Cost Of Living Crisis Causing Rise In Hypertension Cases – Doctors

For many Nigerians, the daily struggle to afford food, transport, and basic needs has moved beyond the wallet. It is now appearing in clinics as a silent but deadly health crisis. Doctors across the country report a sharp rise in hypertension cases, which they link directly to three factors: worsening economic hardship, chronic stress, and the soaring cost of blood pressure medication. What was once called a “disease of the rich” is now affecting market women, civil servants, and young graduates who can barely cope with the pressure of daily survival. PATIENCE IVIE IHEJIRIKA, Abuja; IBRAHIM OBANSA, Lokoja; KALU EZIYI, Umuahia; and ABU NMODU, Minna, report.

Nigeria’s deepening economic hardship is taking a dangerous toll on public health, with hospitals across the country reporting rising cases of hypertension as millions of Nigerians struggle with worsening financial stress, poor nutrition and the soaring cost of lifelong medication.

Findings by the LEADERSHIP Weekend in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kogi, Abia and Niger states reveal a disturbing pattern: doctors are seeing more patients with high blood pressure, many of whom are unable to maintain healthy diets or continue treatment because inflation has pushed food and drug prices beyond their reach.

Medical experts warn that unless urgent interventions are implemented, the country could face a surge in strokes, heart failure, kidney disease and other cardiovascular complications.

LEADERSHIP Weekend findings further revealed that the growing burden coincides with the Nigerian Hypertension Society (NHS) estimating that one in every three Nigerian adults lives with hypertension. In contrast, the World Health Organisation estimates that between 20.8 million and 27.5 million Nigerians are affected.

Yet only 17 to 29 per cent are aware they have the condition, and fewer than 10 per cent have their blood pressure adequately controlled, underscoring the scale of the silent health crisis.

National experts say the hospital reports mirror a wider public health challenge.

Prof Simeon Isezuo, President of the Nigerian Hypertension Society, said that about one in every three Nigerian adults has hypertension, warning that many patients discontinue treatment because of rising drug costs, fear of lifelong medication and the false belief that medicines can be stopped once symptoms improve.

He identified unhealthy diets high in salt, sugar, and unhealthy fats, along with sedentary lifestyles, as major drivers of hypertension. He urged Nigerians to adopt healthier traditional African diets rich in vegetables, roots, and tubers, to engage in regular physical exercise, and to maintain a healthy body weight.

Prof. Simeon Isezuo said the disease often goes unnoticed until it has already damaged vital organs, such as the heart, kidneys or brain.

Health experts say the country’s prolonged economic downturn has become a major driver of chronic illnesses, with financial anxiety, unemployment and declining household incomes exposing more Nigerians to prolonged stress and forcing many families to replace balanced meals with cheaper, highly processed foods high in salt and unhealthy fats.

Prof. Dike Ojji, Lead Researcher at the Cardiovascular Research Unit, University of Abuja, also told LEADERSHIP Weekend that affordable medicines remain one of the strongest weapons against the country’s hypertension burden.

He urged the federal government to improve access to quality generic medicines and to strengthen health insurance, enabling more Nigerians to receive treatment without financial hardship.

According to him, generic medicines cost far less than branded drugs while delivering the same therapeutic benefits.

He argued that ensuring uninterrupted access to affordable medicines would help patients keep their blood pressure under control, thereby reducing the incidence of stroke, heart attacks, heart failure and other cardiovascular complications.

Ojji also raised concerns about the country’s shortage of cardiologists, arguing that specialist care alone cannot address the country’s cardiovascular disease burden.

“We don’t even want, as much as possible, people to reach that stage. Why not prevent it so that only a few will reach the cardiologist?” he said.

At the Kogi State Specialist Hospital, Lokoja, a senior physician, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said that hypertension cases presenting at the hospital have risen significantly in recent months.

The human cost of the disease is evident in the experience of Mr Sule Enevene, who has battled hypertension for three years and receives treatment at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja.

According to him, the rising cost of medication, repeated hospital visits, and the pressure to provide for his family have made managing the condition increasingly difficult.

“I have lived with hypertension for three years. The cost of treatment keeps rising, and many people cannot afford the medication they need. The government should make medicines more affordable and improve access to quality healthcare so that patients like us can continue treatment without interruption,” he pleaded.

A similar picture emerged in Abia State, with doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, and at Abia State Specialist Hospital, Amachara, confirming an increase in hypertension-related admissions.

One of the physicians at Amachara said the actual number of patients could be higher because many still rely on herbal remedies, self-medication, quacks and prayer houses rather than seeking proper medical care.

