Common medications for keeping blood pressure down, including ACE inhibitors, diuretics and calcium channel blockers, also lower the risk of dementia and cognitive impairment
By Chris Simms
21 April 2025
Blood pressure reduction is associated with lowered risk of dementia
Shutterstock / grinny
Bringing down high blood pressure reduces the risk of dementia and cognitive impairment, according to a large study of people in China.
Many studies have linked high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, with a greater risk of developing dementia. Some research has also indicated that a side effect of blood pressure treatment may be lower dementia risk.
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Now, Jiang He at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and his colleagues have directly looked at the effectiveness of medicines that reduce blood pressure on dementia and cognitive impairment.
They studied 33,995 people in rural China who were all 40 or older and had hypertension. The participants were split into one of two random groups, each with an average age of about 63 years old.
The first group received, on average, three anti-hypertensive medication such as ACE inhibitors, diuretics or calcium channel blockers to aggressively ensure their blood pressure stayed down. They also had coaching on home blood-pressure monitoring and on lifestyle changes that could help keep blood pressure down, including weight loss and reducing intake of alcohol and salt.