ACE inhibitors

Category: Medicines

Type

Involuntary

Introduction and description

One mechanism in the body for maintaining the blood pressure is the release of a protein called renin from cells in the kidney. This produces another protein called angiotensin, which affects the adrenal gland.

When blood pressure falls or the salt water balance of the body is disturbed,  the kidneys release renin. 

A fairly complex process then follows where angiotensin is worked on by an Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE)  and then goes on to stimulate the adrenal glands  to increase blood pressure by increasing the amount of salt and water the body retains.  Angiotensin is also very good at causing the blood vessels to tighten (a potent vasoconstrictor).

ACE inhibitors or angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors act clinically via your kidneys and they block or ‘inhibit’ the Angiotensin Converting Enzymes (ACEs).  By doing this they aim to lower blood pressure, which is why they are "used in the treatment of hypertension and congestive heart failure". 

In detail what ACE inhibitors aim to do is lower arteriolar [artery] resistance and increase venous [vein] capacity; increase cardiac output, cardiac index, stroke work, and volume; lower renovascular resistance; and help with excretion of sodium in the urine.

That is the theory.

Some more detail

The body is a hugely intricate system with a far more complex series of interactions than is implied in the rather naive description given above and used as the rationale for prescribing ACE inhibitors.

 

The entire system looks much more like the diagram shown to the left and even this is simplified.

There are far more control loops in place than just the one specified as can be seen, the lungs, the liver and even the brain is involved and the hormone corticotropin, so to a large extent, the side effects of ACE inhibition could have [and do have] some very far reaching effects.

And these consequences have never been properly explored.

Let me follow up an example.   Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), also known as corticotropin, is a polypeptide tropic hormone produced and secreted by the anterior pituitary gland. It is an important component of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and is often produced in response to biological stress (along with its precursor corticotropin-releasing hormone from the hypothalamus). Its principal effects are increased production and release of corticosteroids.

Corticosteroids are involved in a wide range of physiological processes, including stress response, immune response, and regulation of inflammation, carbohydrate metabolism, protein catabolism, blood electrolyte levels, and behavior.

Thus if we interfere with the cycle we could get inflammation, psoriasis, rheumatism, increased weight as a consequence of poor carbohydrate usage, and aching muscles because of poor protein catabolism. And indeed, in some people, these effects are exactly what does result from taking ACE inhibitors.

There is a condition called angiodema, which is an inflammatory response to toxins and this response has been recorded in ACE inhibitor users.  The picture shows a man with a swollen tongue  from taking ACE inhibitors.

Efficacy

It is not possible to claim that ACE inhibitors 'work', as one cannot compare the effects of having or not having the drug with the same patient. Thus any study which claims efficacy is flawed.

Given that heart problems and atherosclerosis are caused by:

• viruses,
• toxins - including heavy metals
• parasites,
• fungi,
• bacteria [such as that in the mouth when you have tooth decay or gingivitis],
• radiation
• nutritional deprivation

any improvement in a patient is more likely to be caused by the body having eradicated the cause by itself via the immune system.

These drugs certainly do not cure and they may actually slow the healing process down because of their side effects.

And there is sufficient anecdotal evidence to show they do not work, even at the rather naive level implied by the introductory section.  Even I have had some alarming effects - my blood pressure has  gone up to dangerous levels after taking these drugs and it was not high before.  And it appears I am not alone, the eHealthme site reports 1,174 people on Altace with the same problems - hypertension.

Side-effects

All the following side-effects have been obtained from the eHealthme web site, which is a composite record of the actual side effects reported to doctors and registered in the USA through FDA and SEDA.

Kidney disease - and in some cases failure.  Anyone who already has kidney problems should thus not use these products.  ACE inhibitors can induce or exacerbate renal [kidney] problems especially if the person is taking an NSAID or a diuretic.  This LINK takes you to the eHealthme list of drugs causing acute renal failure.  Lisinopril, for example, as of mid 2014 had caused  2,532 cases of acute renal failure.  Ramipril had caused 819, Quinapril had caused 107.  Unfortunately the eHealthme site separates all the different forms of kidney disease, so you never get a complete picture, but if we take kidney cysts, for example, Lisinopril has caused 403 cases and 416 cases of something they call loosely renal 'disorder'.   

