake. In reality, all chemical drugs approved for sale by the National Food and Drug Administration have undergone comprehensive efficacy and safety evaluations. Therefore, within the recommended dosage range, these drugs are generally safe, even with long-term or lifelong use.
Solution: Scientific research confirms that antihypertensive drugs effectively lower blood pressure and significantly reduce the risk of serious cardiovascular diseases like strokes and heart attacks. Therefore, one should not avoid or reduce medication due to fear of side effects. Taking antihypertensive drugs under medical guidance is very safe.
5. Not knowing that hypertension requires long-term medication
Some hypertensive patients think that hypertension can be "cured" after treatment. Although effective ways to control blood pressure have been found through research into the causes and mechanisms of hypertension, it still cannot be completely cured.
Solution: Blood pressure levels result from the interaction between the body's neuroendocrine regulation system and the heart and vascular systems. When blood pressure rises, it poses a severe cardiovascular disease risk, so patients need to take medication long-term to control their blood pressure and reduce the risk of stroke and heart attacks.
6. Believing that blood pressure naturally increases with age, making medication unnecessary
As people age, large and small vessels in the body experience varying degrees of elasticity loss (or arterial hardening). Typically, systolic blood pressure continues to rise after middle age, while diastolic blood pressure may not increase in old age due to hardened arteries and might even decrease. Some people assume that increased blood pressure with age is natural and does not require treatment.
Solution: An increase in blood pressure with age is not inevitable and cannot be considered natural; it is a pathological phenomenon with serious consequences. It is necessary to continue taking antihypertensive drugs to control blood pressure and reduce cardiovascular disease risks. Additionally, understanding dietary restrictions and enhancing nutritional therapy for hypertension can delay the process of arterial hardening and maintain normal blood pressure even in old age.
7. Believing that blood pressure naturally decreases in summer due to vessel dilation, allowing medication to be stopped
In summer, some patients find their blood pressure lower than in winter or spring, even without taking any antihypertensive drugs. Some patients might have their blood pressure drop significantly below 140/90 mmHg. These patients tend to stop taking their medication during the summer.
Solution: Whether to adjust the antihypertensive treatment plan in summer depends mainly on whether there are obvious low blood pressure symptoms. If so, the drug dosage should be reduced, or medication stopped. However, adjusting medication based only on a day or week of hot weather might not suit sudden cool or cold weather, increasing blood pressure variability and cardiovascular disease risks.
8. Stopping medication due to side effects like dry cough, fatigue, or edema
Some hypertensive patients experience noticeable adverse reactions after taking antihypertensive drugs, such as a persistent dry cough from angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or diarrhea caused by angiotensin receptor blockers. Although these side effects are uncommon and usually mild within the recommended dosage range, some patients may find them intolerable and stop the medication.
Solution: After experiencing side effects, patients should consult their doctor to reduce the dosage of the problematic drug, stop taking it, or switch to another type of antihypertensive drug. If the side effects are not too severe, patients should try to persist with the medication, as some discomforts may significantly alleviate or disappear after continued use.
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