Five Smart Strategies to Lower Your Blood Pressure Naturally
How to Effectively Treat High Blood Pressure Without Drugs
A vast majority of people can normalize their blood pressure by implementing a few simple techniques that address the underlying cause, namely high insulin levels.
Exercise – One of the most effective ways to lower your insulin levels is through exercise. A regular, effective exercise program consisting of aerobics, sprint-burst type exercises, and strength training, can go a long way toward reducing your insulin levels and your blood pressure.
Ideally, you’ll want someone to supervise your program and monitor your progress. To reap the optimal effects from your exercise program, you’ll need about an hour a day. Just remember to start slowly and work your way up to that level.
Avoid foods that boost insulin levels – Another effective method is to avoid foods that will raise your insulin, such as sugar-type foods and grains. Even whole, organic grains will rapidly break down to sugars, so they too should be avoided.
If you have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or obesity, you’ll want to avoid foods like:
- Breads
- Pasta
- Rice
- Cereal
- Potatoes
While vitamin C may be helpful, you’ll also want to avoid eating too many fruits; the types and amounts being adjusted based on your nutritional type.
One food that can be helpful for reducing your blood pressure is crushed, raw garlic. Many people swear by it, and it’s something you can easily add to your diet.
Reduce your stress – You’ll also want to take steps to reduce your stress, as that is a factor for some people. Prayer, meditation, or the Emotional Freedom Technique are all useful techniques.
Normalize your vitamin D levels – It has recently become clear that normalizing your vitamin D levels can have a powerful effect on normalizing your blood pressure. Lower Vitamin D levels is also unquestionably associated with an increased risk for heart disease.
Additionally, previous research has revealed that if your blood pressure doesn’t drop notably overnight, you run an increased risk of having cardiovascular problems. Here, the connection is also elevated blood sugar (glucose) levels as elevated blood sugars can result in diabetes and other diseases which increase cardiovascular problems.
And likewise, vitamin D has been shown to have a positive impact on diabetes, so it’s all linked together.
Balance your omega-6 to omega-3 fat ratio – Most Americans eating a standard American diet have a ratio of 25:1, which is highly unbalanced. The ideal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is 1:1. Therefore, you’ll want to lower the amount of vegetable oils in your diet, and make sure you have a high quality, animal-based source of omega-3s.
Dr Mercola
A Warning if You have Very High Blood Pressure, or are Currently on Medication for Hypertension
As most of you already know, I’m opposed to taking medications and drugs, and clearly the long term goal is to get off all your medications. However, if you are on a medication, you certainly want to wean yourself off it under the guidance of a healthcare professional.
Additionally, although I hardly ever recommend the use of drugs, it’s VITAL that you do go on a medication to lower your blood pressure if your blood pressure is very high! Otherwise you are putting yourself at serious risk of a stroke, and the brain damage that occurs during a stroke tends to be permanent and irreversible.
You clearly want to make sure you’re not increasing your risk for stroke until you’re able to implement these lifestyle changes. Once the cause of your problem has been addressed, then that will allow you to slowly wean off your medication.
Dr Mercola