Contributed by: Healthians Team
Introduction
Fiddling with your favourite diet to maintain or reduce high blood pressure and cholesterol is perfect and makes sense.
Although it doesn’t seem relatively straightforward, adopting a healthy diet has a tremendous and sometimes dramatic effect on high blood pressure.
You must have heard or read that high blood pressure, also termed hypertension, can cause countless health problems such as diabetes, heart stroke, kidney damage, and other cardiac issues, to name a few.
We usually think that reducing salty or processed foods in our routine diet can help lower blood pressure and maintain our heart health, but, in reality, it is more than just lowering the sodium intake.
According to research, high BP is counted among the biggest health risks worldwide that can be reduced by medications, lifestyle modifications, and most important, dietary changes.
Other factors such as smoking, binge drinking, canned foods & drinks, obesity, and stress might increase the possibility of high blood pressure.
In general terms, we can say high blood pressure is a silent killer as it remains asymptomatic and can only be caught by having a regular blood pressure check.
So, here is a checklist of things you can add to keep high BP under control:
Low sodium intake
A drop in salt consumption might say a drop in high blood pressure because too much salt intake can create a spike in BP. Moreover, it varies from person to person.
Reduced stress
A stressful environment pumps up BP as well as elevates cardiovascular risks. So, try to keep calm.
Physical fitness
Regular exercise makes you fit and also keeps blood pressure within the optimum range. Try to reduce belly fat as it may trigger high BP.
Adequate sleep
Sleep deprivation can lead to a variety of health risks. So, get a healthy sleep of at least 8 hours to maintain healthy levels of blood pressure as well as good heart health.
Quit alcohol & smoking
Excess consumption of nicotine and alcohol can cause an unaddressed elevation in blood pressure. That is why it is recommended to reduce or quit these unhealthy habits.
Goodbye to caffeine
Regular caffeine intake can also cause a slight but drastic rise in BP. So, quit your caffeine fix.
Most effective high blood pressure diet
DASH, abbreviated for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, should be considered the first and foremost step while discussing a healthy diet plan for high blood pressure.
Besides reducing your sodium intake and adopting these healthy lifestyles, it is also imperative to have a check on what one can eat to be within the recommended BP levels.
Below are some easy-to-find, nutritious, delicious, and healthy foods that can lower high blood pressure and cardiovascular risks.
Banana
One of the most popular fruits worldwide is rich in potassium and other essential nutrients. It can be carried anywhere anytime and is an easy-peel fruit.
Furthermore, it is available in all seasons and can be your best food partner in maintaining high blood pressure.
You can incorporate bananas into your cake, smoothies, cereal, bread, and milkshakes.
For more flavours, you can make banana and honey smoothies, banana milkshakes, moist banana cakes, banana bread, and oat bread & banana, to name a few.
Orange
A luscious fruit rich in vitamin C and fibres should inculcate in a daily diet to reduce blood pressure. You can have a glass of orange juice or can eat raw fruit. For more flavours, you can make orange cake and marmalade.
Spinach
This green leafy vegetable is low in calories, high in fibre, and nutrition-rich such as folate, calcium, potassium, and magnesium to lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels. You can prepare salads or sandwiches.
Avocados
This edible fruit contains oleic acid, potassium, and folate, and is rich in vitamins A, B, E, and K, as well as high in fibre.
All these combined nutrients help lower elevated blood pressure and improve heart health.
Celery
For years, medical practitioners have been using celery to lower high blood pressure. It is recommended to eat four celery stalks once a day. Celery procures phytochemicals, also known as phthalides, that help relax muscle tissues in the artery walls, thereby increasing blood flow and, in turn, lowering the high blood pressure.
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is fibre-rich, and a whole grain diet aids in maintaining healthy BP levels, whether it is systolic or diastolic pressure. This is a low-sodium food that can be cooked as a hot cereal and topped with fruits and vegetables.
Watermelon
Watermelon is a delectable fruit that has adequate water content and also contains amino acids, lycopene, potassium, and vitamin A.
It is an excellent source of blood-pressure-lowering effects.
Carrot
You are just a few steps away from curing the high BP issues. Carrots are rich in potassium and beta carotene are very effective in lowering high blood pressure. Besides BP, It also normalizes heart and kidney functions.
Beetroot
This crimson root veggie is considered to bolster blood vessels and blood flow as it is rich in nitrates.
It takes only a few hours to reduce the systolic blood pressure.
Sunflower seeds
Only a handful of sunflower seeds can help lower high blood pressure and promote healthy heart health.
These seeds are nutritious and rich in magnesium, vitamin E, protein, folic acid, and fibre.
Before consuming sunflower seeds, one make sure that they are unsalted so that your sodium intake is also maintained.
Final thoughts
Inculcating these healthy foods and a balanced lifestyle in your routine diet can help reduce unaddressed elevated blood pressure.
There is no magic thing or food that can instantly lower your high BP, instead, it is the foundation of all-around nutrition-rich food habits that gradually maintain your hypertension levels and bolster your health and physical fitness.
Hurry up! Add these habits to your routine before it gets too late. Exercising and a nutritious diet are the keys to maintaining a healthy body system.
In addition to that, you can also keep a check on regular blood pressure levels by opting for health screening as it gives vital insights into your health and well-being so that you can take necessary measures to enhance it.