Death - ACE inhibitors have caused deaths, in many cases the cause was kidney failure.  The following figures come from the eHealthme web site and show the number of deaths caused by each drug:

• Ramipril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 523
• Lisinopril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 1,837
• Enalopril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 486
• Quinapril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 101
• Benazepril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 55
• Captopril - the number of deaths as of mid 2014 was 277

Potassium imbalance - You have to watch potassium levels in your body very very carefully if you use ACE inhibitors because suppression of angiotensin leads to a decrease in aldosterone levels. Since aldosterone is responsible for increasing the excretion of potassium, ACE inhibitors ultimately cause retention of potassium - hyperkaelemia.  Hyperkaelemia in its turn produces:

• Heart arrhythmias and cardiac arrest - often sudden
• Blood pressure - elevation of blood pressure
• Cramp and muscle problems - Muscular weakness, myalgia, muscle cramps
• Constipation - and other intestinal problems
• Mental problems - Inability to concentrate and think clearly – at severe levels it can cause severe confusion hallucinations, delusions and delirium.
• Shortness of breath and wheezing - “Respiratory depression from severe impairment of skeletal muscle function is found in many patients” - difficulty breathing and shortness of breath 
• Erectile dysfunction - and other reproductive system problems
• Stomach problems - including indigestion
• Kidney and other renal problems, in extreme cases kidney failure
• Liver disease
• Oedema - water retention

 

Zinc deficiency - According to at least one paper [see below] ACE inhibitors have caused zinc deficiency and zinc deficiency is associated with numerous diseases. Because it is so closely tied with the immune system, we can become more susceptible to just about every disease.  Zinc deficiency is extremely serious, please follow the link to get the full description.  For example, it can lead to

• Taste, smell and sight deterioration. macular degeneration and blindness, hearing loss and loss of the sense of smell, simply because cells are not being replaced
• Cognitive function deterioration – memory and reasoning can be impaired and lead to dementia, as dying cells are not replaced.
• Psychological disorders - Plasma zinc level has been associated with many psychological disorders.

Nausea and vomiting as well as diarrhoea – both these are indicators that the body regards them as toxic substances and is trying to get rid of them

 

Hypotension - assuming that potassium imbalance does not raise blood pressure, ironically the other common side effect is hypotension - low blood pressure with all that entails - dizziness, light headedness, weakness, faintness, hallucinations, and in the elderly the risk of falls.

Depression, anxiety and suicide - a considerable number of reports have been received via SEDA and the FDA of both depression and anxiety resulting from ACE inhibitors.  This LINK takes you to the eHealthme general list of medications with a record of causing depression and you will see that ACE inhibitors figure quite prominently.  Ramipril, for example, had 435 case reports as at mid 2014. Lisinopril had an even greater number - 2,658.  This LINK shows the drugs causing anxiety and again ACE inhibitors feature strongly.  If we take Lisinopril, 4,135 case reports have been registered and Ramipril had 466.

Dermatitis, psoriasis, itching, rosacea and other skin problems - a whole range of skin problems appear to be caused by ACE inhibitors, or are side effects of the medication, for example:

Lisinopril, for example, had caused 332 cases of dermatitis and 338 cases of psoriasis by mid 2014, Ramipril had caused 91 cases of dermatitis and 79 cases of psoriasis. 

Pain - the pain is possibly a by product of any potassium imbalance created, as cramps and myalgia are a side effect of this.

Macular degeneration - blurred vision, and sight impairment is another side-effect, for example there are 144 case reports of macular degeneration on eHealthme for Lisinopril though only 18 for Ramipril. 

Pregnancy problems - ACE inhibitors should not be used if you are pregnant, they can cause all sorts of problems including still births – the following describes a controlled experiment to assess the effects:

 and this is also of interest:

 

How it works

As you can see from the side effects, the mechanism by which spiritual experiences  - hallucinations in particular - are obtained can be varied.  It is clear one major cause is hypotension.

It is rare for doctors to work out the dose based on age or weight thus if one loses weight you could to all intents and purposes be upping the dose without realising it.  The table below shows the doses often recommended and there is no mention of weight or age.

