Reduce blood pressure naturally
BY Mim Beim Naturopathy expert
Simple diet and lifestyle tweaks to help lower blood pressure.
(Q) I have just been diagnosed with high blood pressure. Is there something I can do about it naturally?
(A) The big problem with high blood pressure is that most of the time you don't know you have it. Between 20 and 30 per cent of Australian adults have high blood pressure, and pills for this condition are among the most frequently prescribed medication. High blood pressure needs to be controlled. However, there are some effective diet, lifestyle and supplement strategies that can decrease blood pressure instead of or alongside medication. Don't think of decreasing your medication without first discussing it with your doctor.
Hold the salt
The average Aussie eats five to 10 times more salt than the body actually needs. Even if you don't add salt at the dinner table, it finds its way into snack foods, takeaways, salami, bacon, cheese and even cereals. As our ancestors evolved on a low-salt diet, our kidneys are still programmed to value sodium and reluctantly excrete it from the body. Sodium attracts water and increased water increases blood volume, thus increasing blood pressure. Salt also causes artery walls to harden.
Adding potassium-rich foods helps cut blood pressure. Eat more dried fruit, leafy green vegetables, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant and bananas.
Don't forget to breathe
The stress hormone adrenaline forces blood pressure up, at the same time increasing breathing rate. One way to decrease adrenaline and lower blood pressure is to develop the habit of slow breathing. Take a long, slow inhale followed by a relaxed, slow exhale. Keep this going for a couple of minutes.
Nibble on dark chocolate
Studies show that a daily dose of dark chocolate, with six grams of cocoa, lowers blood pressure. Choose quality dark chocolate.
Regular aerobic exercise also lowers blood pressure. Choose from cycling, swimming, jogging, a gym workout or even just a brisk walk.
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