High blood pressure medication: When is the best time to take it?
High blood pressure medication: When is the best time to take it?
The best time of day to take blood pressure medication depends on the type of medication and your goals for managing your blood pressure.
Q
When is the best time to take high blood pressure medication?
Dick
,
Pennsylvania
A
The best time of day to take blood pressure medication depends on the type of medication and your goals for managing your blood pressure.
Blood pressure follows a daily rhythm. It's higher when you get up in the morning and during your waking hours and generally lower while you're sleeping. Most types of blood pressure-lowering medications work for 24 hours, allowing you to take them once a day. But the effects of these medications may not be the same over the course of the day. The effects typically start about an hour after you take the medication. They peak four to 15 hours later and then start to wear off in the last eight hours.
Some medications are designed to be taken at bedtime and start working in the middle of the night to reduce the increase in blood pressure that occurs when you get active in the morning. Also, some medications may cause drowsiness, which can be a problem during the daytime hours. Generally, you can take those medications at bedtime.
Discuss any side effects and your blood pressure goals with your doctor. You can see how the medication affects your blood pressure by taking measurements at home at different times of the day. Then you can track your side effects with blood pressure changes and the time of day at which you take your medication.
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