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Five easy tips to lower your blood pressure without medication
As we get older, it's more important than ever to pay attention to our health and wellbeing. And that includes keeping an eye on our blood pressure.
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is usually caused by the body's inability to deal with an overload of stress hormones.
It is typically a result of a combination of genetics, habitual stress patterns, unhealthy eating, and inactive lifestyles.
While you can't simply wave a magic wand to instantly eradicate your stress, it is still possible to improve your cardiac health through regular exercise and better nutrition.
There are ways to lower your blood pressure that aren’t medication. Image Credit: Pexels
In fact, simply lowering your blood pressure is a great way to avoid a multitude of cardiovascular complications such as heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral artery disease.
According to Dr Leslie Cho, a cardiologist and a clinical research investigator at the Women's Health Institute and Experimental Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, 'In general, the lower your blood pressure is, the better off you are.'
Here, she shares five quick tips for lowering blood pressure that you can start doing today!
1. Meditate, relax, and de-stress
Learning how to meditate and do breathing exercises is a great way to lower stress levels and blood pressure.
When the body is under constant, unrelenting stress, hormone levels can become imbalanced, potentially leading to high blood pressure.
Meditation can help bring hormonal levels back into equilibrium, making it a simple, stress-based blood pressure-lowering technique that you can use at any time and any place.
2. Switch to a mostly plant-based diet
A plant-based diet can be great for your health. Image Credit: Pexels
Studies have shown that a mostly plant-based diet can have an impact on blood pressure, even with small amounts of dairy and meat.
According to Joshua Gibbs, a fellow at the University of Warwick School of Life Sciences, a diet heavy in vegan choices could help reduce an individual's probability of cardiovascular events by as much as 9% (for heart attacks) and 7% (for overall mortality).
'This is a significant finding as it highlights that complete eradication of animal products is not necessary to produce reductions and improvements in blood pressure. Essentially, any shift towards a plant-based diet is a good one,' he said.
Don’t want to switch to a plant-based diet? That’s fine! The Heart Foundation reports significant benefits from reducing meat consumption, even if you don’t totally abstain. When choosing meat, opt for lean options and try to limit your intake to 1-3 days per week.
3. Make time for some moderate and consistent physical activity
Make sure you're getting your blood pumping on a daily or weekly basis.
Even a 60-minute walk a couple of times a week can help make a drastic difference in your blood pressure and cardiovascular health in general.
According to clinical exercise physiologist Laura Gray, ACSM-CEP, MS, regular exercisers should always remember to 'focus on breath control’, as breathing improperly can potentially spike blood pressure levels.
4. Consistently prioritise 8 hours of quality sleep
Poor sleep habits are the bane of a number of people's health, and apparently, they can even cause high blood pressure.
If you have trouble getting in the requisite amount of zzz's, openly admit it to yourself and get help. By seeing a doctor or a sleep professional and learning more about how to sleep better, you may reduce your blood pressure as a side effect.
5. Stop smoking once and for all
Smoking can have a devastating impact on your health, and high blood pressure is one of the many risks.
According to Thiviyanath Sellathurai, MD, nicotine makes it harder for your blood to flow through your arteries, which can result in a spike in blood pressure.
When you give up smoking, your blood pressure eventually normalises and begins to drop back to where it should be.
So there you have it, folks! Going forward, reach for that kale salad or that veggie burger, and get moving.
Will you give these tips a try? We’d love to hear from you.