5 Ways To Lower Your Blood Pressure Without Medication

5 ways to lower your blood pressure without medication

If you've avoided going to see your primary care provider this year confident that you're fit as a fiddle, you might be missing out on some critical health information.

Whether you're coming in for a well check or because you're sick, one of the first things the office will do is check your blood pressure. Blood pressure is a great indicator of general heart health. Your systolic blood pressure (the upper number) should be between 100 and 120 mm Hg and the diastolic (the lower number) should be between 60 and 80 mm Hg.

If your blood pressure is high 130 + your heart and arteries are working under greater stress. If your blood pressure is chronically high, that continued stress can strain and damage the artery walls, promote plaque accumulation and lead to stroke or heart attack. However, there are often no obvious symptoms of high blood pressure until something dramatic or possibly fatal occurs.

Having regular appointments with your provider allows your blood pressure to be regularly monitored, and, if need be, you can work together to lower your risks.

Whether you have already identified that you have high blood pressure, or you want to avoid developing high blood pressure we asked Natalie Norem FNP-BC for pointers on how to keep blood pressure in check before using medication.

"Whether you're taking medication for blood pressure or not, these five ways can help lower your blood pressure:

Walk it out
No seriously, just walking briskly 30 minutes a day can help lower your blood pressure. By exercising your heart you help it become more efficient, which lowers pressure. It doesn't have to be walking. Any aerobic activity that you enjoy such as dancing, biking, swimming, etc., works. While exercise helps the health of your arteries, it also has an added bonus – building muscle and burning fat to keep you or help you get to a healthy weight (see point 2.) The Core at La Encantada has classes to help.
Lose the pounds
Talk to your primary care provider about what a healthy weight would be and, if overweight, make a plan to lose the pounds. Increasing exercise and changing eating habits can make the difference. Just know that healthy weight loss takes time.
Find your Om
Increasingly, there is evidence that meditation can modestly lower blood pressure. The goal is 10-20 minutes a day, but for many of us that may be too long to start with. Try starting with just 5 minutes and work up to more time.

Sitting meditation: Sit in a quiet space, with your eyes soft or closed, focus on a word or phrase. It can be a traditional mantra, or if that has too much of a 60s vibe, perhaps something like 'I am' or 'Letting go.' You can also recite a favorite prayer over and over again. If random thoughts, or worries from the day enter your mind don't worry. Let the thoughts come in and leave and refocus on your word. There is a collection of meditation videos on the TMC HealthCare YouTube page here that are a great starting place. Try tai chi. Tai chi is the ultimate classic moving meditation - gentle, continuous movements that focus on breath and balance.

Season your food with a DASH less sodium
Salt adds taste, but it also adds sodium to your system. Your body holds onto water to dilute the sodium, the extra water increases your blood volume and your heart has to work harder to push the blood around your body. Lower your salt intake by using herbs and spices, lime juice and vinegar to season your food. Avoid processed foods, which often have added sodium and sugar in them or choose those that are labeled as low-sodium. Be particularly aware of hidden sources of sodium such as processed meats, hot dogs, sausages, cheeses, sauces and condiments, broths and soups
Watch your alcohol consumption
A few drinks one evening will temporarily raise your blood pressure, but repeating a few drinks every few nights can lead to long-term increases. If you have high blood pressure cut alcohol out or drink alcohol in moderation. That means one drink a day for women or two drinks for men. Before you pour that cocktail and call it a single drink, know what a single drink is considered: