If you want to lose excess water or prevent kidney stones, you may need to take diuretic pills or natural diuretics. Diuretics, also called “water pills,” help your kidneys eliminate excess water and salt by excreting urine. Natural diuretics have many benefits, from lowering blood pressure to bloating. But do you know what they do and how they should be added to your diet? For more information about this issue, stay with us until the end of the article.
What is a diuretic?
A diuretic pill is a medicine that increases urine production, sometimes called a water pill. These drugs are used to remove excess water from the body and treat diseases such as heart failure, liver disease, and high blood pressure.
Diuretic tablets are usually used to treat various diseases, but these drugs may have side effects such as headache, dizziness, and increased blood sugar. For this reason, many people try to replace them with natural diuretics. These foods, supplements, or herbal medicines have the same effect as diuretic pills and cause the body to expel excess fluids. Also, many contain vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other health benefits.
Types of diuretic pills
Diuretics are divided into different types:
- Pseudothiazide: They can be used long and lose moderate water.
- Ring or loop diuretics: They are more powerful and suitable for emergencies.
- Potassium-sparing: They help you retain potassium as you lose water and salt.
Different diuretics can be used together. You can also use them with other drugs and similar pills. Some diuretics include:
- Aldactone (spironolactone);
- Boomex (boometanide);
- Demodex (Torsmid);
- Acidrix (hydrochlorothiazide);
- Lasix (furosemide);
- Xaroxaline (Metolazone).
Uses of diuretic tablets
In some cases, the doctor may prescribe diuretics, including:
- Swelling or edema: Diuretic tablets reduce the swelling that usually occurs in the leg.
- High blood pressure: Thiazide diuretics reduce blood pressure and the risk of stroke and heart attack.
- Heart failure: Diuretics reduce pulmonary edema and congestion. Ring or loop diuretics are usually used for heart failure.
- Kidney problems: By taking diuretics, the body retains less water.
- Liver problems: If you have cirrhosis, diuretics can reduce fluid build-up.
- Cataracts: These drugs reduce eye pressure.
How to use diuretics
- If you have diabetes, liver disease, kidney disease, or gout, talk to your doctor before taking this medicine.
- Follow the instructions that come with the medicine. If you have a daily dose of diuretic medication, take it in the morning with or immediately after breakfast. If you have more than one dose per day, take the last dose before 4:00 PM so you don’t wake up at night to urinate.
- The number of daily doses, the interval between them, and the duration of drug use depend on the type of prescription drug and your condition.
- Measure your weight every day at a specific time with the same scale and write it down. Tell your doctor if you gain more than 1.30 kg daily or more than 2.2 kg weekly.
- Check your blood pressure and kidney function regularly while taking the drug. Diuretics can change the amount of potassium and magnesium in the blood.
- See a doctor to check the effect of the drug periodically.
- One of the easiest ways to remove excess water from the body is to add diuretic fruits and vegetables to the diet. Try to start your day with delicious green smoothies and eat fruit salad instead of sweets and vegetable salad instead of fries.
- Natural diuretic pills and supplements can also be a quick solution to remove excess water from the body. Also, drinking tea can increase urine volume and eliminate excess water.
Side effects of diuretics
- You should expect to go to the bathroom frequently, even for a few hours after taking a diuretic. If you take two doses of medicine daily, do not take the second dose at the end of the day so that you can have a good night’s sleep and not wake up to urinate.
- You may also be at risk of dehydration and not drinking enough fluids. See your doctor if you are thirsty, have severe dry mouth, dark yellow stools, insufficient bowel movements, constipation, or a nasty headache.
- You may have extreme fatigue or weakness. These side effects will decrease as your body gets used to the medicine. If symptoms persist, see a doctor. In this situation, the dose of the drug should be adjusted.
- You may experience low blood pressure, dehydration, dizziness, and light-headedness, especially when standing.
- The sodium and potassium in your blood may be much lower or higher than usual. This can cause you to feel tired and weak and have muscle cramps or headaches. In rare cases, your heart may beat faster (more than 100 beats per minute), or you may start vomiting due to low potassium levels.
- Diuretics may make blood sugar control difficult and cause diabetes in predisposed individuals. You may also develop gout.
- Taking several pills and medicines simultaneously may increase the side effects. To reduce this possibility, consult your doctor about the timing of taking medications.
- See your doctor if you have persistent or severe blurred vision, confusion, headache, excessive sweating, or restlessness.
See a doctor immediately in these cases:
- Fever, sore throat, cough, ringing in the ears, unusual bleeding or bruising, rapid and excessive weight loss.
- Acne.
- Loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, or muscle cramps.
See your doctor if you have other worrying symptoms.
Contraindications for diuretics
- Some diuretics are sulfa drugs and may cause an allergic reaction.
- Older adults may suffer more side effects, such as fainting and confusion due to dehydration.
- It is not a problem to take most diuretics during breastfeeding. Of course, be sure to consult a doctor about this.
