Hypertension is more treatable than ever before, thanks to a wide variety of lifestyle measures and blood pressure medications. When effective, these treatments can not only lower blood pressure, but also reduce the risk of complications from high blood pressure -- specifically, stroke, heart attack, heart failure, and kidney disease.

Now there's another important reason to take your blood pressure medication. Researchers have found that keeping blood pressure in check with medication may help prevent Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. A pair of studies found that older adults on blood pressure drugs were less likely to develop dementia than those with untreated high blood pressure.

The first study, of nearly 1,300 men followed since the 1960s, found that the longer the men were on blood pressure medication, the lower their dementia risk. Those who were treated for more than 12 years were 60–65% less likely to develop dementia, including Alzheimer’s, than those who never had their high blood pressure treated.

The second study, which followed about 5,100 adults age 65 and older, found that those who were using blood pressure medication at the outset were about one third less likely to develop Alzheimer’s over the next three years. Potassium-sparing diuretics -- which allow the kidneys to excrete water and sodium without depleting potassium -- seemed particularly protective.

Over time, high blood pressure can damage blood vessels leading to the brain, which may explain why treatment is linked to a lower dementia risk. It’s not clear why potassium-sparing diuretics appear especially protective. The study was reported in the journal Stroke (Volume 37, page 1165) and in the Archives of Neurology (Volume 63, page 686).