Should You Take Losartan In The Morning Or Evening?

Answer

Losartan can be taken in the morning or evening. The time of day you take the drug does not affect how well it works. The considerations for timing should revolve around when is most convenient for you, and potential side effects.

What Do The Studies Say?

I will say that there has long been debate about whether or not the time of day you took your blood pressure medication changed its effects.

Some sources have recommended morning dosing as blood pressure tends to be higher when compared to the evening, but other sources have recommended evening based on older studies pointing to better outcomes (e.g., lower heart attack risk).

However, the most recent, and largest study on the matter (it included over 21,000 adults), published by The Lancet in October of 2022, found that there was no difference in cardiovascular outcomes when comparing administration time for blood pressure medications.

It concluded:

Among patients with hypertension, the timing of blood pressure medications does not affect the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events. Blood pressure tended to be higher in the evening among patients randomized to evening dosing, while blood pressure tended to be higher in the morning among patients randomized to morning dosing. Falls were slightly less frequent in the evening dosing group. There were no safety concerns from evening dosing of antihypertensive therapy. Patients can take antihypertensive medications in the morning or in the evening according to their preference.

The study was for a 5-year period, and as the excerpt above states, the rates of cardiovascular outcomes were similar between the morning and evening dosing groups. So, overall this is a good indication that you can take your once-daily blood pressure medication (e.g., losartan) at a time that works best for you.

What About Side Effects?

The overall rate of side effects appears to be similar between those that take losartan in the morning and those that take it in the evening.

However, and this is an important point, blood pressure medication, especially when first started, tends to cause dizziness. The risk of falling due to dizziness has to be taken into consideration, especially if you are elderly.

If you take your blood pressure medication at night, before bed, that somewhat mitigates the dizziness side effect if you're simply going to bed.

Additionally, when taking blood pressure medication, you want to make sure that when you go from a sitting or lying down position to standing up, you do so slowly. This decreases the risk of dizziness. 

Final Words

You can feel safe taking your losartan anytime. This recommendation applies to other once-daily medications that are being used for blood pressure, such as lisinopril and ramipril, as well. Just find a time that works best for you and take it daily at the same time.

I hope you found this helpful!