Is Taking Blood Pressure Medications at Night Really Better?

[Northerner]

In healthy people, nocturnal blood pressure dips by about 15% compared with daytime values.

Patients who don't have this blood pressure drop at night, often called non-dippers, are at increased risk for cardiovascular mortality, heart failure, and stroke.

This has led many researchers to consider the issue of chronotherapy — the idea that when you take a pill is as important as or possibly more important than which pill you take.

Most patients take their blood pressure medications in the morning. But blood pressure is supposed to decrease at night, and switching some blood pressure medication to bedtime rather than morning makes intuitive sense.

The Hygia Chronotherapy trial reported very large decreases in stroke, MI, and death with nighttime dosing of antihypertensives.

Is Taking BP Meds at Night Really Better?

A controversial trial suggests that chronotherapy is key for hypertension management; cardiologist Christopher Labos takes a closer look.

www.medscape.com

I've always taken my BP meds at night, which is what my doctor told me to do, so what's all this about 'most people take it in the morning'? Is the advice different in the USA? What have others been told? 😱

 

[grovesy]

I take mine in the morning.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

I take mine in the morning.

So do I. There has been some debate about whether morning or evening would be better. There's a trial running at the moment in the UK to test that, I think. (A while ago I got an invitation to take part (from Biobank) but didn't get around to it.)

 

[grovesy]

So do I. There has been some debate about whether morning or evening would be better. There's a trial running at the moment in the UK to test that, I think. (A while ago I got an invitation to take part (from Biobank) but didn't get around to it.)

Oh I had not heard this before.

 

[trophywench]

I just take all my tablets including the latest, Vit D, when I get up, so that includes the 2 BP ones.

Never heard of taking them at night, from anyone before as far as I remember.

 

[Leadinglights]

I take the amlodipine 5mg in the morning and the candesarten 2mg in the evening. I was originally prescribed losartan 25mg which I took in the morning as well as the amlodipine but my blood pressure was going very low so I then took that in the evening but it was also too much so I just took half a tablet but the G P said that wasn't the right dose and changed to 2mg candesarten which seems a satisfactory regime. I did read about it being better to take in the evening.

 

[Lanny]

I’ve always been told to take mine at night but, my GP says it better taken, at any time you can remember, than not taken at all! Because it’s confusing to take different meds at different times: cholesterol meds in the morning & Bap meds at night; I take everything at lunchtime, midday!

 

[grovesy]

I’ve always been told to take mine at night but, my GP says it better taken, at any time you can remember, than not taken at all! Because it’s confusing to take different meds at different times: cholesterol meds in the morning & Bap meds at night; I take everything at lunchtime, midday!

Makes sense to me.
My friend takes a number of medications which she was advised take at very exact times and spacing between them would not do for me.

 

[Kaylz]

my mum takes hers in the morning but I take mines at around 6:30pm, that's what my consultant told me to do however it does say on the leaflet that its best taken in the evening first time as it can cause light headedness and dizziness but if this doesn't occur you can take it in the morning
xx

 

[Ljc]

I take my Bp pills in the morning . I know their was/is a trial going on about the best time to take them , till I hear otherwise I will continue taking them in the morning

 

[SB2015]

I also take my BP pills in the morning.

I have also moved my statin to the morning. I was originally told that this was better taken at night, but I forgot too often. Better to take it regularly in the morning rather than intermittently forgetting in the evening. My OH is at the same practice and was told that it didn’t matter when in the day he took these. We were also given conflicting advice around eating grapefruit. We opted to rely on the Patient Information Leaflet.

 

[mikeydt1]

i think it is better to go off what it says on the box. some BP meds are taken at night purely to reduce the effects of dizziness.

i am prescribed a last resort BP medication and believe it or not the medication can actually muck around with the thinking processes probably why i have a daft sense of humour. seriously though it is not for everyone. i was first prescribed 2 a day to start with but then the hospital only wanted me to take 2 then 1 in the evening but i when i have tried it i do feel the strange effects so have gone back to 2 for safety reasons luckily i am now on another very low dose BP tab which i am able to tolerate.

 

[Leadinglights]

My daughter told me a sad story when she did her GP placement about a chap who asked for a repeat prescription of 1 medication when he should have been taking 3 different ones, so she rang him to ask why and he said his wife had passed away some months before and that was the only one he could remember as she had dealt with all his medications. I don't think thankfully this would be as likely to happen now with electronic records.
My other half takes 8 meds some twice a day, some once so thank G he has a box with them all divied out.

 

[Northerner]

changed to 2mg candesarten which seems a satisfactory regime. I did read about it being better to take in the evening.

I'm on 4mg candesarten and was told better to take in the evening 🙂

 

[mikeyB]

I take my BP meds at night, because if I take them in the day I get postural hypotension. Most folk die in the night with cardiovascular events anyway. Who cares? Pleasant way to go.🙂

 

[Eddy Edson]

I take my BP meds at night, because if I take them in the day I get postural hypotension. Most folk die in the night with cardiovascular events anyway. Who cares? Pleasant way to go.🙂

Better than being eaten alive by wild amimals or sharks, but I'd still prefer to be hit by a meteorite. Like being eaten by animals, it would give people a reason to remember you, with less unpleasantness.

"Wasn't he the one eaten alive by a pack of hyenas? Nah, that was his cousin - Eddy was hit by a meteorite."

 

[trophywench]

Well I'm a boring old fart and I'd prefer to go to bed, die quietly and just not wake up when it's my time.

Eddy - your meteorite idea reminded me of a scene from the book Puckoon by Spike Milligan, where the Parish Priest in church calls down a bolt of fire from Heaven - I forget why but anyway it was intended to strike fear into his congregations hearts over something or another they were doing which he didn't approve of, and two of his flock up in the roof were supposed to ignite a firework which would appear to be said bolt of fire to the gathered flock. Instead of which O'Malley's voice from above came down saying 'Hang on a minute there Farder - the cat's pissed on the matches!'