Medications have the potential to reduce blood pressure. Numerous diet ary and lifestyle adjustments, like upping your exercise, getting more sleep, and cutting back on alcohol and sugar, may also be beneficial.
Though it frequently shows no symptoms, high blood pressure, or hypertension, increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The goal blood pressure for most people will be less than 120/80 mm Hg. A person has high blood pressure if their reading is 130/80 mm Hg or higher.
An high blood pressure value falls between 120 and 129 over less than 80. This indicates that high blood pressure is something you could experience. To prevent your blood pressure from rising too high, your doctor could suggest certain lifestyle changes.
These are 18 practical methods for lowering blood pressure.
1. Get enough exercise
Studies indicate that blood pressure can be regulated or delayed by aerobic and resistance exercise, and that the effects of exercise can cause blood pressure to drop for up to 24 hours.
Frequent activity causes your respiration and heart rates to rise on a regular basis. Your heart becomes stronger and requires less effort to pump over time. Your blood pressure is lowered and your arteries are under less pressure as a result.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise engaging in moderate-intensity exercise for at least 2.5 hours a week, or roughly half an hour every day, five days a week. The CDC recommends one hour of exercise every day for kids and teenagers.
The following are some pointers to get you moving more:
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Using the stairs
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Walking instead of driving
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Doing household chores
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Gardening
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Going for a bike ride
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Playing a team sport
2. Manage weight
The heart and circulatory system are strained by carrying extra body weight. Blood pressure may rise as a result.
You can lower your blood pressure if you lose 5 to 10 pounds if your body mass index (BMI) is 25 or above. It can lessen the chance of developing additional health issues.
There are three main methods for achieving this:
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Move more
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Eat less
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Eat healthily
3. Cut back on sugar and refined carbohydrates
Limiting sugar and processed carbs may assist in blood pressure reduction and weight loss.
A 2020 study examined the effects of popular diets on weight and cardiovascular risk in individuals.
Following low-carb and low-fat diet s, people with obesity or overweight experienced an average drop in diastolic blood pressure of around 5 mm Hg and a reduction in systolic blood pressure of 3 mm Hg after 6 months.
4. More potassium, less salt
Reducing your salt consumption and upping your potassium intake can help reduce blood pressure.
Consuming more salt can raise blood pressure risks, whereas consuming less salt lowers them. Although the actual cause of this is unknown to experts, blood vessel inflammation and water retention may be factors.
Potassium relaxes blood vessel tension and aids in the body's salt elimination.
Foods high in potassium include:
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Dried fruits, such prunes and apricots
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Yogurt with milk
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Kidney beans with lentils
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Vegetables, including spinach, potatoes, and tomatoes
However, individuals with kidney illness may experience negative effects from high potassium intake, so consult your doctor before making any diet ary changes.
You may choose which items to eat and which to avoid by consulting nutrition labels. A salt listing of 5% is deemed low by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), whereas a listing of 20% or higher is deemed high.
5. Following a heart-healthy diet
The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, or DASH, is a heart-healthy recommendation from the National Institutes of Health.
A focus of the DASH diet is:
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Consuming entire grains, fruits, and veggies
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Consuming dairy products with minimal or no fat
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Consuming seafood, poultry, legumes, almonds, and vegetable oils
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Reducing the amount of foods high in added sugars and saturated fats
6. Limit processed food
Processed foods frequently contain large amounts of added sugar, salt, and bad fats. They could cause you to gain weight. Each of these elements has the potential to raise blood pressure.
As examples, consider:
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Processed meats
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Many fast or fried foods
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Processed snacks
In order to make up for the loss of fat, foods with low fat labels may also be high in sugar and salt. Food tastes good and fills you up because of fat.
You can cut back on salt, sugar, and refined carbs by eating fewer processed foods. Lower blood pressure can be the outcome of all of this.
7. Quit or avoid smoking
Your overall health, including your blood pressure, might be negatively impacted by smoking.
Over time, the compounds included in tobacco can raise blood pressure by:
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Damaging the walls of your blood vessels
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Generating inflammation
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Cutting your arteries
Elevated blood pressure is a result of the hardened arteries .
Even if you are not directly near secondhand smoke, the chemicals in tobacco can still have an impact on your blood vessels.
According to one study, those without smoking had lower blood pressure in places where there were smoke-free pubs, restaurants, and workplaces than in places where there were no smoke-free regulations.
8. Managing stress
It's critical to learn stress management techniques for both your blood pressure and general wellness.
Ways of relieving stress depend on the individual but can include:
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Practicing deep breathing
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Taking a walk
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Reading a book
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Mindfulness
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Meditation
9. Eat some dark chocolate
70% to 85% cacao is usually found in dark chocolate.
Flavonoids, an antioxidant found in cacao, have the potential to decrease blood pressure. Your blood vessels may get wider or dilate as a result of these flavonoids.
The American Heart Association does point out that while consuming a small bit of dark chocolate each day is probably not going to be hazardous, it is unlikely to contain enough flavonoids to have a positive impact on health.
Chocolate with a lot of calories, fat, or sugar might not be good for you.
10. Try these medicinal herbs
Herbal medications have the potential to reduce blood pressure. To determine the dosages and constituents of the herbs that are most beneficial, more study is necessary.
