What Nutrients do Blood Pressure Medications Deplete?
Tags : Nutrient Depletions
The most popular medications prescribed for lowering blood pressure are diuretics. They are the first line therapy in hypertension protocols. These medications work by different mechanisms in the body but all have positive and negative effects. The positive effects of course are lowered blood pressure and a lower risk for a serious cardiac event. But how often do you hear about the negative effects of blood pressure medications? Sure, you have read those inserts that come with the medication or maybe you have asked your trusted pharmacist about side effects. You may get information about watching out for dizziness or headache the first few days that you take your medication. That is common as your blood pressure level drops. There are other more subtle side effects I want to alert you to today. Lets say that your doctor orders you furosemide or hydrochlorthiazide, two common diuretics.
Over time these medications will deplete and reduce the essential levels of:
- Vitamin B1
- Vitamin B6
- Vitamin C
- Zinc
- Calcium
- Magnesium
- Potassium
So what, big deal you say. You eat a balanced diet each day right? Lets take a closer look at how the nutrients that are affected contribute to other health conditions. Conditions that your doctor will try to help you with by writing for more prescriptions.
| Nutrient Depletion | Potential Consequences of Drug Nutrient Depletion |
| Calcium | Osteoporosis, heart/blood pressure irregularities, tooth decay |
| Magnesium | Cardiovascular problems, asthma, osteoporosis, cramps, PMS |
| Potassium | Irregular heartbeat, muscle weakness, fatigue, edema(water retention) |
| Vitamin B1 | Depression, irritability, memory loss, muscle weakness, edema |
| Vitamin B6 | Depression, sleep disturbance, increased cardiovascular disease risk |
| Vitamin C | Weakened immune system, easy bruising, poor would healing |
| Zinc | Slow wound healing, loss of sense of smell and taste, lower immunity |
Frankly, I feel that this list is very eye opening. This information is all documented in the Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook Second Edition. Has your pharmacist or doctor told you about these?
If you are taking prescription diuretics it is important to replace these vitamins and minerals as they are essential to our normal biochemical processes: growth and repair of tissues and metabolism.
Please let me know if you find this information helpful. Hit the comment button below and let me know if you have heard of this before, or if you have other questions about these medications.
