Keep Your Blood Pressure in Check Naturally with These Simple Dietary Measures

Are you concerned about your elevated blood pressure levels and looking for natural ways to keep your blood pressure in check? If so, adopting the appropriate dietary measures can help. Hypertension is referred to blood pressure levels that are higher than normal. It is a chronic medical condition resulting due to persistent elevation of the systolic or diastolic pressure. Higher than 140/90mmhg refers to hypertension. This health condition is also known as a “silent killer”, as it may prevail with no symptoms and increase your risk of developing heart disease, stroke, heart failure, kidney disease, peripheral arterial disease, and other serious conditions. So, it is necessary to manage hypertension and work on having normal blood pressure levels. For this purpose, World Hypertension League observes World Hypertension Day on the 17^th of May every year to raise awareness about high blood pressure, its impact on the development of serious health issues, and how to prevent, detect, and treat it. This year, World Hypertension Day will be celebrated globally on the 17^th of May 2023. The theme of this global health awareness day is “Measure Your Blood Pressure Accurately, Control It, Live Longer.” It aims to emphasize the efforts to fight low awareness rates of this condition, promote accurate measures for managing blood pressure, and improve your health and longevity by achieving healthy blood pressure levels. Although medications can help manage the condition, following the right, healthy diet and homeopathy for hypertension can help you keep your blood pressure levels in check. So, you might be wondering what dietary measures can help manage hypertension, aren’t you? Get to know all about dietary and lifestyle modifications for hypertension by reading this blog below.

Dietary Management of Hypertension:

Diet and lifestyle modifications can go a long way in lowering your high blood pressure levels, improving your health, and preventing potential health risks. A healthy Indian diet plan for high blood pressure and lifestyle modifications may help prevent, delay, or lower the need for medication and keep your blood pressure in check. Check out the list of healthy diet tips to manage hypertension.

1. Reduce Sodium in Your Diet:

Reduction in the intake of sodium plays crucial in managing blood pressure in hypertensive individuals. A large percentage of sodium is present in table salt which is responsible for the increase in the intravascular volume and cardiac output. So, excess sodium in the diet increases blood pressure which is not healthy for hypertensive individuals. So, be sure that you eat a low-salt diet to keep your blood pressure in check. Consulting certified dieticians can help you have a customised health plan for hypertension comprising the right lesser amount of sodium. Prefer to eat natural foods, and avoid eating processed foods. Also, don’t add salt to food often; instead, add spices and herbs to flavour your food. When buying foods and beverages, read the labels and choose low-sodium food versions. Also, avoid foods containing trans fats.

2. Increase Potassium Content in Your Diet:

The mineral potassium can mitigate the effects of sodium on blood pressure. So, increasing potassium in your diet can help lower your blood pressure levels when battling hypertension. This helps minimize the risk of developing serious conditions, such as stroke and heart disease. Natural foods rich in potassium are the best sources of this beneficial mineral rather than supplements. So, include bananas, leafy vegetables, citrus fruits, beans, lentils, avocadoes, and dried fruits such as apricots in your Indian diet plan for high blood pressure.

3. Opt for a Low-Fat Diet:

Hypertensive individuals who are prone to atherosclerosis should go for a low-fat diet. When following a low-fat diet, be sure you avoid eating fried food items, cheese, margarine, mutton, butter, and other foods containing saturated fats.

4. Choose Complex Carbohydrates:

Prefer to include complex carbohydrates in your diet for hypertension instead of simple carbohydrates. Consuming complex carbohydrates contain good levels of fibre help reduce weight easily. So, go for whole grains, brown rice, barley, oats, apples, and other healthy complex carbohydrates. Avoid or limit the intake of simple carbohydrates, such as sugar, jaggery, and honey, among others.

5. Ensure Adequate Calcium Intake:

Calcium has a crucial role in regulating blood pressure. Calcium manages the contractility of the vascular smooth muscles and modulates peripheral vascular resistance. Sufficient intake of calcium helps reduce blood pressure. So, enrich your diet with calcium food sources, such as low-fat milk and milk products, pulses, and green vegetables.

6. Avoid or Limit Your Intake of Alcohol:

Excessive intake of alcohol can soar your blood pressure to unhealthy levels. It can also reduce the effectiveness of medications for hypertension. Also, heavy drinking can lead to cardiomyopathy, stroke, and heart failure. So, avoid or limit your alcohol intake to keep your blood pressure levels in check.

7. Say No to Tobacco (Smoking):

Smoking elevates blood pressure levels. Quitting this injurious habit can help lower your blood pressure levels. Moreover, stopping smoking helps reduce the risk of heart disease, improves lung health and overall health, and enables you to enjoy a healthy, longer life.

8. Regulate Your Caffeine Intake:

Even though the intake of caffeine increases blood pressure levels gradually, it impacts your health negatively when you consume caffeine in large quantities. So, when dealing with hypertension, limit your intake of coffee, tea, and other drinks and foods containing caffeine. Also, do not drink caffeinated drinks close to bedtime.

9. Melt Away Belly Fat and Maintain a Healthy Weight:

Often, the blood pressure increases when your weight increases. Being obese or overweight makes you more prone to develop elevated blood pressure levels. Also, having excess weight around the waistline increases your risk of falling prey to hypertension. So, weight loss is one of the effective ways to regulate blood pressure. Certified dieticians can help you have a personalized diet plan for weight loss and a health plan for hypertension. So, you lose weight and have healthy blood pressure levels.

3 Simple Lifestyle Modifications to Manage Hypertension:

Besides these dietary measures, incorporate healthy habits into your routine. These include:

1. Regular Exercise:

Regular moderate exercise helps you have a stronger heart that pumps more blood with less effort. This helps reduce blood pressure levels. So, do moderate physical activities, such as jogging, walking, running, swimming, and cycling, for at least 30 minutes daily. You may also go for strength training exercises.

2. Sleep Well:

Adequate, continuous sleep every night can help keep your blood pressure levels in check. A lack of sleep (less than six hours of sleep) or poor sleep quality can make you vulnerable to developing hypertension. So, develop a healthy sleep schedule and stick to it. Avoid watching television or working on a laptop late at night or just before going to sleep. Also, do not relish heavy meals around your bedtime. Do something relaxing, such as taking a warm bath or meditation, the hour before your bedtime. Also, during the daytime, you can have a short nap of about 30 minutes.

3. Reduce Stress:

Chronic stress can make you suffer from elevated blood pressure levels. So, manage your stress by practising relaxing techniques, eating anti-inflammatory foods, avoiding stress triggers, practising gratitude, and pursuing your hobbies.

Now that you know how you can regulate hypertension with dietary and lifestyle modifications, adopt these healthy practices to lower blood pressure levels naturally. Let’s spread the word about these healthy diet and lifestyle practices this World Hypertension Day so that a maximum number of individuals can benefit from them. Consulting certified dieticians and nutritionists at Health Total can help you have a personalized health plan for hypertension comprising the right foods. Our Indian diet plan for high blood pressure not only helps lower your blood pressure levels but also meets your nutritional needs, manages your weight, boosts your immunity, and helps prevent or lower potential health risks. We also offer integrated treatment with diet, Ayurvedic solutions, and homeopathy for hypertension for better health outcomes. So, be quick, reach out to us at Health Total and keep your blood pressure levels in check with our customised health plan for hypertension.

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