Even losing as little as 10 pounds can lower your blood pressure. Americans eat far too much dietary sodium, up to three times the recommended total amount, which is 1, milligrams mg daily for individuals with high blood pressure, says Dr. There's half of that amount of sodium in one Egg McMuffin breakfast sandwich.

Weed out high-sodium foods by reading labels carefully. Beware in particular of what the American Heart Association has dubbed the "salty six," common foods where high amounts of sodium may be lurking:. It doesn't take much exercise to make a difference in your health.

Aim for a half-hour at least five days a week. Women lose muscle mass steadily as we age, and weightlifting is an often-overlooked part of an exercise plan for most women," says Fisher. Stress hormones constrict your blood vessels and can lead to temporary spikes in blood pressure.

In addition, over time, stress can trigger unhealthy habits that put your cardiovascular health at risk. These might include overeating, poor sleep, and misusing drugs and alcohol. For all these reasons, reducing stress should be a priority if you're looking to lower your blood pressure.

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PLUS, the latest news on medical advances and breakthroughs from Harvard Medical School experts. Sign up now and get a FREE copy of the Best Diets for Cognitive Fitness. Stay on top of latest health news from Harvard Medical School. Regular exercise strengthens your heart so it doesn't strain to pump blood through your body and can lower your blood pressure.

In addition, studies show people who follow cardio and resistance training programs could significantly lower their elevated blood pressure. For optimum heart health, the American College of Cardiology, and the American Heart Association AHA recommend minutes of moderate-intensity exercise like brisk walking or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise like heavy lifting or running per week.

Consuming too much sodium can cause you to retain fluid, which can increase your blood pressure. The AHA recommends consuming no more than 2, milligrams of sodium daily, and no less than 1, to keep your blood pressure in check.

Table salt is the most common source of dietary sodium. One teaspoon of salt contains 2, milligrams of sodium. Checking nutrition labels can help you avoid extra salt that can sneak into your diet. For example, processed foods like deli meat, chips, and canned soup are typically high in sodium.

Not everyone will get high blood pressure from consuming high-sodium diets. Some people are more sensitive to sodium.

People who are not as sensitive to sodium can often urinate any extra sodium without retaining fluid or developing high blood pressure. Increasing your intake of potassium can also help lower your blood pressure. This essential mineral helps relax blood vessels and process sodium out of your body faster.

Adults with or without high blood pressure should aim for 2,, milligrams mg of potassium daily. Foods rich in potassium include:. Your healthcare provider may also suggest following the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension DASH diet to lower blood pressure.

This diet limits sodium to 1, mg a day and focuses on getting 4, mg of potassium by eating whole foods like fruits, vegetables, and low-fat meat and dairy. Limiting sugar and refined carbohydrates carbs stripped of fiber, minerals, and vitamins can help lower blood pressure over time.

A review found that diets high in sugar can increase blood pressure more than salt. Another study found that people who were overweight or had obesity lowered their blood pressure after following low-carb and low-fat diets for six months. Low-carb diets limit carbs to grams g per day, including carbs in starchy vegetables, high-sugar fruits, bread, pasta, and sugary foods.

In addition, AHA recommends that men limit sugar to 9 teaspoons 36 g and women limit sugar to 6 teaspoons 25 g daily. For reference, a ounce soda contains nearly 8 teaspoons 32 g of added sugar.

Stress is linked to high blood pressure. However, research shows that stress-reducing activities like yoga and meditation may help people lower their blood pressure.

A review found that people who did yoga decreased their diastolic and systolic blood pressure more than those who didn't exercise. However, the yoga included breathing control, yoga postures, and meditation.

Another review found transcendental meditation and mindfulness-based stress reduction helped slightly reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure in people who were taking and not taking blood pressure medication.

While you snooze, your body naturally lowers blood pressure. So if you don't get adequate sleep, you'll have higher blood pressure for longer durations. Therefore, people who experience insomnia and sleep deprivation —especially people 45 years or older—are more at risk of high blood pressure.

A research article also found evidence that people who sleep less than seven hours at night are more likely to have high blood pressure. Over time, not getting enough sleep may cause blood pressure to rise, so finding time to get at least seven hours each night may help lower your blood pressure.

Diets rich in protein and fiber may help lower high blood pressure. To increase your protein intake, look for foods containing at least 7 g per ounce. High-protein foods include fish, eggs, meat, beans, legumes, nuts, and dairy products like cheese and Greek yogurt.

Research has also shown that whey protein supplements may help lower systolic blood pressure. It is estimated that consuming at least 3 g of docosahexaenoic acid DHA and eicosapentaenoic acid EPA omega-3 fatty acids may help decrease your blood pressure.

These forms of polyunsaturated fat are essential for a healthy body and heart health. A meta-analysis found that fish oil an omega-3 supplement helped reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels in people with high blood pressure. The U. Food and Drug Administration also supports that consuming omega-3 from food and dietary supplements reduces the risk of high blood pressure and coronary heart disease.

Eating more omegarich foods like salmon, tuna, flaxseed, and chia seed can also help you improve your omega-3 levels. While research is limited, it's purported that taking magnesium , and garlic specifically kyolic garlic as dietary supplements may help lower your blood pressure.

