5 Natural Ways to Treat High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure, otherwise known as hypertension, often has no symptoms, but it can quietly increase your risk of heart disease and stroke over time if left untreated. Certainly medication may be necessary, but there are small lifestyle changes that can make a big difference.

1) Low Sodium
2) Exercise
3) Weight loss
4) Herbal Supplements
5) Treat Underlying Conditions

LOW SODIUM
How you eat can lower Your Blood Pressure

What you eat has a big impact on your blood pressure. The single most important dietary change you can make is to limit sodium. Sodium doesn't just mean don't use table salt. Sodium is hidden in most of the products you buy from the grocery store. Think Soy sauce, chips, canned soups and vegetables, breakfast sandwiches and ready-made frozen foods, and deli meats.

Why is sodium so important?

The cells of your organs and nerves need a very specific range of sodium concentration to function properly. Your kidneys are responsible for maintaining this concentration at the optimal level. They do this but changing certain hormone levels that can waste or hold on to sodium but this is not very efficient. Our bodies are designed to hold on to sodium which is rare in the natural environment. The more efficient way your kidneys handle sodium is by holding on to more water to keep the ratio or concentration correct. This means more sodium = more water = more swelling and more blood volume in general. More water in the "pipes" will cause higher pressure. (any plumber can tell you that!)

What you can do to Limit Sodium Intake

Check labels, and aim for less than 1,500–2,000 mg/day of sodium from all sources. If it has a food label, check it. You'll be surprised at how much sodium is hidden in many foods you would not expect. Next start finding low-sodium alternatives to those products. You may also consider limiting snacking on chips an pretzels or other very salty snacks, opting for unsalted versions and adding low-sodium flavorings on your own. You can also consider switching from table salt to non-sodium salts such as potassium-based salt (ex. Mrs. Dash). As far as cooking, try to flavor meals with herbs and spices instead of salt

EXERCISE
Moving more Helps

You don’t need a gym membership. Just aim to be active most days. Even light activity is better than none. Take the stairs, park farther away, or stand and stretch every hour. If you can add even 5 minutes of heart pumping exercise three times a week, you'll see a difference. Exercise helps your blood vessels relax and makes your heart more efficient, improving blood pressure. Exercise also improves stress and lowers cortisol levels, which in turn help lower blood pressure as well.

WEIGHT LOSS

Any amount of weight loss you can achieve, be it modest (5-10lbs) or more significant will help lower blood pressure naturally. I have personally guided patients through weight loss efforts which have completely REVERSED their hypertension, and they are able to stop taking medication for their high blood pressure.

HERBAL SUPPLEMENTS

Some dietary supplements can improve blood pressure naturally especially garlic supplements.

UNDERLYING CONDITIONS
Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

If you have obstructive sleep apnea, that means you stop breathing at night when you are sleeping. This raises pulmonary and right heart pressures and also increases cortisol which causes high blood pressure. Often, when we are unable to get a handle on someone's high blood pressure with lifestyle modifications and multiple medications, we start searching for other underlying reasons that may be causing the hypertension. If we diagnose OSA and treat it appropriately, this usually improves blood pressure control. Talk to your doctor if you have had trouble improving your blood pressure and have them consider screening you for sleep apnea.

Hopefully trying some of these things will improve your blood pressure readings and can help limit or even avoid medication altogether.

Stay well,

Sandra Koehn, DO