Lower Blood Pressure with These Steps

Lowering systolic blood pressure to a maximum of 120 mmHg has been shown to reduce high blood risks. There are two ways to accomplish this: lifestyle changes and medications. While some people can lower blood pressure with lifestyle changes alone, the two approaches are complementary.

The guidelines lowered the definition for high blood pressure to 130/80 from 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), meaning more people now meet the criteria for stage 1 hypertension.

While you shouldn’t shrug off the change, there’s also no need to panic. “Obviously, nothing happened overnight inside a woman’s body or to her health with the release of the guidelines,” says Dr. Naomi Fisher, director of hypertension service and hypertension innovation at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Hypertension, and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Eat less salt

Cutting your salt intake is probably the most important way to lower your blood pressure. Studies have shown that a low-sodium diet has the same effect as one and a half to two blood pressure medications.

Because sodium is hidden in so many foods, avoiding sodium is difficult, unless you cook everything from scratch at home, never eat out and avoid processed foods of any kind, including bread. But it’s possible. It takes about 10 to 14 days to adjust to a low-sodium diet; then some foods will begin to taste salty.

Double-check labels

Many eat far too much dietary sodium, up to three times the recommended total amount, which is 1,500 milligrams (mg) daily for individuals with high blood pressure. It doesn’t take much sodium to reach that 1,500-mg daily cap — just 3/4 of a teaspoon of salt. There’s half that amount of sodium in one Egg McMuffin breakfast sandwich. Weed out high-sodium foods by reading labels carefully.

It is very difficult to lower dietary sodium without reading labels unless you prepare all of your own food. Beware in particular of what has been dubbed the “salty six,” common foods where high amounts of sodium may be lurking:

• bread and rolls
• cold cuts and cured meats
• pizza
• poultry
• soup
• Sandwiches

Quit smoking

Tobacco use, including smoking, is a risk factor for high blood pressure. When you smoke, nicotine causes your blood vessels to constrict, which increases your blood pressure. Talk with your doctor about a smoking cessation plan.

Relieve stress with daily meditation or deep breathing sessions

Stress hormones constrict your blood vessels and can lead to temporary spikes in blood pressure. In addition, over time, stress can trigger unhealthy habits that put your cardiovascular health at risk. These might include overeating, poor sleep, and misusing drugs and alcohol. For all these reasons, reducing stress should be a priority if you’re looking to lower your blood pressure.

Key takeaway

If you are serious about using natural ways to lower blood pressure, choose one or more methods that have stood the test of time.

If you do an Internet search, you’ll find dozens of other natural ways to lower blood pressure. They may be effective, but the evidence is limited or questionable.