HOW TO LOWER BLOOD PRESSURE WITHOUT MEDICATION/DRUGS

LOWER BLOOD PRESSURE WITHOUT DRUGS - Hausafamily

HOW TO LOWER YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE NATURALLY AT HOME

So a lot of challenges clinicians face in primary health care for people with hypertension is on the issue of compliance. A lot of patients with hypertension are reluctant to take their medication before because they don’t want to accept the fact that they have to take a drug every day for the rest of their lives.

 

Although medications for hypertension may be needed at some point in the treatment, it is not always the case. Early on in the disease, many patients can actually lower their blood pressure without medications at all. Today, I’m going to be sharing with you how you can effectively lower your blood pressure naturally at home without any medication.

 

So the first step to effectively lower blood pressure naturally is through weight loss. The bigger you are, the harder your heart has to work. The harder your heart works, the more pressure it pumps into your blood with each beat.

 

Reducing even a small amount of breath can help you significantly lower your blood pressure. Research has shown that a 10 Kg drop in weight can lower the blood pressure by as much as 5-20 mmHg.

 

Time showing lowering blood pressure

 

EXERCISE

The second way to effectively lower the blood pressure without medication is through exercise, which is not the same as weight loss. Whether you’re overweight or obese, exercise can help you lower your blood pressure by making your heart stronger. If your heart is stronger, it does half the work. That is, it becomes more efficient. The more efficient it is, the less force it pumps into your blood with each beat.

 

The recommended exercise is usually moderate aerobics, which includes brisk walking, hiking, running, jogging, swimming, dancing, all of that. And it’s usually recommended you do that for at least 30 minutes, about 3-5 times a week.

LOWER SALT INTAKE

The third most important way to lower the blood pressure without medication is through decreasing the amount of salt in the diet. Many patients with high blood pressure actually know this fact, but not many patients comply. And part of the reason why is because most patients don’t actually understand why. As a clinician, if I tell you to lower your salt intake, I should at least give you a reason why, right?

 

Water percentage body should take

 

Well, the answer is simple, actually. The human body is about 60% water, and most of that water is located inside the cells with very little being in the blood. The water inside the blood and in the cells has a constant amount of salt that likes to keep people between the two compartments. When we eat a diet high in salt, we disrupt that balance by making the salt in the blood higher than that in the cells. And because salt is osmotic, meaning it draws a lot of water, it pulls a lot of water out of the cells and into the blood.

 

This expands the blood volume and increases in the blood volumes to an increase in blood pressure. That’s why decreasing the amount of salt in the diet is essentially lowering blood pressure. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends not taking more than 2.3 grams of salt for healthy individuals and not more than 1.5 grams of salt for patients with high blood pressure. While using many maggi cubes can cause you damages, how many do you Cook with?

 

Well, one Cube of Maggi or its other counterparts actually contain about 1 gram of salt per Cube. So, realistically speaking, if you are following the recommendations for salt intake, that means an average patient with high blood pressure should not be consuming more than one and a half Maggi cubes per day.

DASH DIET

The fourth important way to lower the blood pressure without medication is through adhering to something called the Dash diet. The Dash diet stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. What the Dash diet is, is basically adopting a healthier eating habit in general, which can include eating more fruits and vegetables, eating whole grains like Brown rice, Brown bread, maize, oats, millets, converting from red meat to white meat like fish or chicken, and switching to a low fat and low cholesterol diet, which usually means replacing your milk with low fat milk, low fat cheese, replacing your oils with extra Virgin olive oil, and eating lots of okra, which Interestingly, contains a good amount of soluble fiber. It has actually been shown that patients who stuck to the Dash diet alone were actually able to lower their blood pressure in two weeks.

 

Types of diet food

 

INCREASING POTASSIUM INTAKE

Number five is increasing potassium intake, which is the opposite for salt, right? So before we mentioned that lower sodium is good for hypertension, but here we’re saying high potassium is good for hypertension.

 

So a diet low in potassium has actually been shown to increase the risk of blood pressure as well as increasing the risk of stroke. Increasing potassium in the diet is essential to lowering blood pressure as potassium relaxes the walls of blood vessels, easing the tension within them. And that decreases blood pressure in general.

 

So eat lots of bananas. It’s important to note, however, that this potassium rule applies to patients with healthy kidney function. Patients who have impaired renal function are advised by doctors to watch the amount of potassium they eat as they tend to hold on to potassium more. Other sources of potassium include spinach and other leafy Greens, avocados and sweet potatoes.

DECREASING CAFFEINE

Another important way to naturally decrease the blood pressure is decreasing the amount of caffeine in the diet. Although caffeine can be beneficial like keeping us alert, improving brain function and even aiding in weight loss, it can actually raise the heart rate and narrow our blood vessels which can both raise the blood pressure. Sources of caffeine include coffee, green tea, black tea, carbonated drinks and energy drinks. So the FDA actually recommends not taking more than 400 milligrams of caffeine per day.

QUIT SMOKING AND REDUCE ALCOHOL

Lastly, to effectively lower blood pressure, habits like smoking and alcohol need to be decreased or ceased. In total, both cigarettes and alcohol not only raise the blood pressure but increase the risk of other cardiovascular diseases as well as certain cancers.

 

Even in patients who are being treated with medication for their high blood pressure, continuing to take theses substances can lead to difficulty in achieving optimal blood pressure control.

 

So in essence, although medications are very important for the management of high blood pressure, lifestyle modification is very important and continues to be first line as these cannot only decrease the blood pressure but can also prevent the development of the disease in total.

 

CAUTION ⛔️

Please note, before taking any form of medication make sure you consult a healthcare provider for additional medical advice, test and assistance.

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