How Do I Lower My Blood Pressure?
A healthy lifestyle can help lower blood pressure and can also help keep it in a normal range. Diet, regulator exercise and activity, maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking and taking medications as directed by your health care provider can help lower blood pressure.
Diet
Eating a heart-healthy diet can be helpful for lowering blood pressure, lowering risk for heart disease, and maintaining a healthy weight. A healthy diet includes:
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Whole grains
- Low-fat dairy items
- Lean meats
- Limiting butter and other oils high in saturated and trans fats
- Limiting alcohol, sodium, and food or drink that has added sugar
Learning to read food labels can help identify foods that are high in sodium, sugar or fats. For more information about making healthy eating choices, visit Managing Blood Pressure with a Heart-Healthy Diet from the American Heart Association.
Change up your cooking routine by looking for heart healthy recipes
Exercise
Daily exercise or activity is helpful in lowering blood pressure, lowering stress levels and maintaining a healthy weight. Regular activity can also give you energy, improve your sleep and your mood. While an exercise plan can help you stay on track, simply walking daily can help. Aim for at least 150 minutes of movement or activity each week.
For more ideas about how to add activity into your day, visit the Fitness section on the American Heart Association website.
Instead of dining out for date night, go for a walk with your date instead!
Quitting Smoking, Vaping and Tobacco
smoking, vaping and tobacco use are harmful to nearly every part of your body, particularly your heart and blood vessels. Nicotine makes your heart beat faster and your blood pressure go up. By quitting smoking, vaping and tobacco use, you lower your risk of heart disease and stroke as well as other health risks.
There are many ways to stop smoking or using tobacco. Your insurance may offer programs to help you quit, and your state may also offer programs to help you. Check with your physician or health care provider for other ways to help you with quitting.
Medication
If diet, exercise and other lifestyle changes aren’t enough or don’t lower blood pressure, or if your blood pressure is very high, your doctor or other health care provider may prescribe medications to lower your blood pressure. It’s very important to take the medications as you are directed. If you have questions, you should talk with your doctor or health care provider right away to get the answers.
The American Heart Association also has Medication Information about taking blood pressure medications that may be useful.
Source – American Heart Association – Changes You Can Make to Manage High Blood Pressure | American Heart Association Last accessed: 9/5/2023