- Children can also use diuretics, although in smaller quantities. The side effects of the drug for children are the same as for adults. Potassium-sparing drugs can reduce the amount of calcium that interferes with bone growth.
Drug interactions
- To avoid potential problems, tell your doctor about all your medications, including herbal products, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and nutritional supplements.
- Diuretics are usually prescribed with other medications. See your doctor if you have more side effects while taking the drugs together. You may need to change the time you take your medications.
Before taking diuretics, tell your doctor if you are taking other medications, including:
- high blood pressure medications ;
- digoxin;
- indomethacin;
- probenecid;
- Corticosteroids.
You may need to follow a special diet for some diuretics, including:
- Low salt diet.
- You are taking potassium supplements or foods rich in potassium, such as bananas, sweet potatoes, spinach, beans, and orange juice. If you use potassium-sparing diuretics, your doctor may ask you to avoid a potassium-rich diet, salt substitutes, low-salt milk, and other sources of potassium.
19 natural diuretics
1. Green tea
Diuretic pills are one of the first methods to deal with high blood pressure and can lower blood pressure by reducing excess sodium through urination. Taking natural diuretics for high blood pressure has a similar effect. For example, green tea reduces systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
Polycystic ovary syndrome is a disorder that occurs in women with a high amount of male hormones and is associated with symptoms such as irregular menstruation, weight gain, depression, and acne. Diuretic tablets are usually used to treat this disease and help reduce symptoms by removing excess water and androgen hormones. Green tea also contains epigallocatechin, which has anti-androgen effects and removes excess water.
2. black tea
One of the benefits of black tea is its diuretic properties.
3. Parsley
According to research, parsley has diuretic properties. Parsley extract significantly increases the amount of urine, confirming this plant’s diuretic properties.
4. Dandelion
Like edema, ascites are the accumulation of fluid in the peritoneal cavity. The peritoneum is the tissue that covers the abdomen and helps protect the body’s internal organs. Ascites usually occur due to liver disease or cirrhosis. Diuretic tablets are typically used to control and treat this condition so that excess fluids are removed from the body. Natural diuretics can have a similar effect, and many can protect the liver. Dandelion leaf extract has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that can prevent liver damage.
5. marshmallow
Some diuretic plants, including marshmallows and ginger, can lower blood pressure.
6. hawthorn
According to research, hawthorn leaves may reduce the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease due to its flavonoids.
7. Horsetail plant
Testing on animals has determined that the horsetail plant has diuretic and antispasmodic properties and can be used as a traditional medicine to treat edema, bladder, and kidney disease and heal wounds and burns.
8. Urs fruit
Juniper fruit has been used as a natural diuretic for hundreds of years. Research confirms the effects of this plant on the kidney and its fluid removal properties.
9. celery
Celery, especially celery root, is a hydrating food considered a natural diuretic. This plant can improve everything from blood pressure to liver and digestive health.
10. Lemon
You know how much it hurts if you have had a kidney stone. Kidney stones are caused by the accumulation of hard minerals in the kidney and are associated with symptoms such as pain, nausea, vomiting, and blood in the urine.
Drinking a lot of fluids is usually recommended to solve this problem. Sometimes, diuretic tablets are prescribed to prevent kidney stones. Consuming natural diuretic foods can essentially prevent kidney stones. For example, lemon strengthens hydration and prevents the formation of kidney stones by increasing the volume of urine due to having a lot of citric acid. According to research, lemon treatment can reduce the possibility of kidney stones over time.
11. Bell pepper
Bell pepper is a low-calorie, watery food that has diuretic properties.
12. garlic
Garlic has diuretic properties, controls high blood pressure, and supports heart health. Hippocrates used garlic instead of laxatives and diuretics, and Aristophanes used garlic to treat uterine tumors.
13. An onion
Research results emphasize the diuretic properties of onions. In addition, onions protect the heart and respiratory system.
14. watermelon
Fluid retention in the body or edema causes swelling, puffiness, and flatulence. Natural diuretics are an easy and effective way to remove excess water and prevent bloating. Due to its high water content, watermelon is a unique natural diuretic for edema. Consuming hydrating foods and natural diuretics such as fruits and vegetables can help remove excess water and prevent fluid accumulation in the body.
15. cucumber
Cucumber is one of the best detox foods that helps remove toxins and waste from the body by producing more urine. It also fights bloating and prevents water retention.
16. grape
According to experiments on animals and humans, grapes have excellent diuretic properties. Grape nutrients also help to increase life span and fight disease.
17. ginger
As a natural diuretic, ginger helps digestion, heart health, and immunity. For this purpose, you can use ginger root or tea.
18. Berries
Berries are one of the best natural diuretics to help regulate blood pressure and overall health.
19. Asparagus
One of the benefits of natural diuretics is the elimination of toxins. Korean researchers found that asparagus extract has therapeutic properties and can protect liver cells from toxins.
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Warning! This article is only for educational purposes; to use it, it is necessary to consult a doctor or therapist.
