Blood Pressure Drugs May Reduce Stroke Risk

As reported by Yahoo news, a new study soon to be published in the journal Stroke found that the risk of stroke was reduced by 22 percent when subjects with prehypertension took drugs that lower blood pressure. The subjects did not have high blood pressure, but the drugs still lowered their stroke risk.

For the study, the researchers conducted 16 randomized trials with nearly 16,000 people taking different  blood pressure-lowering drugs including an ACE inhibitor, beta blocker or angiotensin receptor blocker. The study also found that the drugs did not reduce the risk of heart attack.

Prehypertension is blood pressure between 120 to 139and 80 to 89 according to the study. Prehypertension may affect 40 percent of Americans; doctors usually recommend quitting smoking, exercise and healthy eating to reduce high blood pressure levels.

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