10 Effective Ways To Lower Blood Pressure At Home

High blood pressure or hypertension commonly affects many people. From smoking and drinking to lack of physical activity and high sodium intake, many lifestyle factors contribute to hypertension.

If left untreated high blood pressure could lead to other problems like heart-related disorders, vision loss, and damage to vital organs. Apart from medicines, correcting your lifestyle factors can hugely help in lowering your blood pressure. 

10 natural & proven ways to lower blood pressure at home

Moving further, let’s bring such factors into the spotlight and present the 10 proven ways to lower your blood pressure at home without medication. 

1. Exercise regularly

In today’s fast-paced world, we all find it hard to have time for physical activity. However, getting your body moving is crucial to keep many lifestyle problems, including high blood pressure, away.

Exercise helps you lower your blood pressure to a great extent. Wondering how? Let’s see.

Exercising helps you to maintain a healthy weight. It doesn’t stop over there. 

Physical activity reduces the pressure in the blood walls so that blood can flow easily. Also, exercise strengthens your heart to function efficiently.

But you don’t have to pressure yourself and run long kilometers daily. Start small and simple. Then increase your capacity gradually. 

Here are easy ways to get started:

• 30 – 45 minutes of brisk walking
• 30 minutes of cycling or jogging
• 10 minutes of rope jumping 
• 40 minutes swimming 

2. Lose unhealthy weight

If you’re overweight or obese then it’s time to shed those extra pounds. Obesity is one of the important causative factors of high blood pressure.

When you’re overweight, your heart has to work hard to distribute the blood and oxygen throughout your body. Adding to it, obesity can cause insulin resistance which can act as a reason for high blood pressure.

But there’s good news. Losing even 5-10% of your current weight can do wonders for your blood pressure. The only thing you need to make sure of is to work with a certified professional to lose those unhealthy weights the right way.

3. Switch to a healthy diet

When it comes to lowering your blood pressure, diet plays a crucial role. You need to be mindful of the foods you put inside your body.

You can switch to the most effective DASH diet (Dietary approaches to stop hypertension) to lower blood pressure. A study shows how the DASH diet is an effective approach to treating and preventing blood pressure.

The DASH diet focuses mainly on plant-based sources like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and some low-fat dairy products.

Foods to consume regularly according to the dash diet:

• Berries
• Leafy greens
• Fruits: Bananas, mangoes, pineapple, etc
• Vegetables: Broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, etc
• Nuts
• Legumes

There are also some foods that you need to avoid according to this diet:

• Red meat
• Full fat dairy
• Alcohol
• Sodium intake
• Packaged snacks
• Fast foods

4. More potassium, less sodium

Did you know that two minerals – potassium and sodium play a prime role in managing your blood pressure levels? Yes. 

One increases your blood pressure and the other one helps in decreasing it. 

Sodium is necessary for the body’s functioning but too much sodium could increase blood pressure in some people. Too much sodium intake leads to a build-up of excess fluid in your body and puts pressure on your heart.

On the other hand, potassium tends to oppose the effect of sodium. There are two ways potassium does this.

First, potassium helps to eliminate the extra sodium accumulated in your body through urine. Next, potassium reduces the stress on blood vessel walls which then lowers blood pressure. 

Hence, the key to stabilizing blood pressure is optimum potassium intake.

Some potassium-rich foods are:

• Spinach
• Citrus fruits
• Grapefruit
• Apricots
• Mushroom 
• Avocados
• Tomatoes
• Tuna

5. Cut down on refined carbs, caffeine, and alcohol

Lowering your blood pressure requires cutting down consumption of certain foods.

Refined carbs:

Refined carbohydrates can cause obesity and weight gain in some people. As we’ve seen above, your weight plays a major role in lowering blood pressure.

Caffeine:

Caffeine in coffee is believed to increase the release of the adrenaline hormone. The rise in this hormone can result in a rapid increase in your blood pressure.

Alcohol: 

Alcohol consumption increases the level of hormone renin in your blood which then could make blood vessels shrink. This often leads to increased blood pressure.

6. Quit smoking

You must have probably known about the ill effects of smoking on the lungs. But did you know that smoking could result in increased blood pressure? 

A recent study shows 51% of people who attended smoking cessation programs have shown positive results regarding blood pressure. Therefore, quitting smoking is crucial to controlling high blood pressure.

