Lowering blood pressure with diet?

Am I correct in assuming the caffeine in drinks like coke is also bad? I know tea and coffee should be avoided unless decaffeinated.

When youre trying to lower blood pressure there are 3 main things you should take care of. Foods to avoid, foods to add and exercise. The foods that you should avoid are processed foods (they're mainly just sugar and salt). As for the addition you can make to your diet, flaxseed is definitely a good idea. Another supplement that's great for lower blood pressure is grape seed extract. You can read about it on this blog I found www.vitaminexpress.org/uk/opc-vital-opc-capsules

CanadianGran self-help is very important as well.
My husband was put on blood pressure tablets years ago but just carried on as before.
Recently he had swollen and painful ankles, finally stopped throwing salt all over his food and the swelling went down.
My daughter and I told him to do that years ago!

Thanks for all of your input. I do believe that genetics have something to do with my personal issue since both my sisters have high blood pressure. No weight issues, and a relatively healthy diet, but will try to cut more salt.

I have started adding flax and hibiscus tea to my diet. Flax is no issue, since I put ground flax on my yogurt and berries and use the oil in salad, but fitting in a cup of tea when I love coffee is a challenge! I will monitor BP and check back in a month or so with a report. I know there is no issue with taking medication, but for some reason, whether it is pride or stubbornness, I will try other options first.

Hi, I'm a Nutritional Therapist and have helped many clients reduce blood pressure through diet and lifestyle, some weight related but some not. Sometimes we think we are eating healthy but adding certain foods in your diet, especially those high in specific nutrients like potassium and magnesium, helps reduce your blood pressure levels. The fatty acids in salmon and other fatty fish are also known to have helped reduce blood pressure levels by reducing inflammation and decreasing levels of blood-vessel-constricting compounds called oxylipins

Research has linked higher intakes of omega-3-rich fatty fish to lower blood pressure levels.

Beans and Lentils and also berries are also well researched for their contribution to lowering blood pressure. A good, classic Mediterranean Diet will help as well. If you are interested in the research behind these claims, a few searches on Pub Med will give you all you need.

However, do be aware that some Hypertension issues are genetic and may still require medication along with a dietary changes.

Do not forget the contribution that regular exercise also makes to lowering blood pressure.

In fact the best way to keep your blood pressure down is what we are always being told, keep your weight down, take regular exercise and eat a mediteranean diet high in fruit, veg, nuts and olive oil.

Yes salt is a known factor.

But overall reduce weight, lots of exercise.

My husband's doctor called me in to join their consultation and said his pressure was extremely high and that I needed to cut out salt from our diets.
He explained how this worked, went on to give great detail about making food palatable without salt and asked that we return in 6 weeks.
I did what I was told and on our return my husband's pressure was normal. He had also lost 5lbs.
I was once again called in to be told that in 20 years of practice he had never had a patient who had achieved that and stuck to his instructions.
It wasn't easy but it became routine and our taste buds altered so that everyone else's food tasted excessively salty.
We lived on an island in the tropics so processed food wasn't part of anyone's diet.
We only ate out where the chef prepared food individually (most restaurants 'prep' food in bulk) and he never again had high blood pressure.

SynchroSwimmer, good idea about taking the measurement at home. I forgot that we have a machine at home, from my MIL who passed away earlier this year. I will dig it out and put it to use.

Aveline - will look into hibiscus tea.

To add to the above, my doctor also told me one coffee a day doesn't make a difference, but no more than that.

ps I've always been skinny - inherited from both parents.

Synchro - the conversation with my GP developed into a discussion about how meds can be over subscribed .
ie - and their possible negative effects.

SynchroSwimmer as a ‘white coat* reaction to my BP being taken at the GP’s I take mine at home for a week before my annual check up and email it in.

Not sure if you are recording your own BP in your own relaxed environment at home CanadianGran? - if not, that is what I would suggest - different times of the day.

(Mine is always hugely elevated in the GP surgery - but fantastically healthy in daily readings at home - which are truer readings)

I didn’t realise, but I read somewhere recently that a high percentage of people over 60 are on some form of BP medication - that was a surprise to me, the article was almost normalising it.

Cutting out salt (processed foods such as pies, cooked meats, crisps, bacon, etc) is the best option. Stop smoking, if you do smoke. Exercise more, lose weight if needed.

My blood pressure averaged out at 145/79, over a week, and the GP suggested all those things to me. My cholesterol is 3.2, so is low. I don't smoke, rarely drink, don't eat much processed stuff - but I need to lose weight, which I'm tackling. I'm not on any tablets apart from an antidepressant.

Hibiscus tea helps apparently. I noticed quite a drop in my BP when I lost weight recently.
Good luck.

Borderline is 130/92. The lower diastolic number should be under 80 to be healthy. I am not overweight (BMI 22), exercise regularly, and eat a fairly healthy diet not too high in fats. Also don't drink very much; a cider a few times a week. So I tend to think that there may be a genetic tendency, since both my sisters are on BP medication.

The doctor has asked that I return in about a month to check it again; the last two times I went it was borderline high. Granted, the last time I was there was for a pap test; he admitted that could have raised the pressure a bit!

I will look into beetroot to add to my diet. It is high in antioxidants, so a good thing to add in any case. I'm not looking for a magic supplement, since I realize adding good foods to your diet is better than a highly concentrated supplement. Just open to ideas.

Everything all posters are saying plus porridge for breakfast, for blood pressure stability

I've been taking meds. to lower BP since a heart attack in 2006.
After one of many falls I had a thorough checkup and they showed it could be due to low BP! Like most of us I hadn't had it checked for a couple of years.
So stopped amlodipine completely. Best result is no longer chronic constipation.
I saw my GP -amazing - about another matter recently and he checked my BP, relaxed and suddenly standing - and it was normal.
I also take Atenolol which helps to lower BP.
So we don't always need meds like Amlodipne. And the whole thing is a mystery to me.

what do you mean by 'borderline'?

Being more active helps too. And familial history is often a huge factor. I am overweight and yet have never have very normal BP.

Apparently beetroot is really good at helping with blood pressure.

How much water do you drink? Keeping hydrated can help too.

Apart from, as others have said, keeping your weight and cholesterol down, I don’t think there’s any evidence of magic supplements. If there was we’d all be taking/eating them. Plenty of anecdotal ‘evidence’, little if any medically verified.

Drinking alcohol raises your blood pressure (unfortunately), as does having too much sugar in your diet.

Having a healthy diet is the best way forward, but I have seen that flaxseed can be a good supplement as it helps reduce cholesterol. We have yoghurts etc. here in the UK which have plant sterols added, which do the same job, not sure if they are available in Canada.

Lose weight, lower your blood pressure. Your heart doesn’t have to work as hard getting your blood around your body so the pressure it has to exert will be less.

Adding things to your diet won’t help. It’s taking away that counts?