High blood pressure is typically treated by making changes in your lifestyle and or with drug therapy. Lifestyle changes include losing weight, stopping smoking, eating a healthy diet and getting enough physical exercise.
When lifestyle changes are not enough to control high blood pressure, your healthcare provider will also prescribe medication. Drug treatment is usually recommended if your blood pressure is at or above 140/90mmHg. For people with diabetes, drug treatment is recommended if your blood pressure is at or above 130/80mmHg.
Talk to your doctor about treatment options. Several types of drugs are available to treat high blood pressure. The main drug classes are calcium channel blockers (also called calcium antagonists), angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin-receptor blockers, diuretics and, beta-blockers. Nifedipine, which is the active ingredient of Adalat®, belongs to the class of calcium channel blockers.
Ask your doctor about your individual situation. Some experts recommend blood pressure target values for adults of 140/90mmHg for non-diabetics, and 130/80mmHg for patients with diabetes.
Almost half of the individuals on medication still have high blood pressure according to current guidelines. Please check with your doctor to find out if your blood pressure medication is effective enough.
Sometimes your doctor will need to prescribe two or more drugs to bring the blood pressure down to a healthy level. The available drug classes work in various ways, and their different actions may enhance the blood-pressure-lowering effects.
No, a combination of different substances is often necessary to control blood pressure and people with complicating factors may need to take two or more drugs.
