
New research shows benefit from taking blood pressure medicine before sleeping.
New research has shown the time of day at which you take your hypertension medicine may be able to lower your risk of getting type 2 diabetes, according to a report on health.com.
Spanish researchers noted that patients who took their dose of blood pressure medicine before going to bed cut the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in half over those who take their medication in the mornings.
A situation called “non-dipping” occurs in people with high blood pressure, in which the pressure does not increase substantially during their sleep cycle, as it does in healthy people.
This new study indicates that “non-dippers” usually have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, when compared to those who do not experience a dip in blood pressure while sleeping.
Following the study with a clinical trial on the same group of subjects, the researchers found that taking the medication right before going to bed helped to lower the patient’s sleeping blood pressure, thus reducing the risk of diabetes.
Lead author Dr. Ramon Hermida said that for each 14-point drop in sleeping systolic blood pressure, a 30 per cent reduction in risk of developing type 2 diabetes was experienced. Systolic blood pressure is the top number in a blood pressure reading.
Hermida, who’s a professor of medicine at the University of Vigo in Spain added, “The results from our prospective study indicate lowering asleep blood pressure could indeed be a significant method for reducing the risk of developing [type 2] diabetes.”
Hormones such as adrenaline and angiotensin contribute to developing both type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Angiotensin is a hormone that causes restrictions in blood vessels, which in turn, causes a rise in blood pressure. The hormone also contributes to increase glucose release from the liver and decreased insulin sensitivity.
Drugs that inhibit the effects of angiotensin, when taken at bedtime, were associated with a decrease risk of type 2 diabetes.
The findings from the new research were published in the journal Diabetologia.
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