Metro Atlanta experts share how certain medications impact your body amid high temperatures in Georgia

Georgia will begin to cool off after this week's heat wave, but healthcare experts still want you to pay attention to your medication while temperatures remain high.

Jewel Sawyer, a physician assistant with Piedmont Physicians in Atlantic Station, said people on blood pressure medications should be mindful when it gets hot.

"It's very important when taking blood pressure medicines or anything that may impact heart rhythm or hydration status, that you are drinking regularly," Sawyer said.

Sawyer said common blood pressure medications can make you more susceptible to dehydration and can limit your brain's response to tell you when you're thirsty.

"When we take them appropriately, which is every single day or as prescribed by your provider, you may not think of or notice that you're drinking less water," Sawyer said. "So, we always say carry around your emotional support water bottle. Keep it handy."

Christopher Walton-Woodard is one of Sawyer's patients. He said complications like kidney stones made him realize his blood pressure medication was impacting his hydration.

"Once I began having those symptoms, I reached out to Jewel, who then informed me that I should probably be hydrating a little bit more," Walton-Woodard said.

He was surprised to learn his medication would affect how his body reacts to hot weather.

"Often when you're taking medications like this, you don't think of the side effects or any other possibility that it could affect you," Walton-Woodard said. "You just worry about what you're taking it for. So yeah, I was a little taken aback when I had learned that it can make a difference."

When it gets hot like it did this past week, he takes extra precautions.

"When I have to be in the heat, definitely making sure I have something to stay hydrated with, making sure that I'm trying to shield myself from the sun as much as possible, whether that's wearing some type of protective equipment over my head and face," Walton-Woodard said.

As far as storing your medication, local pharmacist Derek Chapman, the owner of Chapman Drug in Hapeville, said the bathroom is the worst place to store your meds.

"Because of the humidity in there, you know, after a bath or shower. So ideally you would keep it in a cool, dry place somewhere in the house and then particularly when it's hot outside," Chapman said.

He said it's also a good idea to consult with your pharmacist about your medication and possible side effects.

"We in particular are very accessible," Chapman said. "We're just a few feet away from the counter, so we're always there to answer questions, but that's our role as a pharmacist to counsel people on all of their meds."