Over 66 million adults have high blood pressure and over half of people with high blood pressure are either not controlled, unaware of having it, or not being treated.  Chronic health problems such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol are significant contributors to worse events such as heart attack, stroke etc.

Type 2 diabetes results from a combination of 2 abnormalities: 1. Resistance to insulin which stimulates the body to absorb blood sugar and 2. Inadequate insulin production to make up for this resistance. Those with type 2 diabetes typically are not dependent on daily insulin injections. Type one diabetes accounts for about 5 to 10% of all diabetes cases and is due to the destruction of special cells in the pancreas (beta cells) that produce insulin. People who have type 1 diabetes are therefore dependent upon daily insulin injections to control their blood glucose levels.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is defined as the presence of airflow obstruction in the lungs due to excessive mucous production and permanent enlargement of the air spaces in the lungs. COPD grouped together with asthma is the 4th leading cause of death in the United States. Over 14 million Americans suffer from COPD and it is believed that a similar number remain undiagnosed. 

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is defined as inability of the heart to either 1. Contract with enough force to eject an appropriate amount of blood to the body or 2. Relax appropriately to allow the heart to fill properly and eject an appropriate amount of blood to the body. When this happens blood backs up in the lungs or fluid retention occurs causing swelling of the legs and weight gain.

Coronary artery disease, or heart disease, is defined as the abnormal build-up of hardened cholesterol and plaque that narrows the heart arteries and limits blood flow to the heart. Coronary artery disease leads to acute coronary syndrome and heart attack when blood flow through a heart artery is suddenly blocked. Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in the United States affecting over 16 million people and causing more than 600,000 deaths per year.

There are several classes of oral medicines that have been developed to treat people with type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is high blood sugar caused by the body being resistant to insulin and insulin production being inadequate to make up for this resistance. Insulin works by stimulating the body to absorb blood sugar. The classes of oral diabetes medications include:

Millions of Americans take medicines for many different health conditions. Many do not understand the seriousness of the health conditions being treated or the importance of the medicines that have been prescribed. This lack of understanding about health conditions is called medical illiteracy and is a significant contributor to noncompliance – or people failing to take their medicines and incorporate diet and lifestyle changes as prescribed by their healthcare providers.

Water pills, also known as diuretics, are a type of medication used to treat multiple medical problems including high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, and fluid retention. As a matter of fact, diuretics are probably the most effective means of providing symptomatic relief for people who are in symptomatic congestive heart failure. These medications act on various locations within the kidneys causing increased loss of body water through urination. 

Your health care provider may prescribe a category of medication called a calcium channel blocker (CCB) for multiple medical conditions including high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and abnormal heart rhythm. Commonly prescribed CCB’s include amlodipine, nifedipine, felodipine, and diltiazem.