Foods That Lower Blood Pressure - Eating as Medicine

Would you like to find out if there are any foods that lower blood pressure? If you have been asking yourself this question, then there is probably a good chance that you have high blood pressure yourself or that someone you care about is suffering from high blood pressure.

In any event, high blood pressure is potentially a very serious problem, so please continue to read this page where you can find out about the types of food that will be beneficial for you.

As a general rule your blood pressure is considered to be high if it is greater than 140/80. However this is a ballpark figure and may be adjusted by your physician according to your particular circumstances.

I noticed in my practice that people tended to first want to try natural remedies when it came to problems like high blood pressure before resorting to modern medicines prescription drugs and since so much can be done with natural remedies, lifestyle changes and perhaps changing the food that you eat, it makes absolute sense to try this route first unless your situation is so severe, in which case you may need modern medical intervention for a very quick response and then follow it up with the natural remedies after that (under the care of your physician).

There are many foods that can help you lower your blood pressure in an all-natural way. Think about how great this is for a second. Without exposing your body to drugs that have side effects, you can actually be proactive about your own health and simply change your diet a little bit to improve your blood pressure!

On this page I am going to talk about the types of foods that lower blood pressure, so that you will know what to look for the next time you are out shopping.

One important point to bear in mind however is that like everything in life, it should be all things in moderation. Despite the old adage saying otherwise, it is actually true that we can have too much of a good thing and then that same good thing can become a bad thing potentially.

So the trick is to introduce more of these things into your everyday diet but without overdoing it. You must still eat a healthy balanced diet overall but just make sure that you include some of these foods listed below.

As I already said, on the other pages of this web site, the body is an amazing thing and will respond to the smallest of changes in diet and lifestyle so you can do this gradually rather than a radical overhaul all on the first day.

Of course if you are able to buy organic foods that lower blood pressure then so much the better as these tend to be richer in nutrients as well as being free of chemicals and pesticides and other toxins for our bodies to have to deal with.

Leafy Greens

As a child, you more than likely hated leafy greens. As a matter of fact, as an adult, you probably still hate leafy greens to some extent.

Many adults still do. I hope that this will change when you realize that leafy greens like collards and kale can actually help you lower your blood pressure!

The thing with leafy greens is that inorganic nitrates within these plants actually have the effect of relaxing your blood vessels. This means that your blood then has the chance to then flow more freely so as you can see collards and kale are foods that lower blood pressure and consequently introducing them into your diet should have a very beneficial effect and that's apart from all the other nutrients that it contains.

Tomatoes

No matter how you pronounce tomatoes, they are also recognized as foods that lower blood pressure.

Doctors may recommend tomatoes for this reason, but as a bonus, they are also rich in the chemical lycopene, which is a strong antioxidant which has many other well-known and important health benefits.

The next time you are grocery shopping, be sure to pick out some nice, juicy tomatoes to help you fight your high blood pressure.

Berries

These fruits are great in terms of the protection they can offer you against high blood pressure.

In my experience, I have found that consuming just one cup of either strawberries or blueberries each week can go a long way in maintaining your already healthy blood pressure or prevent you from developing high blood pressure as well as assist in reducing a blood pressure that is already above normal limits.

Foods that lower blood pressure, both types of berries can be bought fresh or frozen to provide you with this marvelous benefit. Who said medicine had to taste bad to be effective.

Apricots

Apricots are rich in both potassium as well as fiber. Potassium and fiber have been shown to either prevent or at least to reduce one’s high blood pressure.

In fact, I remember that my patients enjoyed eating this fruit when I recommended it to them.

Please do keep in mind that fresh apricots work best as foods that lower blood pressure. Do not buy dried apricots because they have higher sugar content than fresh ones and may well have been subjected to other chemical agents in the drying process, even those in health food stores.

Dark Chocolate

Who says that you can’t have chocolate while also lowering your blood pressure? Dark chocolate is known for its slightly bitter taste, but it is adept at helping lower your blood pressure.

Consuming just less than half of an ounce each day (less than 30 calories!) has been connected with a reduction of blood pressure, according to a 2007 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The best part of this deal is that the study found that eating dark chocolate did not cause you to gain weight or develop any other bad side effects (so long as you didn't eat too much of it of course). Once again, all things in moderation.

Spinach

Popeye says to eat your spinach! You may not have liked spinach as a child, and you may not even like it as an adult.

However, it is worth getting past that because it is one of the foods that lower blood pressure due to the high levels of magnesium in it.

Magnesium has been associated with not only lowering high blood pressure, but also with maintaining healthy levels of blood pressure.

Spinach is also good as a source of potassium which is also known for being a major nutrient in the battle against high blood pressure.

Baked White Potatoes

A baked white potato can also help you to decrease your high blood pressure. I have seen this all too often with people who have high blood pressure.

They start eating more potatoes, which contain a lot of potassium, and their blood pressure starts to go down.

This has to do with the link between potassium and sodium.

Allow me to break it down for you. Your body retains sodium (salt) if your potassium levels are low, and excessive sodium increases your blood pressure.

Now if you eat more potatoes, your potassium levels go up, thus helping to rid your body of the blood pressure-raising sodium.

If you consume more foods that lower blood pressure, such as a baked white potato two or three times a week, you will see real benefits.

Final Note

So I hope that that gives you some idea of some of the foods that you can easily introduce into your diet on a regular basis and all of these foods that lower blood pressure are easily found and inexpensive so there should be no problem doing this.

If you start to eat some of these foods, and make some of the lifestyle changes mentioned on my other pages as well as taking some well-chosen safe and effective natural remedies, you will be well on your way to regaining a healthy blood pressure and thus a healthy life again.

From "Foods That Lower Blood Pressureéquot; to "High Blood Pressure Natural Remedy"

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Disclaimer: In no way is any of the information in this website ever meant as a substitute for medical care from your qualified physican or other health care specialist. If you choose to follow any of the ideas given in this website, it is suggested that you do so only under the care and guidance and supervision of your physican.

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