les while reducing their sodium intake.1
In the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating pattern, people who ate more vegetables and fruit compared to their regular diet (which was probably low in these natural superfoods) had lower blood pressure than those who didn’t.
4. Make friends with whole-grains
Despite many fad diets warning people to avoid eating them, regular consumption of wholegrains is linked with healthier hearts, and a lower risk of high blood pressure. Research shows that high intakes of wholegrains reduces your risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 30%.
Choose wholegrain versions of your regular foods: such as wholegrain or sourdough bread wholegrain or buckwheat pasta. Other good quality wholegrains include brown rice, rolled oats and buckwheat, quinoa, barley, spelt, kamut and teff.
5. Include dietary nitrates
Nitrates are compounds found naturally in some foods. Root vegetables such as beetroot, and green leafy vegetables like spinach, cabbage, lettuce and kale are the best dietary source of nitrates by far. Nitrate is a substance that converts into nitric oxide in the body. One important benefit of nitric oxide is that it sends signals to the tiny muscle cells around the arteries, telling them to relax. When these cells relax, our blood vessels dilate and blood pressure goes down. A large scale study found that beetroot juice supplementation is associated with a significant reduction in systolic blood pressure. Research has found that foods high in nitrates, such as beetroot and beetroot juice can reduce blood pressure. Another study found that one glass of beetroot juice per day can lower blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.
6. Include more omega-3 fatty acids
The evidence of the effects of omega-3 fats from fish oils on blood pressure is also generally consistent with at least five meta-analyses finding statistically significant reductions in blood pressure. One of these studies which included over 1,524 participants found a statistically significant reduction in blood pressure when taking a fish oil supplement in those who had pre-existing high blood pressure. Good sources of omega-3 fats include fish and seafood, especially oily such as salmon, trout and sardines and nuts and seeds such as flaxseeds, chia seeds and walnuts
7. Move your body
Regular physical activity is regularly recommended to lower blood pressure and improve heart health. Regular physical activity makes your heart, a muscle, stronger, meaning it can pump more blood with less effort. If your heart can work less to pump blood around the body, the force on your arteries decreases, lowering your blood pressure. Adults with hypertension should perform a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise regularly. Aerobic exercise includes activities such as walking, jogging, cycling and swimming. It is universally recommended as initial lifestyle therapy for people with high blood pressure because it is known to lower blood pressure by 5-7 mmHg.2 Moderate-intensity aerobic exercise should be performed for 30 minutes or more per day, whether it be continuous or accumulated throughout the day.20 Aerobic exercise is recommended to be done most (if not all) days of the week.
Resistance exercise may include machine weights, free weights and resistance bands, as well as functional body weight exercises. Moderate-intensity dynamic resistance exercise is recommended 2-3 days per week to total 150 minutes or more of exercise each week to effectively reduce blood pressure.20 This form of exercise is recommended to consist of 2-3 sets of 10-12 repetitions for 8-10 exercises that target the major muscle groups of the upper and lower body.20 It should equate to approximately 150 minutes or more each week.20