mike jamerson
hi: i would not take any medication till i had exhausted all natural alternatives. there are books out that i am reading like the "salt solution"--and "Hypertension: natural solutions" that show data that once people go on medication there is no clinical support that they live any longer. true the odds of stroke are lessen but demise from other cardiovascular complications remain as high. one thing they talk about is the relationship between sodium and postassium in our cells. so just reducing the sodium is not enough. also there is a book called the arginine solution that tell how supplementation with this amino acide will help. the doctors mean well; but their training just teaches them to deal with symtoms and not the whole person.You optimally need to get into the cure. Do some research and you will see that getting on medication is just the begginning of a progressive cascade of more side effects and more powerful drugs. Give it a try naturally. youre young --you can alway take the drugs if you find nothing works.