Cycles and blood pressure medication?

**Older lifter** · 08-24-2008, 07:17 PM

Anyone had any negative effects from taking blood pressure medication during cycles?
Just asking as i have a bit of high blood pressure and was thinking about taking something for it, will this effect a roid cycle??

Thanks

**Nitro29** · 08-24-2008, 07:21 PM

I take Diovan 160mg per day and have not had any problems except my BP went up a bit while on. See a Doc.

**magic32** · 08-25-2008, 01:50 PM

Originally Posted by Older lifter

Anyone had any negative effects from taking blood pressure medication during cycles?
Just asking as i have a bit of high blood pressure and was thinking about taking something for it, will this effect a roid cycle??

Thanks

This is a common aas side effect.
Check it again a month or so after pct, before considering bp meds.

**LATS60** · 08-25-2008, 02:08 PM

Aspirin, 325mg ED, lowered my bp from an average of 167/95 to 140/82.

**TRA** · 08-25-2008, 02:13 PM

I would definitely recommend repeatedly checking your pressure, say 1-2 x per week. You can get good, reliable readings at the machines in the stores like Walgreen's, CVS, Walmart, etc. But if you're huge, it's likely your arm won't fit in the cuff. So you would need to have it checked at the docs. You can usually get pressure checks for free once you have a visit. And if you are too big to use the cuff machines at the pharmacies, you will need a larger cuff when in the office, or else the reading will be unreliable. Mention that to the nurse/doc.

The way high blood pressure (hypertension) is diagnosed in the office, is 3 consecutive readings in 2-3 mos, greater than 140/90. This means that if either is higher, the top (systolic) OR the bottom (diastolic), you are hypertensive. Both do not have to be higher.

It also behooves you to keep the pressure under control over the long run, because high blood pressure does damage to the vascular endothelium (lining of the blood vessels), which allows plaque to adhere, and then build up, leading to heart attack, stroke, etc. Given the poor lipid (cholesterol) profiles caused by many steroids , keeping the pressure under control is a good way to lower the risks. There are also some natural supplements that can help a little.

One supplement that can help is pycnogenol. Studies have shown it to be effective in moderate hypertension. Another is psyllium husk, the ingredient in Metamucil. This is a great supplement, as it decreases your risk for colon cancer, helps with high cholesterol, and may help somewhat with high blood pressure. (I take 3 tablespoons each night, and last check my total cholesterol was 122, LDL 56, HDL 48).

Another supplement that imo everyone should take is fish oil. 1-4 grams per day. Numerous studies have shown this to be effective in lowering the risk of cardiac events.

**Older lifter** · 08-28-2008, 07:33 PM

Thank's all, esp TrailRunAZ, great ammount of info, will try what you recommend and again thanks for the help all....

Have a good one all

**Doc32** · 08-29-2008, 08:11 AM

If you have a good sized arm, the physician (or nurse) should recognize that the smaller cuff will give a false high reading. If they don't use the large cuff, just ask them to do so. You can also buy reliable home BP monitors with a large cuff at a pharmacy or elsewhere online. IMO, if you are concerned about your BP, check it 2-4 times per week at home with a good monitor and proper cuff size.
Uncontrolled hypertension has a very detrimental effect on the kidney and other organs including the cardiac system as TrailRunAZ stated.

**dtr98** · 08-29-2008, 02:14 PM

bp meds shouldn't have any effect on steroids , at least not for me.

on bp meds and bp used to be in the normal range on or off cycle. my was starting to run a bit high so i stopped cycle ( tren a /prop/mast ) and got it under control again. doc had me drop one med and replace it with another one.

with fall coming up, i'll wait to make another run and see how it goes.