ACE inhibitors dosages for hypertension
			Dosage
Note: bid = 2 times a day, tid = 3 times a day, d = daily Drug dosages from Drug Lookup, Epocrates Online.
Name	Equivalent daily dose		Start	Usual	Maximum
Benazepril	10 mg		10 mg	20–40 mg	80 mg
Captopril	50 mg (25 mg bid)		12.5–25 mg bid-tid	25–50 mg bid-tid	450 mg/d
Enalapril	5 mg		5 mg	10–40 mg	40 mg
Fosinopril	10 mg		10 mg	20–40 mg	80 mg
Lisinopril	10 mg		10 mg	10–40 mg	80 mg
Moexipril	7.5 mg		7.5 mg	7.5–30 mg	30 mg
Perindopril	4 mg		4 mg	4–8 mg	16 mg
Quinapril	10 mg		10 mg	20–80 mg	80 mg
Ramipril	2.5 mg		2.5 mg	2.5–20 mg	20 mg
Trandolapril	2 mg		1 mg	2–4 mg	8 mg

But this may only be one of several mechanisms and there is also a high likelihood that one of the knock-on effects of the Potassium imbalance is also a prime contributor, most of the illnesses resulting from Potassium imbalance can result in experiences.

And of course there is the ultimate spiritual experience - death

Observations

The observations all come from eHealthme.  [correct as at 2010] Because they classify everything as an hallucination we have no information about whether the hundreds of experiences caused by these drugs were hallucinations or visions or out of body experiences!

I have provided a link to the eHealthme website for each drug so that you are able to see all the side-effects of each drug.

Observation identifiers	Observation name	Number of hallucinations
001112	Lisinopril	207
001113	Ramipril [Altace]	87
001114	Enalapril	46
001115	Quinapril	37
001116	Benazepril [Lotril]	17
	Perindopril	17
	Coversyl	13
001117	Captopril	87
	Capoten	17
	Fosinopril	19
	Monopril	25
	TOTAL	571

Other branded ACE inhibitors include the following although the eHealthme web site has no record of hallucinations with this product.  Note that this reflects the number of users rather than their effects as the products above are very extensively prescribed:

• Zofenopril

The Lactotripeptides Val-Pro-Pro and Ile-Pro-Pro produced by the probiotic Lactobacillus helveticus or derived from casein have been shown to have ACE-inhibiting and antihypertensive functions.

Related observations

Healing observations

• ACE inhibitors and coughing 005790
• Therapeutics Education Collaboration - Bohemian Polypharmacy 012489

Hallucination

• Accupril 015631
• Accuretic 017938
• ACE inhibitors and hallucinations 006395
• Aceon 017939
• Acute delirium from a cocktail of prescribed pharmaceuticals 012266
• Altace 015642
• Apparent lisinopril overdose requiring hemodialysis 027534
• Auditory hallucinations and acute stroke 012627
• Benazepril 018032
• Capoten and Captopril 018167
• Captopril 001117
• Enalapril 001114
• Enalapril maleate 018948
• Fosinopril Sodium 019075
• Lisinopril And Hydrochlorothiazide 019263
• Lisinopril, Prinivil and Zestril 001112
• Lotensin 001116
• Lotrel 024080
• Mavik 019498
• Monopril 019545
• Neuropsychiatric effects of cardiovascular drug therapy 005097
• Perindopril Erbumine 019840
• Prinivil 015672
• Prinzide 019861
• Quinapril 001115
• Ramipril 001113
• Stroke and hallucinations 012626
• Tarka 020177
• Trandolapril 020228
• Triatec 020234
• Univasc 020329
• Vasotec and Vaseretic 020352
• Zestoretic 020399

Enlightenment

Kundalini, Ecstasy, Moksha, Nirvana and Annihilation

• Auditory hallucinations and acute stroke 012627

In time

Synaesthesia, Pure or enhanced perception, Inter composer communication, Vision, Dream, Perception recall, Exploring group perception

• Auditory hallucinations and acute stroke 012627
• Danielou, Alain – On drugs you are possessed by the spirit being of the drug 022582

Other observations

• ACE inhibitors cause oedema 005789
• ACE inhibitors, diuretics and zinc deficiency 006873
• More lives have been lost than saved 005754
• Pharmaceuticals and potassium imbalance 006295