People utilize a variety of plants and herbs to reduce blood pressure, including:
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Black bean (castanospermum australe)
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Cat’s claw (uncaria rhynchophylla)
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Celery juice (apium graveolens)
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Chinese hawthorn (crataegus pinnatifida)
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Ginger root
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Giant dodder (cuscuta reflexa)
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Indian plantago (blond psyllium)
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Maritime pine bark (pinus pinaster)
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River lily (crinum glaucum)
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Roselle (hibiscus sabdariffa)
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Sesame oil (sesamum indicum)
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Tomato extract (lycopersicon esculentum)
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Camellia sinensis tea, particularly oolong and green tea
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Umbrella tree bark (musanga cecropioides)
The effectiveness of herbal therapies in controlling blood pressure is not well enough established.
Be sure to consult your physician or pharmacist prior to using any herbal supplements. They might cause problems with the prescription drugs you use.
11. Get quality sleep
Lack of sleep may make high blood pressure more likely.
Your blood pressure usually drops while you're sleeping, so that could be one factor. You might not go through this stage if you have trouble falling asleep.
Among the suggestions for sound sleep are:
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Establishing a consistent sleep schedule
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Working out during the day, but avoid doing so just before bed
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Sleeping in a room that is cold and dark
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Taking electronics out of the bedroom
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Avoiding coffee and alcohol use too close to bedtime
12. Eat garlic or take garlic extract supplements
Garlic extract or fresh garlic may help reduce blood pressure.
According to one review, taking supplements containing garlic can lower blood pressure in persons with high blood pressure by up to 2.5 mm Hg in the diastolic and up to 5 mm Hg in the systolic range.
13. Eat healthy high-protein foods
A 2015 study using data from over 1,300 participants revealed that a greater protein diet was associated with a 40% decreased long-term risk of hypertension. A 60% decreased risk was experienced by those who paired this with a high-fiber diet.
This held true regardless of the source of the protein—plant or animal.
Consuming protein may temporarily lower blood pressure, according to earlier research.
Foods high in protein include:
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Fish in water, like salmon or tuna cans
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Eggs
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Chickens, like the chicken breast
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Trimmed beef
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Legumes and beans, such lentils and kidney beans
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Nuts, including peanut butter, or nut butter
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Garbanzo beans
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Low-fat cheese and additional dairy items
A doctor should be consulted before implementing a high-protein diet , as it may not be appropriate for all individuals. Additionally, it's critical to balance the various forms of protein and the foods that contain protein with other ingredients.
14. Take supplements to lower blood pressure
The following supplements could aid with blood pressure management:
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Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids or fish oil
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Whey protein
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Magnesium
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Potassium
Nonetheless, there is little data to support the claim that the majority of supplements can control blood pressure.
Before using any supplements, always see a physician because not all supplements are suitable for all people. They might interfere with current medications or make other conditions worse.
15. Limit alcohol intake
According to a 2020 evaluation, drinking 30 g or more of alcohol seems to raise heart rate for up to 24 hours. In contrast, blood pressure typically rises after rising for the first twelve hours.
An average drink has about 14 grams of alcohol in it.
The American Heart Association states that excessive red wine consumption is not good for heart health, despite popular belief.
They advise restricting alcohol consumption to one standard drink for women and two for men per day.
A beverage is:
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One 12-ounce beer
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4 ounces of wine
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1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits
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1 ounce of 100-proof spirits
16. Review your caffeine intake
Individuals who typically drink one to three cups of coffee each day are not likely to see an increase in blood pressure.
However, if you drink a lot of coffee—or even a little bit—when you're not used to it, your blood pressure may rise.
Energy drinks with a lot of caffeine, on the other hand, may raise blood pressure and raise the risk of cardiovascular issues. Energy drink intake is discouraged by experts, particularly for minors who already have health issues.
Try decaffeinated coffee if you notice that the caffeine is impacting your mood.
17. Drink water
According to some research, consuming 550 milliliters (ml) of water two hours after waking up and an additional 550 ml two hours before going to bed may help lower blood pressure. But more investigation is required.
Drinking water may improve general health in addition to numerous other advantages.
18. Take prescription medication
Depending on your blood pressure level and other circumstances, your doctor can prescribe prescription medication if your blood pressure is extremely high or does not go down after implementing these lifestyle modifications.
Discuss potential drug options and what might be most effective for you with your doctor.
Frequently asked questions
What will rapidly lower blood pressure?
The cause and any current diagnoses you have will determine this. Breathing techniques and silent sitting could be beneficial. It might be necessary for someone with an established diagnosis to take their prescribed medicine.
You might require emergency medical attention if your blood pressure is more than 180/120 mm Hg, or if any of these values is higher.
Which seven strategies help reduce high blood pressure?
There are numerous natural methods of lowering blood pressure outside medicine.
Among them are:
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Exercising regularly
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Managing your weight
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Eating a healthy and varied diet
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Limiting alcohol intake
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Quitting or avoiding smoking
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Getting quality sleep
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Managing stress
Which diet is the main culprit behind elevated blood pressure?
Reducing salt in the diet can help lessen the risk of hypertension and its complications because there is a strong correlation between high blood pressure and salt intake.
In brief
Numerous medical disorders are more likely to occur in people with high blood pressure. Individuals can frequently avoid it or control it at home with nutrition, stress reduction, exercise, and other methods.
It's best to visit a doctor if using home treatments doesn't work or if your blood pressure is too high.
