A study conducted by researchers warned of the daily use of paracetamol, hinting the risk towards heart attacks and strokes.
The Telegraph UK quoted experts from the University of Edinburgh and mentioned the study conducted on 110 patients with a history of high blood pressure. The highlight of the work being that one gram of paracetamol four times a day or a placebo for two weeks, would lead to adverse health consequenes concerned with vital organs.
Around one in 10 people in the UK are prescribed daily paracetamol for chronic pain, even as one in three adults suffers from high blood pressure. Researchers suggested that people who need paracetamol to deal with chronic pain should use alternative medications to not compromise on blood pressure.
Here's what experts have to say:
Professor David Webb, chair of therapeutics and clinical pharmacology at the University of Edinburgh, said, "We have always thought that paracetamol was the safe alternative if we were trying to advise patients to stop using drugs like ibuprofen, which are known to raise blood pressure. Consideration should be given to stopping using paracetamol in patients at risk of heart attack or stroke."
Professor James Dear, personal chair of clinical pharmacology at the University of Edinburgh, said: “Two weeks of treatment with paracetamol increases high blood pressure and this matters because we know high blood pressure is a risk factor for heart attacks and strokes."“High blood pressure is very common. One in three adults has hypertension and that increases with age, and we know that taking paracetamol is very common. A lot of patients who have hypertension are also taking paracetamol, so we suspect this paracetamol effect could have a large population effect.”
