If you’ve been diagnosed with high blood pressure or even pre-hypertension, you might want to look at some natural ways to lower your pressure before you turn to traditional medications. With that in mind, I’ve put together a list of 7 natural ways to help you regain control of your heart health.
1. Add Tomatoes To Your Diet
It’s the lycopene in tomatoes that are effective at lowering your pressure. This was the conclusion of a study done by Dr. Esther Paran, head of the hypertension division of Soroka Medical Center, in an Israeli study. Adding tomatoes to your diet can reduce systolic blood pressure by 10 points and diastolic pressure by 4 points according to the study.
The recommended quantity is four tomatoes a day. Look for opportunities to get them into your diet regularly. Salads, sauces, and tomato juice will all do the job. Even a tomato supplement can work.
2. Exercise
Though it may take several months before you see the results, studies have found that aerobic exercise that involves the large muscles is an effective way to lower your pressure. In fact, the studies indicate that exercise can reduce your systolic reading by 11 points and diastolic reading by 9 points.
3. Eat Low Fat Foods
A well balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and low fat dairy products should make up the majority of your eating plan. Eating foods low in saturated fats, low in total fat, and low in cholesterol can reduce your pressure as much as taking a hypertension medication.
4. Try Acupuncture
According to one recent study, when a low level electrical stimulation was applied at specific points on the front legs of rats, they experienced a drop in blood pressure. This study sets the stage for large-scale trails on humans, but in the meantime, since acupuncture is considered benign and harmless, you maybe want to consider giving it a try. It appears that electro acupuncture is slightly more effective, though both manual and electro acupuncture have demonstrated immediate and prolonged reductions in hypertension readings.
5. Try Yoga
Yoga exercises, called asanas, involve stretching the muscles and joints and holding the body in various positions. During these movements any tightness or tension observed in your body is consciously relaxed. The most efficient asanas for lowering blood pressure are the forward bends, which have a pacifying effect on the brain, the nervous system, the blood circulation to the brain, and they also help you reduce the stress. All these lower blood pressure. Furthermore, these asanas slow down the pulse rate, so they lower pressure.
6. Add A Little Red Wine
A glass or two of red wine contains the flavonol resveratol, which is an antioxidant that protects your arteries against the damage done by free radicals and also assists in preventing the hardening of your arteries. Flavonol is active in stopping your platelets from bunching together. A glass of red wine helps to keep your blood flowing smoothly through your arteries and improves your artery linings. When your arteries dilate properly, your pressure comes down.
7. Reduce That Caffeine
In one study, it was found that five cups of coffee per day can mildly increase blood pressure. So while you don’t have to kick your coffee habit completely, reducing your intake to only three cups a day can have positive results.
There are other ways to lower high blood pressure, but these should get you started on the right path. As always, consult with your physician before making any health changes in your life.
By: Hartmann W. Koenig
