Natural Remedies to Lower Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is often referred to as the “silent killer” due to the fact that it presents no symptoms, but it can still be just as harmful as some of the other serious issues such as heart attack, stroke, aneurysms, and kidney failure, among others.  According to the American Heart Association, 28% of people have high blood pressure and don’t even know it.  Most of the time, people will take medication to stop high blood pressure, however; there are many different ways to lower high blood pressure naturally.

Most of these are common but at the end we have included some not so known natural remedies at the end.  

1. Exercise regularly. Often times when weight increases, blood pressure does too so it is important get exercise daily.  The recommended amount of exercise is thirty minutes each day.  Losing ten pounds can help lower blood pressure.  It’s extremely important to be consistently exercising because if you stop exercising, your blood pressure can rise again.  Some of the best types of exercise to lower blood pressure are walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, lifting weights, and dancing.

2. Eat a healthy diet. It is always important to eat a healthy diet, however; it is even more important if you suffer from high blood pressure.  Some foods that you should eat include whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products.  This diet is known as the Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH).  It is also important to boost potassium levels as potassium can reduce the impact that sodium has on blood pressure.

3. Lower your sodium intake. Sodium has the greatest effect on blood pressure.  For the most part, individuals that suffer from high blood pressure also have diets that are high in sodium.  While the effect of sodium intake vary among certain groups of people, it is still important to have a sodium intake of at most 1,500 mg a day.  Processed foods generally have high sodium content so a great start would be to cut back on processed foods.  Check food labels to determine the sodium content of those items.

4. Reduce your stress. There are a number of ways to go about reducing stress.  The first and easiest is to work slightly less, if at all possible.  Everybody knows that the rigors of working contribute high levels of stress into the body.  Stress is also a contributor towards high blood pressure.  By working less and getting rid of some of the excess stress, it can help maintain healthy blood pressure.  Other ways to limit stress is to make time to relax and do activities that you can enjoy.  It is very important to make sure you don’t get overwhelmed by stress, and you can do this by just taking 15 to 20 minutes each day to just sit quietly and relax.  Do the things that make you happy.  You may not be able to completely eliminate stress, but you can help lower stress by finding what triggers that stress and helping to alleviate it.

5. Don’t smoke. Individuals who smoke are at a greater risk of developing hypertension.  Quitting smoking may help lower your blood pressure, in addition to all the other benefits that come from quitting smoking.  With each cigarette you smoke, your blood pressure increases for many minutes after you finish.

6. Lower alcohol consumption. While a small amount of alcohol actually can have a positive effect on your health, drinking too much of it can be bad.  More than one drink a day for men and women is an acceptable amount of alcohol to consume, however if you drink more than that, blood pressure can rise by several points.  If you do wish to consume alcohol, it is better to do so with meals so it can reduce the negative impact that alcohol has on blood pressure.

7. Monitor your blood pressure regularly. Along with all of these steps, it is important to monitor your blood pressure with regularity.  You need to make sure the changes you are making are actually paying off.  Blood pressure monitors are widely available without a prescription.  In addition to monitoring at home, it is important to regularly check up with your doctor so that you can ensure that progress is being made.

Other Natural Ingredients to Help Blood Pressure

Magnesium. Magnesium is a mineral that is essential for the body to function at peak levels.  Magnesium helps relax the blood vessels and regulate action of the heart muscles, preventing spasms in vessel walls and in the heart.  Magnesium has also been used with conditions such as eclampsia during pregnancy and severe asthma attacks.

Hawthorn Extract. Used as far back as the 1st century, hawthorn extract has been used mostly for heart and other circulatory issues.  Hawthorn helps improve the amount of blood pumped out of the heart during contractions by causing the blood vessels to relax.  In addition to managing high blood pressure, hawthorn can also be used with chest pain, and other heart issues.

Taurine. Taurine is an amino acid that is found in large quantities in the brain, retina, heart, and platelets.  It helps to improve the function of the left ventricle, which is one of the chambers of the heart, and also calms the sympathetic nervous system, which is often times too active in people with high blood pressure.  Taurine has also been used for heart failure, liver disease, high cholesterol, and cystic fibrosis. Taurine can be found prominently in meat and fish.

These are just a few of the many natural ingredients used to help with high blood pressure.  However, we do recommend that you have a discussion with your doctor before deciding to take any of the powerful natural extracts into your diet.