Patients interviewed in Abia also lamented the rising cost of treatment.

A retired civil servant, Cletus Ibe-Nwokocha, another housewife, Helen Ukonu, and a tailor, Hassan Gambo, all said antihypertensive medicines were becoming increasingly unaffordable.

Medical practitioners in the state described the rise in treatment costs as “astronomical” and urged the government to subsidise essential medicines.

Meanwhile, hospital records from Niger State further reinforce the growing burden. Data from Minna General Hospital show that 4,007 cases of hypertension were recorded in 2025, averaging 334 cases per month. Between January and May 2026, the hospital recorded 1,705 cases, averaging 341 per month, indicating a slight increase compared with last year’s trend.

The records also showed that while 296 cases were recorded in March last year, the figure rose to 420 this year. In April, the number of cases increased from 433 to 439.

Chief Medical Director (CMD) of Minna General Hospital, Dr Mohammed Isah Dansabe, said that hypertension has multiple causes, including hereditary and environmental factors, and added that each patient’s condition requires proper medical evaluation before the specific trigger is identified.

At Bida General Hospital, checks by LEADERSHIP Weekend revealed that at least four severe cases of malnutrition-induced hypertension were recorded within one week.

The Information Officer of the Niger State Hospital Management Board, Mustafa Muazu, also confirmed that recent records show an upsurge in cases of hypertension and malnutrition across public hospitals.

For Abuja-based pharmacist Abullu Obadiah, a resident of Jikwoyi, the growing demand for antihypertensive medicines tells its own story.

He said that commonly prescribed drugs such as Lisinopril and Amlodipine now cost between N400 and N2,000, depending on the brand, making it difficult for many patients to continue treatment.

Doctors, pharmacists and some patient advocates, further interviewed by LEADERSHIP Weekend, agreed that although hypertension can be effectively managed, the country’s worsening economic realities are making prevention and treatment increasingly difficult.

A nurse at Wuse General Hospital, who requested anonymity, refuted claims that most hospital admissions are due to hypertension, explaining that patients are usually admitted only when their blood pressure reaches dangerously high levels requiring emergency treatment. She stressed that routine blood pressure screening remains the best way to prevent severe complications.

Similarly, Paula Onwuka, a health worker at Asokoro General Hospital, noted that many patients do not continue treatment after diagnosis.

Members of the Patient-Led Advocacy Working Group on Non-Communicable Diseases also expressed concern about public attitudes towards hypertension.

One of the group’s members, Mr Francis Okonkwo, said that many Nigerians avoid routine medical check-ups because they fear discovering they have a serious illness.

He warned that hypertension is increasingly affecting younger Nigerians due to unhealthy lifestyles, including excessive consumption of sugary drinks, alcohol, and other harmful substances, underscoring the need for greater awareness, regular screening, and consistent treatment.

Some hypertensive patients made emotional appeals to the government and healthcare providers to reduce medication costs, saying worsening economic hardship has made it increasingly difficult to adhere to their treatment.

They said many patients are now forced to skip doses, delay hospital visits, or abandon treatment altogether because they can no longer afford their medication.

They urged governments at all levels to subsidise essential medicines, strengthen health insurance, improve primary healthcare services, and intensify public education on early detection, healthy diets, and regular blood pressure checks to prevent the country’s silent killer from claiming any more lives.

Mr Albert Kayode, a 58-year-old hypertensive patient receiving treatment at Asokoro District Hospital, Abuja, said: “Every month, I worry about how to pay for my medication. The government should subsidise these medicines because hypertension is a lifelong condition. If we stop taking our medication because of cost, we are putting our lives at risk.”

Another patient at General Hospital, Minna, Niger State, Mallam Abdulrahman Idris Isah, told LEADERSHIP Weekend, “The hardship is killing us slowly. Apart from buying drugs, we also have to eat healthy food, but everything is expensive. I appeal to the government to make these drugs affordable so people don’t die from preventable complications.”

Mr Akpuru Nnamdi, a retiree managing hypertension at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, Abia State, said: “My pension is no longer sufficient to cover my treatment. I have reduced the quantity of medication I buy to survive. Many hypertensive patients are suffering in silence because they cannot afford adequate treatment.”

At the Maitama District Hospital, a patient, Mrs Akpang Ekenwa, said, “I was diagnosed with hypertension about six years ago. The drugs I used to buy now cost almost four times as much. In some months, I have to choose between buying my medication and feeding my family.”

Mr Idachaba Edibo told our Kogi correspondent, “The economic hardship is affecting my health every day. I sometimes miss my clinic appointments because I can’t afford transport. Whenever I check my blood pressure, it is higher than before.”