Prescription diuretics are commonly called water pills, and their first effect is to increase urination. Many people use diuretic medications that are prescribed by a doctor. However, some foods and drinks are also considered natural diuretics.

Types of diuretic medications include :. Thiazides decrease blood pressure at the same time as removing excess fluid, as they relax the blood vessels. They can help in cases of chronic heart failure. Chlorothiazide is an example. Loop diuretics , for example, furosemide, are used in patients with pulmonary edema , high blood pressure , kidney problems, and heart failure.

Potassium-sparing diuretics do not reduce blood pressure, but they also prevent a loss of potassium. Amiloride is an example. They are considered weak diuretics, and they may be used with thiazides or loop diuretics. They must not be used with potassium supplements. Nigella sativa , black cumin, black seed, or black caraway, is a natural diuretic that may be as effective as a popular prescription diuretic.

Nigella sativa is being studied as a possible treatment for high blood pressure. High doses of Nigella sativa may cause liver damage.

The Hibiscus sabdariffa plant works as a natural diuretic and also prevents the body from getting rid of potassium. Hibiscus sabdariffa is also known as roselle or red sorrel. It is often used as a medicinal supplement or made into a tea. Hibiscus tea is made by steeping the dried petals of the hibiscus flower in hot water.

Alcohol is a well-known diuretic that works by increasing urine output. However, alcohol has many adverse health effects and should always be consumed in moderation. Both dandelion and ginger are popularly used in drinks and teas claiming to be detoxifying because of their diuretic qualities.

No sound human studies have proven their effects, however. A study found that parsley seed extract given to rats increased their urine volume significantly. Parsley has been used as a home remedy diuretic for many years. Parsley is a popular herb in cooking. Used either fresh or dried, it pairs well with Italian cuisine, chicken, or fish.

Caffeine may have a mild, short-term diuretic effect. Caffeine is found in coffee , tea, soda, and energy drinks. People who regularly have drinks with caffeine can develop a tolerance to caffeine and will not see any difference.

Mild edema often goes away on its own, but some cases need to be treated with diuretics. Fluid retention can stem from many different medical conditions and some drugs. Anyone who is thinking of using diuretics to get rid of extra fluid should discuss the possible causes of fluid retention with a doctor first.

Diuretics can be helpful for people with kidney disease whose kidneys cannot filter potassium. This can cause a buildup that leads to serious health issues.

Sodium, potassium, and magnesium levels must be checked frequently when using diuretics. Kidney function and blood pressure also need regular testing regularly. People should only use diuretics if they have a condition that causes their body to retain water, and they should only use drugs that are prescribed by their doctor.

The use of diuretic medications can lead to complications such as:. Using natural foods like ginger or parsley as a spice or tea in food is considered safe. However, supplements are not regulated and may or may not contain what they claim.

It is important to consult a physician before increasing an intake of natural diuretic, especially if a prescribed diuretic or other medication is already in use. Long-term use of diuretics can cause mineral deficiencies. As a result, mineral levels should be closely monitored while taking diuretics.

Some diuretics can lead to low levels of potassium in the blood. Symptoms of low potassium levels include:. Diuretics are not helpful for losing weight. Anyone who wishes to lose weight should follow a healthy, balanced diet and exercise regularly.

Any weight lost will return as the body rehydrates. Natural diuretics may not be effective in lowering high blood pressure or resolving other problems that diuretic drugs may be used for.

Other medications may be needed for this. Salt is a mineral needed for the body's nerves and fluid levels. How does having too much or too little affect our health, and how much should we…. There are many ways to improve cardiac health, and watching what we eat is one of the most important.

Here, we provide details of 16 heart-healthy…. Drinking water is often overlooked as a necessary part of staying healthy. The body and blood are largely made of water, and so we need a lot of fluid….

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The NSAIDs most often used in this population were diclofenac We found no significant differences in the risk of hospitalization for CHF among the different NSAIDs. During periods of concomitant use of diuretics and NSAIDs, a 2-fold increased risk of hospitalization for CHF was found compared with periods of diuretic use only.

Patients with a history of heavy diuretic use showed an increased risk. This may lead to the hypothesis that an existing condition of CHF that is being treated with diuretics is challenged by the introduction of NSAIDs.

Case reports describing CHF after use of NSAIDs almost always mention concurrent use of a diuretic, thus implying an existing CHF condition as an important risk factor. The literature suggests that use of NSAIDs may have a more significant impact in patients with diminished renal function, 1 , 21 - 23 but in our study, no increase in risk was found in patients with a history of hospitalization for renal disease.