High blood pressure has been linked to a magnesium deficiency, and magnesium can help your body maintain a normal heart rhythm. Research also shows that L-citrulline—a type of amino acid forms proteins—can help people lower systolic blood pressure. This may be because L-citrulline helps increase nitric oxide levels, relaxing the arteries and improving blood flow.

Before taking any dietary supplements, chat with your healthcare provider. Drinking alcohol can increase your blood pressure, and interact with blood pressure medications you may be taking. Research has shown that drinking more than 30 g of alcohol increases systolic and diastolic blood pressure after 13 or more hours of drinking—even though it initially lowered blood pressure.

If you are diagnosed with hypertension, your healthcare provider may suggest cutting back or eliminating alcohol. Try limiting alcohol to one ounce beer, one 4-ounce glass of wine, or only 1. Due to the nicotine in tobacco, smoking temporarily increases heart rate and blood pressure each time you smoke.

However, the long-term effect of smoking on blood pressure is a little unclear. An extensive review found that smokers had lower blood pressure than nonsmokers. Conversely, a study found smoking worsened high blood pressure in young adults.

A study also found that smoking electronic cigarettes increased blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.

Despite the inconclusive research, smoking can damage your heart and blood vessels. As a result, major organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC recommend quitting smoking to help manage high blood pressure and heart disease risk.

Caffeine can temporarily raise your blood pressure, even if you don't have high blood pressure. However, this effect isn't a risk for most people, and some research even shows caffeine may help lower the risk of high blood pressure.

That said, people with high blood pressure may have issues with caffeine. A study found that people with hypertension increased their blood pressure and their risk of heart disease if they drank more than two cups of coffee every day.

Although research on this is limited, even the AHA notes that people with high blood pressure should limit caffeine and drink only one 8-ounce cup of coffee or caffeinated tea daily.

Even with lifestyle changes, your healthcare provider may recommend taking prescription medications to help lower your blood pressure. Blood pressure medications used to treat hypertension include:.

The simplest ways to lower your blood pressure are implementing lifestyle changes that involve a nutritious diet, lowering sodium, and exercise.

Other things that help are reducing stress, getting more sleep, and limiting alcohol consumption. If you have high blood pressure, talk with your healthcare provider before making any drastic dietary changes or adding new supplements to your diet.

Your healthcare provider can help you determine the best methods to reduce blood pressure for you. Over time your heart gets stronger and pumps with less effort.

This puts less pressure on your arteries and lowers your blood pressure. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC recommend doing at least 2.

For children and teens, the CDC recommend 1 hour of exercise per day. Why is regular exercise good for you? Having additional body weight puts a strain on the heart and the cardiovascular system. This can raise blood pressure.

If your body mass index BMI is 25 or over, losing 5—10 pounds can help reduce your blood pressure. It can also lower the risk of other health problems. Get some tips on losing weight here. Restricting sugar and refined carbohydrates may help you lose weight and lower your blood pressure.

People with overweight or obesity who followed low carb and low fat diets saw their diastolic blood pressure fall by an average of about 5 mm Hg and their systolic blood pressure by 3 mm Hg after 6 months. What is the difference between diastolic and systolic blood pressure?

Is it safe to follow a no-carb diet? Increasing your potassium intake and cutting back on salt can help lower your blood pressure. A high salt intake can increase the risk of blood pressure, while reducing salt intake lowers it.

Potassium helps the body eliminate salt and eases tension in your blood vessels. High potassium foods include:. However, a high potassium intake may be harmful to people with kidney disease , so talk with your doctor before increasing your potassium intake. Nutrition labels can help you decide which foods to eat and which to avoid.

What effects does potassium have on the body? The National Institutes of Health recommend the DASH Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension as a heart-healthy option.

The DASH diet emphasizes:. What are some heart-healthy foods? Processed foods are often high in salt, added sugar, and unhealthy fats. They may lead to weight gain. All these factors can contribute high blood pressure. Foods labeled low fat may be high in salt and sugar to compensate for the loss of fat.

Fat is what gives food taste and makes you feel full. Eating less processed food will help you eat less salt, less sugar, and fewer refined carbohydrates. All of this can result in lower blood pressure. Smoking can affect your all-around health, including your blood pressure. One study showed that nonsmokers in areas with smoke-free restaurants, bars, and workplaces had lower blood pressure than nonsmokers in areas without smoke-free policies.

Get some tips here for stopping smoking. Finding ways to manage stress is important for your health and your blood pressure. Ways of relieving stress depend on the individual but can include:.

Get some tips here for relieving stress. Cacao contains flavonoids, an antioxidant that may help lower blood pressure. These flavonoids may help dilate, or widen, your blood vessels. However, the American Heart Association notes that while eating a little dark chocolate is unlikely to be harmful, the amount a person is likely to eat per day will probably not provide enough flavonoids to produce health benefits.

Does dark chocolate have other benefits? Some herbal medicines may help lower blood pressure. However, more research is needed to identify the doses and components in the herbs that are most useful. Always check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking herbal supplements. They may interfere with your prescription medications.

Learn more about herbal remedies for high blood pressure. Sleep deprivation may increase the risk of high blood pressure. Tips for sleeping well include :. Get some tips on sleeping well. Fresh garlic or garlic extract may help lower blood pressure.

One review found that for people with high blood pressure, garlic supplements reduced their systolic blood pressure by up to about 5 mm Hg and their diastolic blood pressure by up to 2.