8 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure 

Prescription blood pressure medication is one effective way to treat high blood pressure (HBP). But making a few fundamental lifestyle changes can help lower your blood pressure naturally.

Diet, exercise, behavioral health, and other natural solutions can maximize your hypertension meds and even minimize your need for medication over time. Plus, they’re great ways to stay healthy, whether you’re worried about high blood pressure or not. Check out these 8 natural ways to lower blood pressure.

1. Lose weight if you have a higher weight.

As a general rule, the higher your weight, the higher your blood pressure. Not everyone with high blood pressure has a high weight. But if your BMI is over 25, you’ll likely be able to reduce your blood pressure by dropping some weight.

Losing excess weight can dramatically impact both your systolic and diastolic readings. Recent studies found that you can lower your systolic blood pressure between 5-20 points for every 20 pounds you lose. Even losing a small amount of weight, 2.2 pounds, can help lower your readings by a point.

It’s essential to reduce extra weight around your waistline. Surplus weight there puts more pressure on your heart than it would if carried by other parts of your body. In general, men with a waist measurement over 40” and women over 35” are at greater risk.

2. Exercise and Stay Active.

Staying active helps keep one of your body’s most essential muscles strong— your heart. The stronger your heart is, the easier it is to pump blood throughout your body. The easier it is for your heart to pump blood, the lower your blood pressure.

Daily exercise is another highly effective path to lowering blood pressure naturally. Regular exercise can keep you from developing hypertension if you’re at risk and can reduce your BP levels if you’ve already been diagnosed with hypertension.

Aim for moderate aerobic exercise most days, plus a couple of strength training days for maximum benefit. Jogging, brisk walking, swimming, dancing, and riding a bike are great ways to stay active through aerobic exercise.

But it’s all about finding a way to keep active that works for you. You can count everyday tasks like cleaning, gardening, hiking, and team sports if it’s a better fit.

3. Eat less salt.

Table salt, or sodium chloride, has been well-established as a correlate of high blood pressure.

The more salt you put in your body, the more water your body stores to try to flush it out. When you have excess salt in your bloodstream, you pull water into your arteries and the added volume inside arterial blood vessels increases your blood pressure.

Your arteries work hard to process the excess salt you eat, elevating your BP. And chronic high blood pressure from excess salt can also cause plaque to build up inside your vessels that can slow or stop blood flow.

Did you know that more than 70% of the sodium you eat comes from prepackaged foods and restaurants? That’s why you can reduce your intake by cooking fresh food for yourself at home.

Even cutting out some of your daily salt intake can significantly lower your blood pressure levels. Aim to eat no more than 2,300 mg of salt a day and, if you can, cut back to 1,500 mg of salt daily.

4. Limit your alcohol intake.

If you have more than 3 drinks in a sitting, alcohol can cause a spike in your blood pressure. Heavy drinkers are at even greater risk of HBP since chronic alcohol use can cause long-term increases in your blood pressure levels.

To avoid this, we suggest limiting your alcohol intake. And if you have hypertension, the best policy is to avoid alcohol altogether.

But if you do drink, make sure you do it in moderation. This means no more than 2 drinks a day for men under 65, no more than 1 drink a day for men over 65, and no more than 1 drink a day for women, regardless of age.

5. Eat healthy foods.

In general, try to stay away from foods high in fat and avoid processed foods, which often contain high levels of salt and other preservatives. It’s also best to remove red meat, desserts, and sugary drinks from your diet altogether.

But it’s not just what you don’t eat that affects your blood pressure. The good stuff you put in your body can help lower your BP levels. Be sure to eat plenty of whole grains, veggies, and fruits. Add in some low-fat dairy products, lean meats, and fish, plus nuts, seeds, and legumes.

Many people with high blood pressure see measurable results when following the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet. This diet is rich in potassium and magnesium, which can help you naturally lower blood pressure.

6. Stop smoking.

Smoking just one cigarette can cause a spike in your BP levels for minutes afterward. That’s only one of the many reasons healthcare professionals suggest you quit smoking.

Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health period. By quitting, you’ll not only lower your risk of heart disease and hypertension, but you’ll also give your lungs and the rest of your body a chance to heal.

But here’s some added incentive for folks with HBP or at risk of developing it. After 1-2 years, your risk of heart attack drops significantly. And after 15 years, your risk of heart disease is the same as someone who’s never smoked.

7. Reduce stress levels.

Reducing stress and anxiety in your life is another powerful way to combat HBP. Stress has a proven impact on physical and mental health. Recent studies have demonstrated that chronic psychological stress is one of the contributing factors in the development of hypertension.

Some of the most widely experienced causes of chronic stress have to do with work, marital and other intimate relationships, social isolation, poverty, and racial discrimination.

In addition to these causes, ruminative or catastrophic thinking can also cause spikes in blood pressure.

Mindfulness, meditation, and qigong are the practices that directly combat the effects of stress-related spikes in blood pressure.

8. Get enough good sleep.

Insufficient sleep increases your blood pressure. In addition to the number of hours you sleep each night, it’s also essential to look at the quality of sleep you’re getting. Problems like insomnia and poor sleep quality have also been correlated to HBP.

Your body needs sleep to restore itself, and getting enough rest each night can protect both your physical and mental health. Healthcare professionals recommend that adults get at least 7-9 hours of sleep each night.

In fact, if you’re sleeping for 6 or fewer hours a night, there’s a better chance you’ll develop HBP, elevated heart rate, and mental health issues like depression and anxiety.

Finally, obstructive sleep apnea increases the chance of hypertension and other health problems. You’re at greater risk for sleep apnea if you’re overweight, especially if you snore.