Natural ways to lower your blood pressure

High blood pressure is a potentially fatal condition that can harm your heart. It affects one in every three people in the United States and one billion people worldwide (1Trusted Source, 2).

High blood pressure, if uncontrolled, increases your risk of heart disease and stroke.

But there is some good news. There are several natural ways to lower your blood pressure without taking medication.

Here are some natural remedies for high blood pressure.

Walk and exercise regularly

Exercise is one of the most effective ways to reduce high blood pressure.

Regular exercise strengthens your heart and makes it more efficient at pumping blood, lowering artery pressure.

Indeed, 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, such as walking, or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise, such as running, can help lower blood pressure and improve heart health (3Trusted Source, 4Trusted Source).

According to the National Walkers’ Health Study, doing even more exercise than this lowers your blood pressure even further (5Trusted Source).

Bottom line: Even 30 minutes of daily walking can help lower your blood pressure. Exercise helps to reduce it even more.

Reduce your sodium intake

Globally, people consume a lot of salt. This is largely due to processed and prepared foods.

As a result, many public health initiatives are aimed at reducing salt in the food industry (6Trusted Source).

Many studies have linked excessive salt consumption to high blood pressure and cardiovascular events, including stroke (7Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source).

Recent research, however, indicates that the link between sodium and high blood pressure is less clear (9Trusted Source, 10).

One reason for this could be genetic differences in sodium metabolism. A quarter of people with normal blood pressure and half of those with high blood pressure appear to be salt sensitive (11Trusted Source).

If you already have high blood pressure, it’s worth reducing your sodium intake to see if it helps. Replace processed foods with fresh ones, and season with herbs and spices instead of salt.

In conclusion, most blood pressure-lowering guidelines recommend limiting sodium intake. That recommendation, however, may make the most sense for people who are salt-sensitive.

Drink less alcohol

Alcohol consumption can cause an increase in blood pressure. In fact, alcohol is linked to 16% of all high blood pressure cases worldwide (12Trusted Source).

While some research suggests that moderate amounts of alcohol may protect the heart, those benefits may be outweighed by negative consequences (12Trusted Source).

In the United States, moderate alcohol consumption is defined as no more than one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men. Reduce your alcohol consumption if you drink more than that.

Bottom line: Any amount of alcohol can raise your blood pressure. Drink in accordance with the recommendations.

Eat more potassium-rich foods

Potassium is an essential mineral.

It aids in sodium elimination and reduces blood vessel pressure.

Most people’s sodium intake has increased while their potassium intake has decreased as a result of modern diets (13Trusted Source).

Focus on eating fewer processed foods and more fresh, whole foods to achieve a better potassium-to-sodium ratio in your diet.

The following foods are particularly high in potassium:

a variety of vegetables, particularly leafy greens, tomatoes, potatoes, and sweet potatoes

Melons, bananas, avocados, oranges, and apricots are examples of fruits.

dairy products such as milk and yogurt

salmon and tuna

seeds and nuts

beans

Bottom line: Consuming potassium-rich fresh fruits and vegetables can help lower blood pressure.

Cut back on caffeine

If you’ve ever had a cup of coffee before having your blood pressure taken, you’ll know that caffeine provides an immediate boost.

However, there isn’t much evidence to suggest that drinking caffeine on a regular basis can cause a long-term increase (14Trusted Source).

People who drink caffeinated coffee and tea, on the other hand, have a lower risk of heart disease, including high blood pressure, than those who do not (15Trusted Source, 16Trusted Source, 17Trusted Source, 18Trusted Source).

Caffeine may have a greater effect on people who do not consume it on a regular basis (19).

If you suspect you are caffeine-sensitive, try reducing your intake to see if it lowers your blood pressure (20Trusted Source).

Bottom line: Caffeine can cause a short-term increase in blood pressure, but it does not cause a long-term increase in many people.

Learn to manage stress

Stress is a major contributor to high blood pressure.

When you’re stressed out, your body is constantly in fight-or-flight mode. Physically, this translates to a faster heart rate and constricted blood vessels.

When you are stressed, you are more likely to engage in other behaviors, such as drinking alcohol or eating unhealthy foods that can raise your blood pressure.

Several studies have looked into how stress reduction can help lower blood pressure. Here are two evidence-based suggestions:

Listen to soothing music: Listening to soothing music can help you relax your nervous system. It has been shown in studies to be an effective adjunct to other blood pressure treatments (21Trusted Source, 22Trusted Source).

Work less: Excessive work and stressful work situations in general have been linked to high blood pressure (23Trusted Source, 24Trusted Source).

In conclusion, chronic stress can contribute to hypertension. Finding ways to manage stress can be beneficial.

Eat dark chocolate or cocoa

Here’s some advice you can really stand behind.

While large amounts of dark chocolate are unlikely to benefit your heart, small amounts may.

This is due to the high concentration of flavonoids in dark chocolate and cocoa powder, which are plant compounds that cause blood vessels to dilate (25Trusted Source).

A study found that flavonoid-rich cocoa improved several markers of heart health in the short term, including blood pressure reduction (25Trusted Source).

Use non-alkalized cocoa powder, which is especially high in flavonoids and contains no added sugars, for the most potent effects.

Bottom line: Plant compounds in dark chocolate and cocoa powder help relax blood vessels, lowering blood pressure.

Lose weight

Losing weight can improve heart health in people who are overweight.

A 2016 study found that losing 5% of your body weight could significantly reduce high blood pressure (26Trusted Source).

Previous research has linked losing 17.64 pounds (8 kilograms) to lowering systolic blood pressure by 8.5 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure by 6.5 mm Hg (27Trusted Source).

In comparison, a healthy reading should be less than 120/80 mm Hg (4Trusted Source).

When weight loss is combined with exercise, the effect is magnified (27Trusted Source).

Losing weight can help your blood vessels do a better job of expanding and contracting, allowing the left ventricle of the heart to pump blood more efficiently.

In conclusion, losing weight can significantly reduce high blood pressure. When you exercise, this effect becomes even more pronounced.