What do people with hypertension use to reduce blood pressure in addition to conventional medication – Is this related to adherence?

Abstract

IntroductionPatients with chronic diseases may sometimes prefer to use alternative approaches to improve their health. Such approaches may be used solely or in combination with their conventional western medication. This survey in a primary care setting aimed to evaluate dietary substances used by patients with hypertension and to explore whether there was a relationship with adherence to conventional drug treatment. MethodsThe study group was composed of 465 patients who were registered with the Family Medicine Center in the city center in the period between April 2016 and June 2016. Socio-demographic characteristics of the patients and substances they used in addition to the drugs were recorded. ResultsThe dietary substances most commonly preferred were lemon, garlic, yoghourt, and combinations of these. Medication adherence among patients with hypertension was moderate to high with 72.25% of patients using their medications. Patients forgetting to take their antihypertensive medications were more likely to use these substances. ConclusionsPatients reported high adherence to their use of conventional medication. The most important problem was "forgetting" in low adherent patients and they mainly used lemon, garlic, and yoghourt at times of sudden blood pressure elevations. Physicians should inform the patients who struggle with hypertension about the risk of nonadherence which can result in serious morbidity and possibly mortality.