7 Foods Good for High Blood Pressure

Last Updated on December 21, 2020

Blood pressure is defined as the force at which blood pumped by the heart to arteries. A normal pressure of blood in a human is 120/80 mm Hg. When the pressure of blood is high the blood moves through the arteries very forcefully. High blood pressure can cause serious health problems like heart disease, kidney failure, stroke.

According to a research, nearly 75 millions of Americans are suffering from high blood pressure. Some risk factors of blood pressure are out of control such as family history, age, gender. However, not everyone knows that what we eat on a daily basis can also affect our blood pressure. There are many foods good for high blood pressure that can help you control it. In this article, we will discuss 7 that are generally very available.

7 Foods that are Good for High Blood Pressure

Foods that help to lower high blood pressure

1. Green leafy vegetables

Green vegetables are full of potassium.Potassium helps to reduce the sodium levels from kidneys through urines.This help in reducing the blood pressure in the body.
Leafy greens, which are high in potassium, include:

• Romaine lettuce
• Arugula
• Kale
• Turnip greens
• Collard greens
• Spinach

2. Pomegranates

These are very delicious fruit every person love to eat as raw as well juice. Pomegranates are rich in iron. One research suggests that if a person drinks pomegranate juice daily for r weeks that help in lowering the blood pressure. Pomegranate is Healthy fruit and also a healthy breakfast.

3. Beetroots

Beetroot looks like an red wine.They are a very high nitric oxide which is very helpful in reducing the high blood pressure.You can make juice of beetroots or you can eat it raw or cooked. It is very helpful in lowering the pressure if taken regularly.

4. Oatmeal

Oatmeal is very rich in fiber, energy, protein and low in fat, sodium. If you eat oatmeal on daily basis it helps in lowering the pressure of blood because it is low in salt and fat.

5. Bananas

Banana is commonly available fruits. You can easily get those and eat on regular basis.

Due to the fact that bananas are a rich source of potassium and at the same time they contain practically no sodium, they are a suitable fruit for people suffering from high blood pressure. Many scientific studies have unequivocally confirmed that the consumption of high amounts of potassium has a hypotensive effect (lowering blood pressure) (1).

The high level of potassium in bananas also has a dehydrating effect. This means that thanks to the regular consumption of bananas, our body will not retain unnecessary water. 100 g of bananas contain 358 mg of potassium!

6. Garlic

Researchers at the University of Adelaide in Australia conducted a meta-analysis of studies from 1955 to 2007 and found that garlic has antihypertensive properties in people with hypertension.

It has long been believed that garlic has a beneficial effect on the heart – among other things, it lowers the level of bad cholesterol and reduces blood pressure in patients with untreated high blood pressure. However, an Australian study for the first time looked at people with persistent hypertension despite taking conventional medications.

This feature of garlic is mainly due to the content of allicin (a compound that gives garlic its characteristic smell). Most of the studies used powdered garlic in an amount of 600–900 mg, corresponding to 3.6–5.4 mg of allicin. A 2 gram clove of garlic provides 5-9 mg of allicin. It is also believed that the amount of active substances depends on the cooking method. The least amount of allicin is contained in garlic exposed to high temperature.

It has been suggested that garlic can lower high blood pressure by increasing the amount of nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide helps in dilating blood vessels or widening the arteries.

7. Dark chocolate

A study found that eating dark chocolate help in lower risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The study suggests up to 100 grams per day of dark chocolate may be associated with a lower risk of CVD.

A study in Germany showed that even a small amount of dark chocolate each day can reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke by as much as 39%. For ten years, scientists monitored the diet and health habits of nearly 20,000 middle-aged Germans. Statistical analysis showed that people who ate about one square of chocolate daily had significantly lower blood pressure compared to those who ate as little or no chocolate.

A recent systematic meta-analysis combining data from seven wide-ranging observational studies (more than 100,000 people) found similar conclusions: the highest daily consumption of chocolate was associated with a 37% reduction in risk of heart attack and a 29% reduction in risk of stroke compared to the lowest daily consumption of chocolate.

Dark chocolate contains more than 60 percent cocoa solids and has less sugar than regular chocolate.