A continuous and prolonged smoking increases the pressure on blood vessel walls which then impacts your blood pressure. Also, the nicotine present in tobacco can ruin your nervous system. In the long run, smoking can even cause cardiovascular diseases and stroke. 

7. Get rid of stress:

Though stress and blood pressure are not directly linked, chronic stress could make your hypertension go stubborn. 

Whenever you’re handling stressful situations, your body releases hormones like cortisol and adrenaline to fight the situation. After a certain time, these hormones should come back to their normal levels. 

Hormones cannot go back to normal if the stress is long-term or chronic. So, working on your stress and getting rid of it is the only way to prevent this.

Some of the solutions to beat the stress:

• Spend quality time with your friends, family, and pets every day
• Exercise regularly 
• Listen to music
• Take a break from work and relax
• Practice mindfulness and meditation
• Approach a yoga teacher to balance your mind and body

8. Get good sleep:

Getting a good night’s sleep for 8 hours is necessary for every individual. It’s okay if this cannot be attained for a day or two.

But irregular sleep patterns over some time can increase your blood pressure rapidly. So, go to bed around 10 pm and aim to sleep for 8 hours daily. 

If you’re looking for a guide on how to sleep peacefully, check out this article. 

9. Embrace natural remedies

Looking for instant ways to lower your blood pressure and that too naturally? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. Some of the effective remedies to try are:

Green tea

Green tea is the flagbearer of being weight loss friendly. But did you know green tea is beneficial for lowering blood pressure too? 

Yes. A study shows how green tea is a blessing for people with high blood pressure. A particular polyphenol compound called epigallocatechin gallate present in green tea reduces the tension and relaxes the muscles in the blood vessel walls, lowering the blood pressure.

Garlic

Sulfur present in garlic increases the production of nitric oxide which then helps the blood to flow easily. A study confirms that garlic can be used as a ‘relief food’ for hypertension. 

Garlics can be consumed in multiple ways:

• Chewing raw garlic is common. But don’t keep it in your mouth for longer else it causes a burning sensation.
• If you hate the taste, consume it as milk. Boil milk in a pan and add 3-4 peeled garlic cloves, strain it, and then drink. 
• Add them as a tadka in your dal
• Simply fry 2 garlic chunks in edible ghee till they turn brown and eat them.

Ginger

This commonly used spice is another powerful ingredient that can lower blood pressure. A study shows how ginger aids hypertension.

Ginger has high potassium content which can eliminate the excessive sodium accumulated in the body. Also it dilates the blood vessels so that the blood flow is smooth. 

The best way to consume it is as a ginger tea. Receive the healthy rewards with relishing taste and joy!

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a herb widely used to lower blood pressure. Several studies have shown the positive effects of cinnamon for hypertension. 

According to this study, cinnamon has shown a significant reduction in blood pressure when used as a supplement for managing blood pressure.

10. Monitor Your Blood Pressure Regularly 

The key to controlling anything is to monitor it sincerely. You need to do the same with your blood pressure.

Even the American Health Association (AHA) recommends home-based regular monitoring for people with high blood pressure. 

You can easily do it with the health and wellness gadget, Eyva. All you need to do is breathe, touch, and wait for 60 seconds. And your results get displayed without any hassle, pain, or panic.

With Eyva, you get to know which activities, which foods, or which habits are raising your blood pressure and what lowers it. 

How high is blood pressure soon after waking up?

How low does it go when you’re sad?

Is eating garlic helping you tame your blood pressure levels?

How much caffeine is just enough to keep your levels within a safe range?

Know it all in real-time and take remedial actions at the right time. Being regularly watchful of your levels makes you take action before the situation becomes life-threatening. You can visit the doctor at the earliest whenever the readings are concerning.

Eyva empowers you with effortless regular monitoring. You feel a sense of security. You’re not confused or worrying about your levels, you have a clear picture of them in front of you. 

And that too, with just a touch!

You can have peace of mind and stay calm as Eyva is there to measure your levels anytime, anywhere. 

Final words

High blood pressure is becoming a prevalent lifestyle problem these days. This might turn dangerous if you don’t make remedies and changes at the right time.

Knowing where one is going wrong in terms of sleep, diet, stress, and physical activity is not only necessary but crucial for lowering your blood pressure.

Changing your lifestyle, opting for healthy choices, and forming the right habits together with regular monitoring of blood pressure levels is a strategic solution to defeat the dangers of hypertension.