High blood pressure must never be treated with medication of any kind immediately after being detected unless it is a life threatening situation. Initial treatment for mild to medium level hypertension is dieting, exercise, low sodium, fat and sugar consumption. In many mild to medium cases the high blood pressure will drop to normal following a change of lifestyle and eating habits. It is generally considered that all hypertension medication has secondary effects that are better avoided before it is absolutely necessary to use medication.

Once it is determined that dieting, exercise and all the other natural non-medical options have been exhausted and medication is required; the first line of defense and the most common used medication are thiazide diuretics. As mentioned above all high blood pressure medication has secondary effects, one of these is a dramatic decrease of potassium in the body. Potassium is very important to the proper bodily functions, it is necessary for proper kidney functions, and it is also necessary for muscle contraction, especially the heart muscles.

The same medication can produce impaired glucose tolerance which may lead to diabetes Type 2. The lack of potassium so necessary for kidney function combined with impaired glucose tolerance will eventually lead to renal failure and the need for dialysis and or kidney transplant. The use of thiazine diuretics and the consecutive depletion of potassium in the system requires that supplementary potassium be added to the thiazine diuretic medication.

It is important to mention that the names of medications mentioned above and below are not brand medications; they are components of brand medications. These are available in many different commercial names which are available only with a prescription and are used under very strict controls. When the above mentioned medication is used permanently on a patient liver and kidney functions are constantly monitored and so are potassium levels. Close medical supervision is required permanently.

Another secondary effect of all high blood pressure medication is the increase of cholesterol levels in the blood stream. A combination of high cholesterol, low potassium levels, high levels of blood glucose all produced at the same time by the medication used to control the hypertension can be deadly without constant and proper medical supervision. High cholesterol may produce an aneurysm by clogging an artery anywhere in the body, especially dangerous is this when it happens in or near the heart and in or near the brain.

Other medications are available for high blood pressure but these are only used in extreme cases when the thiazine diuretic treatment fails to lower the hypertension. These other medications are really dangerous and require extreme control and permanent medical supervision. We will not be mentioning these in this article because they are very rarely used because of the damage they can produce on the body.

The best medication for hypertension is non-medical. Exercise and a well balanced diet with regards to fats and sugars; avoiding alcohol, tobacco, and other recreational drugs. A slow but constant reduction of weight until the recommended weight is reached. It does not matter if this takes a long time. It is in fact recommended that weight be lost slowly, one pound per week is seen as an adequate and healthy procedure.When a person goes on a crash diet and loses weight too fast, the heart does not have time to readapt its pumping pressure and compensate for the weight reduction. If the factors mentioned above are controlled and the patient makes an effort to change his habits it is possible to control hypertension without medication. This is better than risking other organs and systems by taking a medication that has proved dangerous secondary effects and consequences.