However, as the number of such patients was low, it was difficult to take renal capacity into account in this study. Since diminished creatinine clearance is a relative contraindication to NSAID use, information on renal function should therefore be taken as a cofactor in subsequent studies.

Renal function generally diminishes with age, but we found no age effects in our study. This lack of effect may, however, be explained by a selection bias. In our study, only community-dwelling elderly patients participated, excluding patients who were institutionalized and possibly had a higher morbidity.

Renal function is known to be abnormal in patients with cirrhosis, and several studies describe renal dysfunction in patients with cirrhosis after use of NSAIDs. No evidence was found for a higher risk of CHF after use of an NSAID in patients with a history of cirrhosis.

Murray and Brater 1 described rapid effects of NSAIDs on renal function in susceptible persons. We found a strong temporal relationship between the onset of NSAID therapy and the occurrence of hospitalization for CHF, with the majority of hospitalizations for CHF occurring within 30 days.

The highest risk occurred within the first days of NSAID use, after which it dropped to a level comparable with that before the NSAID initiation. There even appeared to be a slightly decreased risk after 40 days, but this may well be attributed to the fact that patients at high risk had already been admitted to the hospital.

These findings are in concordance with clinical data that suggest rapid effects on the kidney. The therapy most often used, ie, thiazides combined with potassium-sparing drugs, showed a significantly higher risk than the other diuretic therapies.

Again, this adds to the theory of destabilizing of treatment of existing CHF by the introduction of an NSAID, for the combination of thiazides and potassium-sparing drugs is used if the thiazide dosage is high, ie, in patients with CHF.

There was a significantly higher overall incidence of hospitalizations for CHF in patients taking loop diuretics than in those taking other diuretic therapy, indicating that loop diuretics are more often used in patients with more severe CHF.

However, in this group, we did not find an increased risk of hospitalization during NSAID use compared with the other diuretic groups. It is possible that NSAIDs affect the site of action of loop diuretics the loop of Henle less than that of thiazides mainly the distal tubule.

Many effects of NSAIDs on renal autacoids have been described, but the exact consequences of inhibition of the many prostaglandin production sites in the nephron remain unclear.

It has been suggested that sulindac and piroxicam show decreased renal risk compared with ibuprofen, 6 although others dispute this claim. However, the rate of use of sulindac was too low in this population to ascertain a possible lower risk.

A possible source of exposure misclassification could be the use of over-the-counter preparations of NSAIDs. However, a previous study that included a cabinet survey of all drugs present in elderly persons' homes showed that use of over-the-counter preparations by elderly people in the Netherlands is relatively low and that NSAIDs available without prescription low-dose ibuprofen and naproxen were seldom present as an over-the-counter preparation at the home interview.

If the reason for prescribing an NSAID in the patients included in this study was associated with the occurrence of the adverse event, ie, worsening of CHF, this would influence the results of the study through confounding by indication. However, this is not likely, as there is no reason to assume that there is an association between the occurrence of CHF and prescription of NSAIDs other than the one found in this study.

On the other hand, it is possible that physicians have prescribed fewer NSAIDs in patients especially at risk, which in this study would create a form of confounding by contraindication. This may also account for the lack of a clear dose-response relationship. In conclusion, we found a 2-fold increased risk of hospitalization for CHF in patients during periods of concomitant use of diuretics and NSAIDs compared with periods of diuretic use only, especially in patients with an existing condition of CHF.

The findings in this study call for careful monitoring of patients with a treated CHF in which NSAID therapy is unavoidable, especially in the first month of NSAID use when the risk of worsening of CHF is high. This study was supported by the Royal Dutch Association for the Advancement of Pharmacy, The Hague, the Netherlands.

Reprints: Eibert R. Heerdink, Department of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacotherapy, Universiteit Utrecht, PO Box , TB, Utrecht, the Netherlands. full text icon Full Text. Download PDF Top of Article Abstract Patients and methods Results Comment Article Information References.

View Large Download. Table 1. Murray MDBrater DC Renal toxicity of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Annu Rev Pharmacol Toxicol. Furst DE Are there differences among nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs?

Arthritis Rheum. Brater DCAnderson SABrown-Cartwright DToto RD Effects of NSAIDs on renal function in patients with renal insufficiency and in cirrhotics. Am J Kidney Dis. Murray MDBrater DC Adverse effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on renal function.

Ann Intern Med. Cannon PJ Prostaglandins in congestive heart failure and the effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Am J Med. Whelton AStout RLSpilman PSKlassen DK Renal effects of ibuprofen, piroxicam, and sulindac in patients with asymptomatic renal failure.

Simon LSBasch CMYoung DYRobinson DR Effects of naproxen on renal function in older patients with mild to moderate renal dysfunction.

