Some antihypertensive drugs can prevent millions of cases of type 2 diabetes worldwide, according to a new major scientific study. Lowering blood pressure is an effective way – more important than previously thought – to reduce the risk of developing diabetes in the future, the study confirms, the largest of its kind to date.
Until now, lowering blood pressure has been a well-established medical strategy for preventing the vascular complications of existing diabetes, but new research shows with certainty that some – but not all – antihypertensive drugs can also prevent diabetes.
The researchers, led by Oxford University professor of cardiovascular medicine Kazem Rahimi, who published the paper in The Lancet medical journal, assessed (meta-analyzed) data from 19 tests involving a total of almost 146,000 people, of whom nearly 10,000 were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
It has been found that a 5 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure through antihypertensive drugs or lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of diabetes by 11%. The reduction is even greater (16%) for two classes of antihypertensive drugs, angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs).
On the other hand, other blood pressure medications, such as calcium channel blockers, have not been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes, while some other drugs, such as beta-blockers and thiazide diuretics, actually increase the risk of diabetes, although they provide known benefits in preventing heart attacks and strokes.
In addition to medication, maintaining a normal weight and generally adopting a healthy lifestyle with exercise and proper nutrition are the best way to avoid diabetes. But people at high risk for diabetes, according to the researchers, should also be prescribed drugs such as ACE and ARB inhibitors.
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