Beta blocker facts for kids

Beta blockers are a type of drugs that help control how your body reacts to stress hormones. They block the effects of hormones like adrenaline and noradrenaline. When you get stressed or excited, your body releases adrenaline, which can make your heart beat faster and your blood pressure go up. Beta blockers help to slow down your heart rate and lower your blood pressure by blocking these effects.

What Are Beta Blockers Used For?

Beta blockers are often used to treat different health conditions, especially those related to the heart and blood pressure. They are a common medicine that doctors prescribe.

Helping Your Heart

One of the main reasons people take beta blockers is to help their heart.

• High Blood Pressure: If your blood pressure is too high, beta blockers can help lower it. This reduces the strain on your heart and blood vessels.
• Heart Problems: They can also help people who have had a heart attack or who have certain heart conditions. They make the heart work less hard, which can prevent future problems.
• Irregular Heartbeat: Sometimes, your heart might beat too fast or in an uneven way. Beta blockers can help bring your heart rate back to a normal, steady rhythm.

Other Uses

Beta blockers aren't just for heart issues. They can also be used for other things:

• Anxiety: For some people, beta blockers can help reduce the physical signs of anxiety, like a racing heart or trembling hands, especially in stressful situations like public speaking.
• Migraines: They can sometimes help prevent severe headaches called migraines from happening as often.
• Tremors: They can also help reduce tremors, which are involuntary shaking movements of the body.

How Do Beta Blockers Work?

To understand how beta blockers work, it helps to know a little about how your body reacts to stress.

Adrenaline and Noradrenaline

Your body has natural chemicals called hormones and neurotransmitters. Two important ones are adrenaline (also known as epinephrine) and noradrenaline (also known as norepinephrine).

• When you are in a stressful or exciting situation, your body releases adrenaline. This is part of your "fight or flight" response.
• Adrenaline makes your heart beat faster, your blood pressure rise, and your breathing quicken. It prepares your body for action.
• Noradrenaline also plays a role in how your body responds to stress and affects your heart rate and blood pressure.

Blocking the Receptors

Beta blockers work by blocking specific "receptors" in your body. Think of receptors as tiny locks on the surface of your cells. Adrenaline and noradrenaline are like keys that fit into these locks.

• When adrenaline or noradrenaline "unlocks" these receptors, it causes your heart to speed up and your blood vessels to tighten.
• Beta blockers are like a different key that fits into the lock but doesn't open it. They sit in the lock, preventing the real keys (adrenaline and noradrenaline) from getting in.
• By blocking these receptors, beta blockers stop adrenaline and noradrenaline from having their full effect. This leads to a slower heart rate and lower blood pressure.

Who Discovered Beta Blockers?

The first beta blocker was developed by a Scottish scientist named Sir James Black. He was a very important pharmacologist, which is a scientist who studies how medicines work.

• Sir James Black developed the first beta blocker, called propranolol, in the 1960s.
• His work changed how doctors treated heart diseases and high blood pressure.
• For his amazing discoveries, Sir James Black was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1988.

Important Things to Know

• Beta blockers are powerful medicines and should only be taken if a doctor prescribes them.
• It's important to follow your doctor's instructions carefully about how and when to take them.
• Like all medicines, beta blockers can have side effects, but your doctor will help you understand if they are right for you.

See also

• Betabloqueador para niños (In Spanish)