Br J Rheumatol. Clive DMStoff JS Renal syndromes associated with nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs. N Engl J Med. Schlondorff D Renal complications of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

Kidney Int. Johnson AGSeideman PDay PO Adverse drug interactions with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs NSAIDs. Drug Saf. Laiwah ACYMactier RA Antagonistic effect of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on furosemide-induced diuresis in cardiac failure.

Brown JDollery CValdes G Interaction of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs with antihypertensive and diuretic agents. van den Ouweland FAGribnau FWJMeyboom RHB Congestive heart failure due to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the elderly.

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McKee PACastelli WPMcNamara PMKannel WB The natural history of congestive heart failure: the Framingham study. Carlson KJLee DC-SGoroll AH et al. An analysis of physicians' reasons for prescribing long-term digitalis therapy in outpatients. J Chronic Dis. Murray MDGreene PKBrater DCManatunga AKHall SD Effects of flurbiprofen on renal function in patients with moderate renal insufficiency.

Br J Clin Pharmacol. Garrell SMatarese RA Renal effects of prostaglandins and clinical adverse effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents. Medicine Baltimore. Brater DC Clinical aspects of renal prostaglandins and NSAID therapy. Semin Arthritis Rheum.

Boyer TDZia PReynolds TB Effect of indomethacin and prostaglandin A 1 on renal function and plasma renin activity in alcoholic liver disease. Wong FMassie DHsu PDudley F Indomethacin-induced renal dysfunction in patients with well-compensated cirrhosis.

Armstrong PWMoe GW Medical advances in the treatment of congestive heart failure. Brooks PMDay RO Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs: differences and similarities.

Heerdink ERLeufkens HGKoppedraijer CBakker A Information on drug use in the elderly: a comparison of pharmacy, general practitioner and patient data. Pharm World Sci.

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X Facebook More LinkedIn. Cite This Citation Heerdink ER , Leufkens HG , Herings RMC , Ottervanger JP , Stricker BHC , Bakker A. Original Investigation. May 25, Eibert R. It may lower your blood pressure and make you feel dizzy. If you're taking a diuretic such as furosemide, it's important not to have too much salt in your food because this can stop it working.

Do not eat foods that have a lot of salt in them, such as processed foods or ready-meals. Do not add extra salt when you're cooking or at the table. Also, do not buy salt substitutes, like Lo-Salt, instead of ordinary table salt, as they contain a lot of potassium, which can affect the way certain medicines work, or cause side effects.

Adults are advised to eat no more than 6 grams of salt a day. Your doctor will tell you if you need to eat even less than this. You can boost your general health, plus the health of your heart, by making some key lifestyle changes.

These will also help if you have high blood pressure or heart failure. Page last reviewed: 21 February Next review due: 21 February Home Medicines A to Z Furosemide Back to Furosemide.

Common questions about furosemide. How does furosemide work? Furosemide is a type of medicine called a loop diuretic. A dose of furosemide works for about 6 hours. There are other diuretics that work in a similar way to furosemide. There are 3 different types of diuretic, and each type of diuretic works on a different part of the kidney: loop diuretics such as furosemide including bumetanide and torasemide can also be used to treat heart failure.

Torasemide can also be used to treat high blood pressure thiazide diuretics such as bendroflumethiazide and indapamide , are used in low doses to treat high blood pressure, and in higher doses to treat heart failure potassium-sparing diuretics such as spironolactone and eplerenone , can be used to treat heart failure.

These can also be used if you lose too much potassium with other diuretics. Furosemide will not affect any type of contraception. Quit smoking — smoking increases your heart rate and blood pressure. Quitting smoking brings down your blood pressure and relieves heart failure symptoms.

Try to avoid secondhand smoke too. Cut down on alcohol — drinking too much alcohol raises blood pressure over time and also makes heart failure worse. Men and women should not drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week.

Be more active — regular exercise lowers blood pressure by keeping your heart and blood vessels in good condition. It does not need to be too energetic, walking every day can help. Eat healthily — aim to eat a diet that includes plenty of fruit and vegetables, wholegrains, fat-free or low-fat dairy products and lean proteins.

People need salt in their diet but eating too much salt is the biggest cause of high blood pressure. The more salt you eat, the higher your blood pressure will be. Aim for no more than 6g of salt a day. Manage stress — when you're anxious or upset, your heart beats faster, you breathe more heavily and your blood pressure often goes up.

This can make heart failure worse too. Find ways to reduce stress in your life. To give your heart a rest, try napping or putting your feet up when possible. Spend time with friends and family to be social and help avoid stress.