Why do you need to take blood pressure meds when on insulin.

[Irene Matthews]

Hi to all,

Why do i need to take blood pressure meds when on insulin pharmacist say s i need to something to do with my kidneys but didnt explain what.

Anyone any idea why.

Dolphin500.

 

[Northerner]

Hi to all,

Why do i need to take blood pressure meds when on insulin pharmacist say s i need to something to do with my kidneys but didnt explain what.

Anyone any idea why.

Dolphin500.

Hi Irene, it's not so much to do with insulin, more to do with the fact that you have diabetes. Everyone needs to have good blood pressure, ideally, but when you have diabetes it's especially important to keep it under good control. Diabetes (or rather, high blood sugar levels) can damage the tiny blood vessels of the body, particularly in the eyes and the kidneys - having high blood pressure will make this worse, so as well as keeping blood sugar levels under good control (in your case, with insulin) it's a good idea to take a medication to keep blood pressure levels good in order to minimise any potential damage 🙂

 

[Copepod]

The class of blood pressure medications known as ACE inhibitors are used to protect blood vessels in kidneys and kidney damage is one of the potential complications of diabetes, particularly long standing and / or poorly controlled diabetes. ACE inhibitor drug names all end with the letters ...pril.
Good idea to ask pharmacist, but don't leave until you understand all you want. Perhaps they stopped after the simple statement becase they didn't realise you wanted to know more?

 

[Vicsetter]

I would have thought that it is dangerous to take blood pressure medication without taking your blood pressure, has this not been done and if it was what was the reading. The blood pressure targets for diabetics are lower than for mere mortals. Most people with diabetes should have a reading of no more than 140/80 although I think the guidlines now say 130/80. However you should not be taking Blood pressure meds without a reading (and usually several readings to discover the norm).

 

[Caroline]

I was told the blood pressure needs to be under control to protect the kidneys and cut down the risk of having a stroke.

 

[miguel81]

I take Varsatan which is a blood pressure tablet. I once was so ill, luckily in the clinic of my local surgery, and was immediately taken to hospital. The consultant there told me that yes, I needed a blood pressure tablet but the dose I was prescribed was way too high, she halved it and I have had no problems since. I was relieved - in a way - to read what Alan said about tiny blood vessels as this morning I had the weirdest problem. My left eye just gave up, first it was as if a brown cloud had lodged itself in my eye and then it got much worse. Things gradually worsened so I did a blood test and it was 250 (13.9). Perhaps this was enough to cause the eyesight problem - but only in one eye. Now, 8 hours later, I'm back to near normality but I originally thought that it was the blood pressure problem repeating itself.

 

[grovesy]

I have had visual distubances, with hypos!

 

[Vicsetter]

There is a lot of talk and questions on this board about test strips and blood glucose monitoring but little baout blood pressure. It is not really that expensive to buy a blood pressure meter and there is no cost for test strips. If there is any suggestion of problems due to blood pressure or you are approaching a certain age then it is well worth the investment. A blood presssure check should be part of your annual review, it is worth taking and recoding your BP for the week prior and take it with you to your review.

 

[Owen]

There is a lot of talk and questions on this board about test strips and blood glucose monitoring but little baout blood pressure. It is not really that expensive to buy a blood pressure meter and there is no cost for test strips. If there is any suggestion of problems due to blood pressure or you are approaching a certain age then it is well worth the investment. A blood presssure check should be part of your annual review, it is worth taking and recoding your BP for the week prior and take it with you to your review.

Good suggestion

 

[Lindarose]

That's a good idea vicsetter. From personal experience I know how false a surgery reading can be. And a bp monitor is very affordable

 

[Amigo]

Due to white coat hypertension, my b/p is alarmingly high at the surgery so I do a chart to give some balance to it. I've invested in a proper upper cuff b/p monitor too because accuracy is important.

 

[Copepod]

This is a case where the side effect of ACE inhibitors, namely protecting tiny blood vessels in kidneys, is the main reason for prescribing to people with diabetes who have normal or just above normal blood pressure readings. Where people have low or normal blood pressure, it's important not to leap to standing from lying down, to avoid problems of postural hypotension (medical term for "blood pressure dropping with change of position") ie 7 common words instead of 2 technical words.

 

[Flower]

I take ACE inhibitors for chronic kidney disease CKD but have low blood pressure. It is not a good combination as I suffer from dizziness due to the medication lowering my blood pressure too much but need to take the medication to try and protect the kidney function I have still got. ACE inhibitors all work in the same way by dilating the blood vessels so a reduction in blood pressure is the outcome- good if blood pressure is elevated not good if blood pressure is normal or low.

It is a very good idea to invest in a blood pressure monitor to keep an eye on things regardless of whether or not you need to take ACE inhibitors.