10 Natural Ways to Reduce High Blood Pressure in 2023

High blood pressure, or hypertension, isn’t something you want to take lightly.

Not only does it rarely show symptoms, but it can also quickly spiral into an array of devastating complications.

If you have high blood pressure, it is important to get it treated early. The higher your blood pressure, the more vulnerable you are to other health problems and complications. Do monitor your blood pressure with a home use blood pressure monitor.

The Effects of High Blood Pressure

What can high blood pressure cause?

This condition is linked to a number of complications that can be life-threatening. Let’s take a closer look at how:

Is It True That High Blood Pressure Causes Headaches?

It is widely suggested that high blood pressure doesn’t necessarily cause a headache unless you’re dealing with a hypertensive crisis.

This happens when your blood pressure reaches extremely high levels which cause pressure in your cranium. Often, the headache that follows feels like a migraine, but traditional headache medication cannot reduce the pain.

High Blood Pressure Causes Heart Attack

Yes, if your high blood pressure is left uncontrolled for a long period of time, it can result in complications like a heart attack.

This is because high blood pressure can cause the arteries to harden and thicken.

High Blood Pressure Causes Stroke

Apart from causing a heart attack, uncontrolled high blood pressure can also lead to a stroke.

It may cause blood clots to develop in the arteries that lead to your brain, therefore cutting off blood flow and causing a stroke to happen.

1. Have a Good Sleep

Pulling all-nighters to rush your school project or work presentation?

Don’t. When you sleep, your blood pressure drops, and when you don’t sleep, it can affect your blood pressure.

Sleep deprivation, especially in middle-aged individuals, leads to a greater risk of high blood pressure. It can also worsen existing high blood pressure.

Adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep daily for optimal sleep and bodily function. If you’re clocking in less sleep, like 5 hours a day, then you should know why your eyelids keep slipping shut at work.

Apart from getting enough sleep daily at night, it is also important to have quality sleep.

Make sure that you get sufficient and high-quality sleep during bedtime. Consider taking measures, like a regular sleep schedule, avoiding blue light before bedtime, and using essential oils for better sleep.

2. Stop Smoking (best way to improve your health)

It’s not easy to kick the habit, but eliminating smoking from your lifestyle gives you so many benefits.

When you smoke, it causes a sudden hike in your blood pressure and heart rate, even if temporary.

Over the long term, the chemicals present inside tobacco increase your blood pressure. They harm the walls of your blood vessels, give rise to inflammation, and cause your arteries to constrict.

As a result, the hardened arteries cause higher blood pressure. This applies even to secondhand smoke.

3. Lose Weight

Overweight?

If you are, losing 2 to 5kg can cut your blood pressure while reducing your risk of other potential health issues.

Blood pressure tends to increase in tandem with weight increases. When you’re overweight, it puts you at risk of other problems like sleep apnea, which can increase your blood pressure further.

You should also track your waistline because having excess weight around your waist also heightens your risk of high blood pressure.

4. Eat More Potassium

There are plenty of benefits to eating potassium-rich foods.

It reduces the effects of salt in your body while lowering tension in your blood vessels. However, these foods may be damaging to those with kidney disease, so make sure to consult your doctor before making any changes.

Here are some foods high in potassium:

• Fish
• Dried fruits (apricots, raisins)
• Potatoes
• Beans
• Butternut
• Spinach and broccoli
• Avocado
• Bananas

5. Eat Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate has the ability to reduce blood pressure, but not any kind of chocolate works.

You need to eat dark chocolate that is 60 – 70% cacao, preferably 1 to 2 squares daily. The benefits are attributed to flavonoids in chocolate that have more cocoa solids that help to expand blood vessels.

Dark chocolate can reduce blood pressure and inflammation, lowering heart disease as a result.

6. Eat Healthy Foods Rich in Protein

Eating more protein may reduce your risk of high blood pressure.

Add fibre to the mix and cut your risk even further. However, note that a protein-rich diet may not be suitable for everyone. For example, if you have kidney disease, you may need to exercise caution or speak to your doctor for professional advice.

These are some high-protein foods:

• Eggs
• Lean meat (pork, veal, lamb, beef)
• Dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese)
• Seafood (fish, clams, mussels, crabs, prawns, crayfish, lobster)
• Poultry (chicken, duck, turkey)
• Beans and legumes (lentils, kidney beans)
• Peanut butter
• Chickpeas

7. Drink Less Alcohol

Alcohol can increase your blood pressure even if you’re perfectly healthy.

It’s okay to consume alcohol as long as you do so in moderation within recommended limits.

Men should drink no more than 2 glasses of alcohol a day, and 1 for women. A standard drink is defined as 1 330ml can of beer, half a glass (100ml) of wine, and 1 nip (30ml) of spirit.

8. Reduce Your Caffeine Intake

Caffeine has a temporary blood-pressure raising effect. Caffeine reduces the size of your blood vessels, raising blood pressure as a result.

Some people may be more sensitive to caffeine, and if you’re one of them, it may be ideal to reduce your coffee consumption or drink decaffeinated coffee instead.

It is normal to experience elevated blood pressure levels for around 3 to 4 hours before stabilising after drinking a cup of coffee.

9. Incorporate the DASH Diet Meal Plan

What is the DASH dietary pattern?

This diet, which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, originated in 1997. It was formulated by the National Institute of Health’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHBLI) in America.

Its main aim is to help reduce and treat high blood pressure using a healthy diet that is rich in potassium, magnesium, and calcium. It also limits foods that are high in salt (1,500-2,300mg per day), added sugar (<5 servings weekly), and saturated fat and oils (1-3 teaspoons daily).

It is mainly based on a diet rich in:

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Whole grains
• Low-fat or fat-free dairy
• Fish
• Poultry
• Nuts
• Legumes

It was designed to provide huge amounts of important nutrients that are expected to have a role in reducing blood pressure based on past studies.

Note that it focuses on a pattern instead of individual ingredients, which is one of its unique characteristics.

10. Keep Track of Your Blood Pressure at Home

Monitoring your blood pressure is important to keep track of your health. You should know whether you have high blood pressure. (or even low blood pressure for some)

It indicates whether your lifestyle and/or diet changes are working or not, and provides health warning alerts to potential problems.

Using your reliable Omron blood pressure monitors at home is a fairly convenient and quick method to deduce your blood pressure! Read this blood pressure monitor guide to find out how to do it.

Where Can I Buy My Omron Blood Pressure Monitor?

You can find blood pressure monitors Omron in pharmacies like Watsons, Guardian, and Unity but the price may not be good. You can get a better deal to buy your Omron blood pressure machine online

Unfortunately, you will not be able to buy your blood pressure machines at most supermarkets like Giant, NTUC FairPrice, or Cold Storage.

If you prefer to get it delivered to your doorstep because you find it troublesome to buy it in-store, you can buy your Omron blood pressure monitor online on our SeniorCare page.